Where are the modern Bernie Wrightson,Adams,Byrne,Miller,Perez,Smith,Starlin and McFarlane today? 0

[delekkerste]

There are many talented artists working in comics today.  That said, how many are actually helping to push the boundaries of the visual language of the medium, as opposed to merely incrementally evolving from what McFarlane did, or Joe Mad, or Jim Lee or Bill Sienkiewicz or Joe Kubert (you see a lot of current artists whose style can be directly traced back to these artists and a few others)?  I like a lot of current/recent artists, but I see very few who are doing anything that would merit their consideration among the all-time greats of the medium.  

Also, I think we live in an era where the writer is far more important than the artist, as it's the writing that lands the TV and movie deals which reach a far greater audience than the comics.  

[ComicConnoisseur]

1 hour ago, ygogolak said:

....and Neal Adams started on Adventures of the Fly and a newspaper strip.

It's not like these legends just came out of the gate with their most known work. But that seems to be how people choose to remember it. Funny, ain't it?

Kind of like Kirby's art was so much different on FF 1-10 compared to FF 44-60.

Like night and day.

[jools&jim]

There is, for example, no "modern" Neal Adams simply because the forces (both cultural and educational) which created Neal Adams (the artist), which inspired/informed/shaped his talent and creativity, do not exist in the same form anymore.  And neither does the comic book business in which he worked. 

It's a lot like asking "who is the modern Ray Bradbury...the modern John Lennon...the modern Gaugin?"  There is no satisfying answer because the question is predicated on faulty assumptions: namely, that all eras are culturally equivalent and are therefore likely to produce equivalent results; that innovation tends to infinity; and that human achievement will always meet or exceed the standards of its forbears.

This isn't to say that there aren't any "great" artists working in the industry today.  But looking for analogues to this or that luminary from days gone by is a fool's errand.  It's much better method to apply contemporary standards to contemporary work...

 

Edited March 20, 2017 by jools&jim

[Aweandlorder]

3 hours ago, delekkerste said:

Also, I think we live in an era where the writer is far more important than the artist, as it's the writing that lands the TV and movie deals which reach a far greater audience than the comics.  

Absolutely this. I can name you a few brilliant breakthrough writers who excelled in the medium just this decade than any noticeable artist. And it most certainly is due to the fact that there is more reward in intellectual property licensing than a beautifully rendered piece of art. If we'd draw comparison to the music biz, the big money is made in song writing in regards to intellectual property licensing as opposed to production.

Another reason why art is declining is the obvious fact that theres more emphasis on digitally produced art than ever before. Its not as pronounced with mainstream comics you get at your LCS (although an integral part of it still) as it is with independent comics offered digitally online. For example, 70-80% of kickstarter comics never left the computer screen, and some of the stuff offered there gets alot of attention among readers. This may not affect readers and collectors now, but if this becomes a normal trend you would see less and less independent artists take to the desk and brush than even 2 decades ago

[ComicConnoisseur]

5 hours ago, jools&jim said:

There is, for example, no "modern" Neal Adams simply because the forces (both cultural and educational) which created Neal Adams (the artist), which inspired/informed/shaped his talent and creativity, do not exist in the same form anymore.  And neither does the comic book business in which he worked. 

It's a lot like asking "who is the modern Ray Bradbury...the modern John Lennon...the modern Gaugin?"  There is no satisfying answer because the question is predicated on faulty assumptions: namely, that all eras are culturally equivalent and are therefore likely to produce equivalent results; that innovation tends to infinity; and that human achievement will always meet or exceed the standards of its forbears.

This isn't to say that there aren't any "great" artists working in the industry today.  But looking for analogues to this or that luminary from days gone by is a fool's errand.  It's much better method to apply contemporary standards to contemporary work...

 

Kind of like the Beatles would not be today because today they would all be solo stars using the new technology for streaming instead of a bunch of guys trying to get gigs in Hamburg,Germany.

[Bird]

8 hours ago, drotto said:

JHW3 on Batwoman was stunning. Possible the best and most interesting interiors I have seen in years.

 

I know he has been around many years, but did get mentioned, Epting. Go look at Velvet, his story telling is so strong in that title.

 

I would also put up Opena as one of the newest artisto mentioned yet in this thread. He may not be up there with the best yet, but does very solid covers and very nice interiors, so not a one trick pony.

I keep telling them but NOBODY read that book I guess. He was excellent on Promethea and then took another step on Batwoman.

 

[Ken Aldred]

12 hours ago, drotto said:

 

I know he has been around many years, but did get mentioned, Epting. Go look at Velvet, his story telling is so strong in that title.

 

Yup.  He really excels at page layout and storytelling.  Again, someone I've followed since the 90s, not really that new, more a contemporary of Greg Capullo, but a great example of a creator who really understands sequential comic art.

