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Showing posts with label DC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label DC. Show all posts

Wednesday, November 16, 2022

Kevin Conroy: BATMAN Forever


                                                                                                                                                              



 From the very first words you spoke; we knew you were Batman. It was the sound, the tone, the heart of the character; we hadn’t realized it but we had heard the voice collectively in our minds forever. We celebrate your life, your many accomplishments, we mourn your passing.




Kevin explains the importance of Batman to the multi-generational fans of the character.




Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Bill Sienkiewicz "REVOLUTION"


 The arrival of Bill Sienkiewicz’s “Revolution” has been cause for much personal celebration and many declarations. I am a committed and constant follower and admirer of his art. I remember him from his early “Neal Adams Clone Days” and still seeing something of a potential and particular originality in what he was doing. Many comic book artists of the period were doing Adams; he was the standard of the times, so Sienkiewicz was hardly alone in following the Adams example.  At the outset Bill Sienkiewicz had the distinction of being the best of the Adams’ influenced. Even in that he stood out. He captured the broad strokes and the nuances along with the imagination and innovation that made Neal Adams famous. Bill Sienkiewicz would ultimately come into his on with a vengeance when; as he describes in “Revolution” stops attempting to emulate someone else and becomes himself. He always wanted to experiment, explore and in his own way influence the world. He has done that in many ways and in the process influenced many others as he entertains and inspires while daring to express himself in what many considered a limited medium.

                                                                                     



I more or less initially looked at this treasure of a book in two extended sessions. The opening ten pages spoke more than many enclypedic collections of other art and artists. Then I followed with the reading of the heart felt, precisely intriguing, witty and decisively cunning introduction by Neil Gaiman. The two; Gaiman and Sienkiewicz have collaborated successfully together in the past. They are equally noted for their experimental risks, daring natures and contributions as talents. That in turn was enough for me to absorb on one late evening after my copy arrived.


Returning to and then reading the informative and insightful Ben Davis essay and the compelling interview by Churl R. Kim I felt even more enamored of what could be described as the modest and uniquely American Mystique of Sienkiewicz’s persona.  Both essay and interview were further illuminated with yet more beautifully executed fine art influenced illustrations. I was in something of an intellectual and artistic bliss.


Finally I decided to take in the nearly one hundred fifty color and black & white plates of the expressive works; water-colors, acrylic, collage, mixed-medium and pen & ink works of pure genius. Here; I took a cue from Neil Gaiman. He detailed in the introduction that when working with Sienkiewicz he had taken the drawings sent to him for a Sandman story and played with them. Gaiman deviated from the sequence of his original narrative and essentially reversed and mixed the story sequence images and events. This established the need for an almost complete re-write for the material Gaiman had previously plotted. This option took him into uncharted and magnificent new places in his own uniquely personal imaginative spaces.   




I decided on following Gaiman’s lead in viewing  the remainder of the book starting from the last plate and reviewing them in reverse.  The material consisted of Jimi Hendrix, The New Mutants, Stray Toasters, Dare Devil and Elektra; along with pages from his sketch book and fine art renderings all generously offered. This came together into something thrilling, challenging, provocative and entertaining. I found myself touched and as well moved. Ultimately there was a sense of certainty and complexity; in the best way, a personal restoration of significant satisfaction. 






Bill Sienkiewicz Quotes



“I made a decision to love and respect comics as a medium. I believed it was a medium that could do anything.”

“I pursue the emotional truth of something as opposed to simply the visual truth.”


“We are all an evolving combination of all the things we experience. We are an end result of our influences, subconscious or otherwise.”




“If my work influences or touches other people scares them, makes them uncomfortable or brings them joy, it’s a method of communication.”



“At one point everything is brand new, but with time the new wave becomes the old guard.”

“Art is an ongoing and never ending process…you’re not done. You’re never done.”



Monday, September 2, 2013

The Wholly Original & Brilliantly Unique Jae Lee

           
        
 
 
 
His work is decorative, minimal intricate, detailed and refined. The work in many ways is a genre unto itself. Artist/Illustrator Jae lee is the elegance among the utilitarian, the poetry among the mundane. lee is best known for his still bourgeoning career as a graphic story-teller for Marvel and DC comics. His assignments consist of the “special” and the “heavy-weight” projects. Marvel’s adaptation of the Stephen King series “The Dark Tower” went to lee and it is to date is his most powerful achievement. The panels are rich with substance, alluring and visceral to an extreme. The ‘Tower” books; scripted by Peter David with King himself serving as creative and executive director are treasures.
 
 
                   
 
 
Lee is easily placing himself among the greats both in and outside of the comic medium with past and contemporary artists. Visionaries from Maxfield Parrish to Chris Van Allsburg are rivaled and complimented by lee. The master sculpture Michelangelo can even be referenced by the work of lee. The “Pieta” seems to be an inspiration for Lee who is quickly becoming a master of his craft and as an artist surpassing all norms.
                    
 
                                                                                                    
 
“The Illustrated Dracula” by Bram Stoker illustrated by Jae lee is one of the handsomest volumes of any modern publication. The book fits perfectly into the hand. It is precisely weighted and just plain feels good to hold. In another time this wouldn’t be so much a consideration but in this increasingly print less society it is a committed endorsement of the ancient process of book making. The paperback edition in design gives the illusion of worn leather and it is  tompe-l’oeil used to spectacular effect. I am reminded of a church hymnal in that it is very equal in look and size. The illustrations are not intrusive or distractions but give the edition an intended welcoming illumination. The enhanced drawings are again minimal, gothic and beautiful.

 
 
 
Jae lee’s new work remains anticipated by his followers and he seldom fails to deliver certain greatness into a pretentious, while ordinary world of massive mediocrity. His involvement with DC Comic’s reboot “Batman/Superman” series gives a marked importance to what might otherwise be a failed project. Lee’s efforts are always interesting, always pushing a little farther than the pack. The folks at DC have fallen behind their chief competition Marvel. They have been vastly outdistanced and hope to revamp and capitalize in publishing and especially in the film industry. Marvel has captured a large portion of the film world with “The Avengers” and their other film franchises like “Thor, Iron-Man and Captain America.” The popularity, quality and fascination Lee brings to his projects are intrinsically valuable especially at this critical time for the industry. DC Comics sees a successful “Batman/Superman” book as essential to their efforts and a prelude to a “Justice League” film franchise.

 


Jae Lee is an artist of the highest standards; someone to count on to deliver and to thrill. Look for him in a book store near you. The Graphic Novel section would be the place to begin; then on to the classics of literature and beyond.