Game: GOLDEN AGE BEST ARTIST SURVIVOR SERIES: Round 2

[Dale Roberts]

I like Russ Heath, but he is kind of a tweener. Alot of his best work was in the Silver Age. Sorry, but I don't really think he has a shot here.

[rjpb]

Voted for Hogarth., Never really liked how he drew the human anatomy.

 

 

Well he's no Rob Liefeld - that's for sure.

[Paratrooper]

I like Russ Heath, but he is kind of a tweener. Alot of his best work was in the Silver Age. Sorry, but I don't really think he has a shot here.

 

I might be biased....

[rjpb]

Without any sort of qualifiers or parameters, this is the most inane version of this poll yet. All of these guys are giants; none are "better" than another. At least with the most important BA book poll some sort of rationale was possible, albeit a subjective one. This is just a battle of apples and oranges, chocolate vs. vanilla. I'm a sap, I just can't say any of these guys are more or less deserving of accolades.

 

Well some are more deserving than others in the estimation of many, but I know what you're saying - but it's all in fun, it's not like we'll be putting up a plaque anywhere at the end. It's like all those 100 best lists that popped up at the end of the last century. How qualified really were the people who put those lists together to make a judgment as to how to definitively rank the best of anything, yet if it showed up on the cover of a magazine, people acted like it was gospel.

[rjpb]

Going with Joe Simon. Should never have been on this poll. Much better artists out there. And besides, most of his best work was as a tracer.

 

My choice as well - I think I'm going to be 2 for 2 - unless the Hogarth haters come on strong.

[The Black Hand ®]

Going with Joe Simon. Should never have been on this poll. Much better artists out there. And besides, most of his best work was as a tracer.

 

My choice as well - I think I'm going to be 2 for 2 - unless the Hogarth haters come on strong.

Mine too.

[Dale Roberts]

I like Russ Heath, but he is kind of a tweener. Alot of his best work was in the Silver Age. Sorry, but I don't really think he has a shot here.

 

I might be biased....

 

I really like his stuff too. Especially Sea Devils. Wow. Those are some great books

[BangZoom]

 

I'm not of the opinion that Hogarth should even be a part of this competition, but since he's on the list...

 

Here are some more examples of his work.

 

 

 

 

[Paratrooper]

In case people forgot what Heath GA art looks like...

 

[Doctor Svord]

We should just end this poll and declare Russ Heath the winner.

 

Why Russ Heath?

 

Why should Russ Heath be the winner of this poll?

 

What about Heath's work do you find appealing? (And, I'm not talking about the "touchy-feely" Heath's work speaks to you on an emotional level appealing. Altho, that's also valid. I once stood in front of Sargent's "Madam X", and was completely stunned. If you're not familiar with John Singer Sargent, check this out: http://jssgallery.org/Paintings/Gassed/Gassed.htm )

 

Is it Heath's realism?

 

Is it is his use of dramatic light?

 

Is it the way he structures the drawing?

 

Is it his subject matter?

 

Why Russ Heath?

[Paratrooper]

Well, it was actually a toss up between Russ Heath and Grandenetti for me, but since Grandenetti wasn't in the list...

 

It's pretty much their gritty realism and attention to detail. You can look at some of their covers dozens of times and notice something new each and every time. Some of their artwork captures the human spirit, almost makes me wonder if they put a little of their emotions into their work.

[Scrooge]

First impressions of Raboy from the last thread...his figures do look kind of posed, and overall I found the interior work kind of boring and repetitive. Figures are all the same size, panels the same size, little detail in the background.

 

Raboy was very, very good but slow for a comic book artist so you'll definitely see repetition in his poses, sometimes due to "cut and paste" from old stories to create new ones.

 

Sorry for the duplication but I though I should move this over here from the other thread -

 

Thanks for posting the Raboy interior artwork, Michael. I`m now debating whether to move Raboy to #1. His faces and linework are incredible, although I can see why some people criticize him for drawing too many characters in poses.

 

Well, you've got to like my honesty in this because I have learned over the years not to like Raboy as much as I used to. The above is the best Raboy ever did I think. It's so disheartening to see later stories where poses are copies over and over. Heck, even when Al Carreno was doing the art, here and there showed up some Raboy, photostated and pasted on top. It's quite jarring really. I talked to Steranko once and told him that I put Raboy in the "cold" artists category as he defines them and in a heartbeat agreed that it was a perfect example of beautiful art without a "soul". It's technically good but does not move the reader. Maybe I shouldn't use Steranko as a reference but I think the guy knows a thing or two about art (if not about perspective once in a while ...). By this, I mean that Raboy will not be in my top 5. Might be in my top 10. We'll see.