[Ken Aldred]

12 hours ago, drotto said:

JHW3 on Batwoman was stunning. Possible the best and most interesting interiors I have seen in years.

 

 

4 hours ago, Bird said:

I keep telling them but NOBODY read that book I guess. He was excellent on Promethea and then took another step on Batwoman.

 

+1

Even in the early days of his career, in the 90s, it was obvious that he was exceptionally talented and had tremendous potential.

Edited March 21, 2017 by Ken Aldred

[Harley Troy]

Surprised Chris Ware hasn't been mentioned yet. I can only describe his work as complex, yet ultimately very welcoming. It's a style all his own and the work that goes into every panel is just awe inspiring. A modern master in my opinion.

[Ken Aldred]

5 hours ago, Harley Troy said:

Surprised Chris Ware hasn't been mentioned yet. I can only describe his work as complex, yet ultimately very welcoming. It's a style all his own and the work that goes into every panel is just awe inspiring. A modern master in my opinion.

Jimmy Corrigan, the Smartest Kid on Earth is a masterpiece.

Edited March 21, 2017 by Ken Aldred

[ComicConnoisseur]

22 minutes ago, Ken Aldred said:

Jimmy Corrigan, the Smartest Kid on Earth is a masterpiece.

Another book I am adding to my ever growing new list! 

[Classicness]

On 3/19/2017 at 10:02 PM, fastballspecial said:

 

Perez is the workhorse artist. This guy can just plain churn it out. I think Brave and Bold was his last book wasn't it?

 

 

Sirens.

[Classicness]

On 3/20/2017 at 9:42 AM, drotto said:

JHW3 on Batwoman was stunning. Possible the best and most interesting interiors I have seen in years.

Check him out on Promethea, it's even better.

[Classicness]

On 3/20/2017 at 9:49 AM, ygogolak said:

....and Neal Adams started on Adventures of the Fly and a newspaper strip.

It's not like these legends just came out of the gate with their most known work. But that seems to be how people choose to remember it. Funny, ain't it?

Did Capullo spend years in the advertising biz before becoming a comic book artist?

[Kevin76]

By the OP's post, I think he's referring to "We haven't seen any new exciting art styles in recent years"  which is true but for the most part, it's incredible tough to come up up an art style no one has seen before that's exciting.  Art styles influence other artists and are fundamentally based off of a few basic styles.  Jim Lee is a product of John Byrne for example. McFarlane is a product of Akria. They do add their own spin to the art style but once all those extra lines are stripped away, you'll see the same type of style among all of them.  I wouldn't necessarily call Neal Adams or Bernie Wrightson "comic book artists" even though they have done comics, they are more illustrators than anything else.  I'd say David Finch has an excellent art style which of course, he's a product of Jim Lee. 

[ygogolak]

2 hours ago, Classicness said:

Did Capullo spend years in the advertising biz before becoming a comic book artist?

No, he came out of the womb doing awesome work. Just like the Bronze Age guys.

[Ken Aldred]

14 hours ago, Classicness said:

Did Capullo spend years in the advertising biz before becoming a comic book artist?

It's mandatory for comic artists to spend years honing their skills in that environment.

Even Rob Liefeld spent some time interning at an advertising company, experience which taught him how to draw with his customary photo-realistic brilliance.

[Bronty]

On 3/20/2017 at 7:55 AM, ComicConnoisseur said:

Kind of like Kirby's art was so much different on FF 1-10 compared to FF 44-60.

Like night and day.

Not like that at all IMO.. he'd already been in the business twenty years.  

You may just prefer the slicker look on kirby/sinnott than the rougher/raw look of kirby/ayers.   

If we just boil it down to covers, IMO the cover of FF1 is every bit as good and maybe better than the cover of FF60, just different.

[Ken Aldred]

1 minute ago, Bronty said:

Not like that at all IMO.. he'd already been in the business twenty years.  

You may just prefer the slicker look on kirby/sinnott than the rougher/raw look of kirby/ayers.   

If we just boil it down to covers, IMO the cover of FF1 is every bit as good and maybe better than the cover of FF60, just different.

Another comparison would be the FF with much earlier Simon and Kirby art from the late 40s to early 50s.

[Bronty]

1 hour ago, Ken Aldred said:

Another comparison would be the FF with much earlier Simon and Kirby art from the late 40s to early 50s.

Yes, although I think Kirby is a tough one to use to illustrate this point, as his very earliest work looks good as well at least to my eye - better in some ways than the S&K work that came later.  

Red Raven 1 is 1939, Marvel Mystery 12 is 1940, Mystic 7 is 1941... all three look really nice to me and are some of his earliest work.

Some of the S&K work looks sloppy.   I don't know if that was jack or joe responsible for that, but I never did like the way they looked together too much.

There's certainly a progression of styles there but I think he was talented from the get-go.