Sunday, December 17, 2006

MIDNIGHT AT THE HOUSE OF PANCAKES

Two strangers (Kali Fontecchio & I) enjoy an idle cup of coffee...










Uh-oh! There's always an angry boyfriend....


That's it! There's more pictures but I have no more bandwidth! You can see the whole thing, including Kali's boyfriend beating me up, at Kali's blog where I swiped these:

http://kalikazoo.blogspot.com/

Saturday, December 16, 2006

A CHRISTMAS PRESENT FOR EVERONE ON THE BLOG

Here it is, a detail of "Clara Serena Rubens" by Peter Paul Rubens, circa 1614. Be sure to click to enlarge. Rubens made this portrait of his daughter when she was about five years old. She died when she was twelve.

The book I got this from, "Rubens A Master in the Making", calls this one of the freshest portraits in all of Western art and I know of no reason to disagree. Rubens was an amazing guy. He always painted the greatness in man. Never anything shabby or second-rate.

Here also is my Christmas card to every one courtesy of Vincent Waller. Thanks Vincent, and Merry Christmas everybody!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! http://www.elfyourself.com/?userid=d46d1179b2cbbd0ec2f5e30G06121418

HOW TO IMPROVE YOUR PAINTING OVERNIGHT

I just watched Charles Reid's "Portraits in Watercolor" video and I have to say that I was impressed. Reid's technique is interesting but it's his mannerisms that really caught my eye. He seems to be a very nervous painter. The jerky, too-quick way he mixes his paints on the pallete, the way he brings the pallette up to his face, the way he almost seems to talk to the canvas under his breath all give the impression of an obsessed, crazed artist.

I don't mean to imply that I think Reid is crazy. He's not. But I admire him for taking on the attributes of a crazy person when doing so forces him into a greater intimacy with his picture. . Painters should curse at their pictures. They should engage in an angry, energetic and exhausting fight with their canvases. There's plenty of time to relax later when it's clear that the picture's going to work. The time of heightened risk, when success or failure hangs in the balance, should be supremely stressfull. Patton was right when he said the soldier who can loose and laugh wasn't much of a soldier. You should be so keyed up when drawing or painting that a dropped pencil or a ringing telephone would make you jump to the ceiling. Art is a serious business!

Wednesday, December 13, 2006

DAVIS & KURTZMAN DRAW THE SAME STRIP

Kurtzman wanted to pitch a comic book version of Dickens' "Christmas Carol" but after doing one page he decided the project was more likely to sell if he brought in Jack Davis to do it. Consequently we have the same page, even the same panels, done to a finish by two interesting artists. Which do you prefer?


I should mention the book I got these from but I can't find it. The title was something like "Interviews With Artists."

ITALIAN FASCIST SCUPTURE

These statues were commissioned by Mussolini to decorate The Mussolini Forum, which was to house the 1944 Olympics before WWII intervened. As decorative sculpture they're not bad; as art...well, what do you think? Me, I'd say no. The technique is highly professional rather than artful and there's no transcendant quality in them.

The statue above (topmost) put me off when I first saw it because it seemed to be glorifying a bully or a thug. I think I was wrong because beefy guys like that have been universally admired since the 30s. Even Captain Marvel (above) used to look that way. If you look close you can see some sensitivity and intelligence in the statute's eyes.
These are physiques (above) that I associate with Nautilus machines. I used to think exercizes that emphasize specific muscles were a modern invention but you see figures like this in Rubens and other old masters so I guess I was wrong. The guy on the right looks like he had a killer bowel movement.

I like this kind of manly sculpture (above) but the hair looks like it was turned out without much thought. Zaidenberg (the 40s how-to-draw author) used to draw deco hair like that using charcoal to make quick, chisel strokes. Ruskin in "Seven Lamps of Architecture" warned against schlocking what appears to be unimportant details like the hairline. I think he was right.

Tuesday, December 12, 2006

DISNEY'S NEW GOOFY CARTOON


Warning: I'm about to criticize a cartoon that I haven't seen yet (it hasn't been made), that I've only seen two tentative concept drawings from (one shown above, topmost), and whose story I only know from a description in the newspaper. Not only that but I'm terribly hurt that they didn't ask me to work on it so I may, without knowing it, have a mean, small-minded desire to snipe at it from the sidelines. There, that's my disclaimer. Now the criticism...

I have to say that I'm wondering if the project is getting started on the wrong foot. According to the newspaper the story is about Goofy's attempt to install a new, high-tech TV in his house. Is that really a good idea? It's the type of premise that has no suprises built in. The gags and the acting could all be predictable. Not only that but it's a frustration story and frustration premises (like Pluto and the flypaper) tend to pass on their frustration and unease to the audience. When you think about it, the best Goofys - the ice hockey, football, and basketball cartoons, aren't about frustration. They may seem to be, but they're not.

On another subject, it seems to me that subtext of every good Goofy cartoon is the weird universe that Goofy inhabits and the delight the character takes in doing things with his amazingly agile hands and feet. The character is a full-animator's dream. He's also a physical actor's dream. Goofy is not the average guy next door any more than James Bond is the average spy. Goofy and Bond are hyper-characters and anything less than star-quality scenes will diminish them. Goofy can either exude charisma and magic as in the best Kinney cartoons or he can be a bland guy-next-door-type the way Reitherman treated him. Which way will Disney go? I guess we'll see.

Thanks to Amid's "Animation Blast" for the excellent Sibley animation drawing above. Drawings copyrighted by Disney.

Monday, December 11, 2006

PARTY AT THEORY MANSION!






