Over the last few years, I’ve become more and more convinced that some of the greatest unsung artists are those that write and draw comics. By comics, I mean any and all forms of sequential art; newspaper comics, webcomics, comic books and anything else that might fall into that category.
There is an artistry involved in being able to tell a story with both pictures and with words and to do so within a fairly strict confine. The borders of the panels bind and confine the artist. They must make their statement within the boundaries and within those frames allotted to them.
Going from Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns or Moore’s The Watchmen or Smith’s Bone or Herriman’s Krazy Kat or Siddell’s Gunnerkrigg Court, there is a wide-variety of art styles and stories and purposes beyond the stories. You have iconic images and heroes. You have tears and laughter and comedy and tragedy. You have great art that has found away to survive being shrunk and stuffed into tiny panels. Instead of being confined, these artists have thrived.
And now, after all this, I am going to go back to reading Locke and Key, because I really want to know what key they’re going to find next.
-D-
