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Post by codystarbuck on Jan 16, 2020 13:57:16 GMT -5
Grell told me at a store appearance that he basically learned to draw by copying Adams.
Sienkewicz (not looking up the spelling) was an Adams clone, and a good one, early on. Later, he picked up more on illustratos like Bob Peak (we can argue later if that's an appropriate style for comics.)
I'd argue more Ralph Steadman than Peake, for Sienkiewicz. Peake was a major influence on Chaykin, especially his painting. Gil Kane was his earliest influence (and mentor), before he moved on to Toth. Grell, in comics, started out copying Adams but I argue he moved away from it by Warlord and ever since.There, his more traditional newspaper influences, like Foster and Hogarth took hold, along with some Russ Manning, and his love of the Brandywine artists, like Howard Pyle, NC Wyeth and son Andrew Wyeth. Also add Maxfield Parrish, as I know Grell deliberately designed an Iron Man cover to mimic Parrish. |
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Post by codystarbuck on Jan 16, 2020 14:18:35 GMT -5
If you want to talk most influential artists in comics, you start with the newspaper strips. The names always cited by the first generation of young artists were Milton Caniff, Alex Raymond, Roy Crane, and Hal Foster. Foster and Raymond influenced everyone who tried to do heroic adventure, from Eisner, Kirby, and Shuster on up. Caniff and Crane were influences on storytelling, characters, staging, and other technical matters. Everyone ripped off the Dragon Lady.
Eisner is a huge influence through all of the people who worked in the Eisner-Iger shop, and then through the Spirit Sunday supplement, which had more influence on using cinematic techniques in comics, plus the crafting of splash pages. His writing had huge influence on the Underground and alternative comics people.
The Quality Comics crowd of Lou Fine, Reed Crandall and Jack Cole would be big influences on future superhero artists, as well as those geared towards humor.
Kirby became an influence quickly, as his dynamic action would be swiped by those who wanted livelier comics.
The EC crowd would be the next big influence, in all genres, with Kurtzman and Wood becoming major influences on the 70s generation.
Kirby and Ditko shaped the 60s, with Adams coming in later and having more of an effect on the 70s. Certainly, Adams was the look that DC pushed and most of its young artists followed. Gene Colan would also influence many, later, in mood and cinematic lighting.
The 70s sees some more variety of artists, with stylists like Barry Smith (after moving beyond Kirby), Wrightson, Kaluta and P Craig Russell really coming into their own. By the tail end, Perez and Byrne have emerged as the superhero masters.
The 80s sees the influence of Perez and Byrne, probably more than anyone, which sets the tone for the 90s crop of the Image gang. However, the rise of the independents gives voice to people who drew from the Undergrounds and EC bloodline, who begin doing their own idiosyncratic work. Artists like Los Bros Hernandez, Arn Saba, Joe Sacco, Dan Clowes, who then bring in more, by the 90s, with Seth, Peter Bagge, Terry LaBan, Chris Ware, Donna Barr and more.
The 80s also brought in European and japanese influences as both translations of those comics appear and some of their talent are recruited for American publishers. There was a big influx of British writers and artists at DC, bringing in mixtures of influences from both British and American comics, as well as European works.
The Kubert School, established in the late 70s, has had a big influence via their teaching, as their graduates filled comics from the 80s onward. At first, it was very Kubert in style, until those artists started to express themselves more. As time wore on, there was greater diversity in individual style, but the same emphasis on professionalism and a strong foundation in the basics of visual storytelling.
I think the Image crowd's influence was more short-lived, as people tried to copy what was selling; but, when it stopped selling, most moved on or developed their own style.
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Post by electricmastro on Jan 16, 2020 19:16:21 GMT -5
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Post by MDG on Jan 17, 2020 9:40:44 GMT -5
The Quality Comics crowd of Lou Fine, Reed Crandall and Jack Cole would be big influences on future superhero artists, as well as those geared towards humor. Lou Fine was said to be an influence on Kirby as well. His run on the Ray from Smash Comics is definitely worth highlighting. Lou Fine was a big influence on Murphy Anderson. At one point an auction house commissioned Anderson to do recreations of some Fine covers to sell. |
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Post by kirby101 on Jan 17, 2020 11:06:08 GMT -5
A lot of people credit Fine as the best draftsman of the Golden Age. He went on to be successful in advertising and newspaper strips.