Gee, I guess that's the end of the party. I gotta get Mike to a doctor. If you don't have a ride home just sack out on the sofa! See ya!

Saturday, December 09, 2006

T. S. SULLIVANT: GENIUS

This isn't a post, I just wanted to put these pictures up for friends. Beautiful aren't they?

Thursday, December 07, 2006

PARTY INVITATION!

But to ease the pain of two days without Theory Corner......


I invite everybody to a party at the world famous THEORY MANSION (above)!!!


Tuesday, December 05, 2006

PLAYBOY'S LATEST CARTOON ANTHOLOGY!

The best current book bargain I know of is "Playboy 50 Years: The Cartoons" which originally sold for $50 and is now an overstock selling at Barnes & Noble for $13. The colors have been "remastered", i.e., simplified and drained of their subtlety, but for thirteen bucks, hey, it's still worth it!
I organized a few of the better pictures above (topmost) by colorists I like: Sokol, Dedini, Davis and Kliban. I also put together a collage by artists whose colors I like a lot less (above) (come to think of it, the center artist above isn't bad...he should be in the "good" pile). What's the difference? Why are the colorists on top so much better than the guys below?

Right away I can see the better artists use a lot more darks. Most of them also use more white. The good ones also seem to have a bold plan while the lesser artists are content to use whatever seems unoffensive. The red, white and blue schemes don't work...maybe they'd look better with more pure white areas.

 
Nobody ever talks about Kliban's color but the examples in the book are all first-rate. His color is funny, it actually enhances the gag. This restaurant picture is especially good but I can't figure out what the color's doing. Anybody care to venture a guess?

IT'S HARD TO BE SANTA!

Steve Worth just sent me these Santa pictures and I pass them on to you. Man, it must be hard to be Santa! The guy on the bottom has the worst job, he has to wear a mask all day!


WHAT KIND OF MAN READS THEORY CORNER?

From extensive studies we know what kind of man reads Theory Corner. For starters he's young, well-dressed, popular with the ladies and has a killer music and book collection. Women have been overheard to say that he's often mysterious and elusive with a kind of Dean Martin cool. "Like James Dean but hotter!" said one woman!

THEORY CORNER men are adept at urban survival. They know how to use an extendo-fork to obtain a tasty and nutritious meal on the cheap. They're up on the hot films like Lugosi's "Raven" and Lorre's "Stranger on the Third Floor" and they cultivate a fearsome look of disdain for cartoon fans who like the wrong cartoons. THEORY CORNER men even smell good!

Other blogs will attempt to lead you to believe that they will give you that real He-man aroma. This is not so. In fact, THEORY CORNER positively reeks with He-man odors! At least that's what women tell us!

Sunday, December 03, 2006

WHY ARE THERE TEEN GANGS?


I don't pretend to know all the reasons for teen gangs but here's one plausible reason that's frequently overlooked: kids who are not suited for college feel they have nowhere to go. For years teachers warned them that if they didn't study they'd be selling fast food all their lives and they took it to heart. I imagine they reasoned that if adult life was going to be pointless and boring then they may as well enjoy their teen years. Gangs don't do much for you but they do provide excitement and if you get killed while young what have you lost? A life of drudgery.

It seems to me that we need to ease up on the college or the scrub bucket rhetoric. It seems to me that an awfull lot of complex and well-paying jobs can be done by non-college graduates. Shakespeare didn't go to college, nor did Thomas Edison, Carnegie, Walt Disney, Ben Franklin and Bill Gates. Before the G.I. Bill (after WWII) an enormous number of complex jobs were done by non-graduates. They must have done a pretty good job because we went from an agricultural country to the pre-eminent industrial country in the world on their watch. People who believe we can't advance unless we send a whole generation to study Derrida are ignoring a lot of history.

Sometimes it seems to me that the America has hardened its heart against blue-collar workers. I first noticed this when the middle class cheerfully allowed the manufacturing jobs to go overseas in exchange for lower prices. The middle class had office jobs and weren't affected by the job loss but blue-collar workers were decimated. When even office jobs started to go then the middle class suddenly declared a crisis and started talking about the danger of "outsourcing." Where were these people when the blue collars were hurting?

I see the same thing happening now with this insistance on absurdly high academic requirements for jobs that never required them before. In my school district you need a Masters' Degree to teach grade school. I believe that absurd requirements like this reflect a class bias; middle class kids tend to have these degrees and blue-collars don't. Who's most likely to get these newly-restricted jobs?

Just for the record, I identify completely with the middle class and I'm a big booster of higher education. I don't want to dumb things down, I'm simply arguing for compassion and common sense. We should keep standards high but remove artificial barriers to upward mobility. Exciting jobs should be within the grasp of whoever can best deliver the goods. I wouldn't show non-academics the mop and bucket. I'd show them a vision of success through hard work.

Saturday, December 02, 2006

DELACROIX'S SKETCHBOOK

Made during his visit to Morocco in 1832. From an artbook: "Illustrated letters."


Friday, December 01, 2006

ILLUSTRATED LETTERS

Boy, it pays to write to artists. Look at the answers you get!


These letters are by Victor Hugo (topmost), Daubigny (above), and Gauguin (below). The Daubigny letter looks like it was done by Ardizzone (spelled right?), the modern illustrator.


Thursday, November 30, 2006

THREE PAINTINGS BY WARD KIMBALL

I don't have time to comment on them but they sure are interesting. Obviously Kimball would have had no trouble making a living as an illustrator if Disney hadn't worked out.


All these pictures are from Canemaker's "Nine Old Men" book.