This posting was supposed to be about Jack 'King' Kirby, who along with Stan Lee, invented the modern angst-filled superhero. Having just finished "Tales To Astonish", the story of the rise of Marvel comics, I am filled with awe for the sheer output of the man. He produced more artwork in his career than any another ten illustrators - over 10,000 pages. The hours he spent at a drafting table alone would make him a legend. Even if he was average. But Jack was far from average. (Above is one my paintings, one of several tributes to Jack's best invention, Captain America.) Two comments then. First, he must have received immeasurable satisfaction from the work he did. What else would drive a person to spend 12-14 hours a day for decades perfecting his craft. Despite the low pay, the theft of his intellectual capital and the lousy managment he faced - he perservered. And you can see the passion in his work. There was nothing else he wanted to do with his life. How many people can say that?
Second. How much better would we be at our jobs or hobbies if we spent 10 lifetimes perfecting our craft? That's what Kirby essentially did. He started out with talent, within only a few years was recognized as tops in his field, but he didn't stop there. He took on more work than anyone else in the industry, worked under as many as four different pen names and worked in a variety of styles and genres.
The arc of Jack's career was truly unique. So much so that he created a new shorthand for graphic illustration, pushed envelopes in every direcion, built universes of characters that may well live forever.
But like I said, this posting wasn't supposed to be about that. It was supposed to be about registration.
Registration? Coincidentally, the cover for a recent Kirby prespective used a typical comic lettering style (the KIRBY above) with mis-registered coloring. Anyone who is interested in Golden Age comics is familiar with this problem. It must have driven artists crazy - to see their hard work messed up by a hurried colorist. But it is so much a part of the experience, too. Immediately that look communicates old comics, yellowing newsprint and raw artwork.
That's why in this painting of The Spirit, I intentionally 'mis-registered' the color on a part of his sleeve. It came so naturally to me I hardly noticed until I was finished, I was paying homage to 50 year old printing and coloring techniques.
(Shown on this page: Brave & Bold #1 in Acrylic on canvas, and The Spirit on canvas and Captain America #1 on masonite. If the titles sound like comic books, nuff said. To see a larger image, just click on the graphic.)
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