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Post by Icctrombone on Jan 17, 2020 11:12:05 GMT -5
In my lifetime , Kirby and Adams.
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Post by MDG on Jan 17, 2020 12:43:25 GMT -5
... Since Curt Swan was the Superman artist for so long, I wonder if he influenced any DC artists? I kind've see Swan in Perez and Jurgens--it would be interesting to see how their art would compare to Swan with Klein-type inking on it. I think the only artist I've ever seen explicitly mention Swan as an influence was Michael Cherkas, who drew The Silent Invasion. |
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Post by electricmastro on Jan 17, 2020 13:19:23 GMT -5
Gene Colan
Basil Wolverton
Mac Raboy
Frank Miller
Johnny Craig
Reed Crandall
Jack Cole
John Buscema
Jim Steranko
John Romita Sr.
Barry Windsor-Smith
Joe Kubert
Gil Kane
Al Williamson
Alex Toth
Lou Fine
Bernard Krigstein
Steve Ditko
Frank Frazetta
Wally Wood
Harvey Kurtzman
Carl Barks
Neal Adams
Will Eisner
Jack Kirby
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Post by berkley on Jan 19, 2020 0:33:08 GMT -5
Grell told me at a store appearance that he basically learned to draw by copying Adams.
Sienkewicz (not looking up the spelling) was an Adams clone, and a good one, early on. Later, he picked up more on illustratos like Bob Peak (we can argue later if that's an appropriate style for comics.)
I was about to speculate that perhaps this was the problem with Grell: that he had learned too much by imitating other comics artists and not enough through formal training, but looking at his wiki entry I see that he did go to the Chicago Academy of Fine Art, so I suppose that kills my half-baked idea. |
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Post by Reptisaurus! on Jan 20, 2020 9:55:01 GMT -5
So Kirby is undeniably the most infulential superhero artist of the past 60 years. He completely changed both the look and feel of superhero comics, made superheroes Look Bigger, added as sense of scope and grandeur and used subtle "camera" manipulation to create more intense emotion - despite the fact he was pretty bad at drawing unique facial expressions. That takes skill! Every single American superhero artist has borrowed part of their aesthetic from Kirby.
Adams is second. I'm only a moderate fan and I think his influence has pushed superheroes into a more self-serious super-emo phase that I kind of hate... but 90% of artists that followed him borrowed elements of his style. (And he's probably the all time best at drawing unique facial expressions, fair is fair.)
Who's third?
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Post by electricmastro on Jan 20, 2020 16:22:31 GMT -5
So Kirby is undeniably the most infulential superhero artist of the past 60 years. He completely changed both the look and feel of superhero comics, made superheroes Look Bigger, added as sense of scope and grandeur and used subtle "camera" manipulation to create more intense emotion - despite the fact he was pretty bad at drawing unique facial expressions. That takes skill! Every single American superhero artist has borrowed part of their aesthetic from Kirby. Adams is second. I'm only a moderate fan and I think his influence has pushed superheroes into a more self-serious super-emo phase that I kind of hate... but 90% of artists that followed him borrowed elements of his style. (And he's probably the all time best at drawing unique facial expressions, fair is fair.) Who's third? Will Eisner might be second or third if only for his storytelling skills. While Kirby was definitely an innovator in terms of worldbuilding, I get the feeling that Eisner told stories and made characters feel human with an approach that I can’t quite say was the same as Kirby’s in the 40s. Eisner even made Ebony White feel human despite being drawn with a racist-based minstrel show stereotype appearance some would probably say is “inhuman.” |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 20, 2020 19:29:03 GMT -5
John Byrne was influenced by Neal Adams...as was Irv Novick. Jack Kirby influenced Keith Giffen (obvious in later art style) and Ron Frenz.
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Post by berkley on Jan 21, 2020 0:51:51 GMT -5
I don't really have a feel for superhero artwork past the early 80s, not having read or seen nearly as much of it as I have the earlier stuff, so I could have this wrong, but would you say someone like Steve Epting was influenced by John Buscema?
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