 

I voted for Schomburg this round Those pages are burnt in my mind and it's hurting.

 

 

[Scrooge]

Hoping that Hogarth gets booted b/c he shouldn't be in here, I'll show one of his early Tarzan Sunday page before he goes away in the dark ... This is the 8 / 13 / 1937 Sunday -

 

[Doctor Svord]

Well, it was actually a toss up between Russ Heath and Grandenetti for me, but since Grandenetti wasn't in the list...

 

It's pretty much their gritty realism and attention to detail. You can look at some of their covers dozens of times and notice something new each and every time. Some of their artwork captures the human spirit, almost makes me wonder if they put a little of their emotions into their work.

 

Always seeing something new in an artist's work? Very cool.

 

It's a safe bet that Heath put quite a bit of his emotions into the work.

 

"...Charlie Russell was my favorite because his work was absolutely authentic, because he drew what he lived...." (from the Heath Wiki http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russ_Heath )

 

He's great. No doubts about it.

 

 

[rza808]

In my opinion most of GA art is "cold" but they are excellent artist none the less. Frazetta had great dynamics to his art but people question his body of work. This will be interesting as things inch toward top ten. Funny how only a select few are getting their art showcased. I think this is a great poll/contest as I get to learn a lot. Thanks for a great poll and keep on posting

[innocuous]

I can't believe I missed the first two polls. Some great comments in here though. Looking forward to the next one. Firing up GCD now and pulling out my Gerber guides.

[Doctor Svord]

 

I voted for Schomburg this round Those pages are burnt in my mind and it's hurting.

 

 

You know, they have a pill for that now.

 

Thanks for the Raboy observations. A "cold" artist? Beauty without "soul"? Those are the pitfalls hyper-realism. Raymond avoids them with the beauty of his line. Raboy, not so much.

[adamstrange]

I like Russ Heath, but he is kind of a tweener. Alot of his best work was in the Silver Age. Sorry, but I don't really think he has a shot here.

 

I might be biased....

 

I really like his stuff too. Especially Sea Devils. Wow. Those are some great books

 

Heath's early work is always good but it's from about 1953 on that you'll generally see the level of quality that people associate with his name. I think he would say that his SA and BA work was generally a level above the work done before that time.

[adamstrange]

First impressions of Raboy from the last thread...his figures do look kind of posed, and overall I found the interior work kind of boring and repetitive. Figures are all the same size, panels the same size, little detail in the background.

 

Raboy was very, very good but slow for a comic book artist so you'll definitely see repetition in his poses, sometimes due to "cut and paste" from old stories to create new ones.

 

Sorry for the duplication but I though I should move this over here from the other thread -

 

Thanks for posting the Raboy interior artwork, Michael. I`m now debating whether to move Raboy to #1. His faces and linework are incredible, although I can see why some people criticize him for drawing too many characters in poses.

 

Well, you've got to like my honesty in this because I have learned over the years not to like Raboy as much as I used to. The above is the best Raboy ever did I think. It's so disheartening to see later stories where poses are copies over and over. Heck, even when Al Carreno was doing the art, here and there showed up some Raboy, photostated and pasted on top. It's quite jarring really. I talked to Steranko once and told him that I put Raboy in the "cold" artists category as he defines them and in a heartbeat agreed that it was a perfect example of beautiful art without a "soul". It's technically good but does not move the reader. Maybe I shouldn't use Steranko as a reference but I think the guy knows a thing or two about art (if not about perspective once in a while ...). By this, I mean that Raboy will not be in my top 5. Might be in my top 10. We'll see.

 

I voted for Schomburg this round Those pages are burnt in my mind and it's hurting.

 

 

I think "cold" or perhaps "stiff" is an apt description for his stories, but for his covers? Not so much. Raboy had more of an illustrators mentality in his ability focus on and perfect a single image and that worked against him in producing comic stories. He was very adept at producing covers of artistic grace and beauty that successfully conveyed the appropriate theme or sentiment.

 

Green Lama 7, btw, has another superb story drawn by Raboy using washtones.

[adamstrange]

Well, it was actually a toss up between Russ Heath and Grandenetti for me, but since Grandenetti wasn't in the list...

 

It's pretty much their gritty realism and attention to detail. You can look at some of their covers dozens of times and notice something new each and every time. Some of their artwork captures the human spirit, almost makes me wonder if they put a little of their emotions into their work.

 

Grandenetti's work showed dramatic improvement around the time of the introduction of the comics code (1955) so I would suggest him more for a SA artist contest.

 

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