Hello classmates! My main goal is to give everyone a lot
of material to really build off of and talk about. We all read the
chapter and can recite the basic facts… so let’s explore some of these
topics.
Chapter seven covered the basic need of art in human nature and the process by which we create these products. It acknowledged the evolutionary (and thus both powerful and innate) uses of art, including exercise/stimuli for the mind/body, mental survival/individual expression, and exploration/seeking out truths. It also covered the artistic process as a series of six steps that have a coherent ordering (the idea, then form, idiom, structure, craft, and surface ) but when nuanced leads to innovation.
Chapter seven covered the basic need of art in human nature and the process by which we create these products. It acknowledged the evolutionary (and thus both powerful and innate) uses of art, including exercise/stimuli for the mind/body, mental survival/individual expression, and exploration/seeking out truths. It also covered the artistic process as a series of six steps that have a coherent ordering (the idea, then form, idiom, structure, craft, and surface ) but when nuanced leads to innovation.
- I think
it’s interesting to consider the decline of “pure” art (e.g. having no
practical value, but being nonetheless valuable). Side note— it it’s
likely a bit misguided for me to make that generalization,
but I’m basing this assumption on things like a decline in art programs
in school, a decline in the culture of the fine arts (art museums are
struggling for patrons), artists and products of fine art being
generally unknown to the general public, or simply
a public dismissal of the value of art (don’t see many people throwing
money in as an investment). You may be aware of a very different
experience; I’d love to hear about it.
Why might you think this is the case? Why might it be a similar case for books and publishing? (I’d suggest the age of technology which fulfills all the evolutionary needs for art. For example, a lot of youth are choosing to express themselves through blogging on sites like Tumblr, yet while it’s a curating of images they aren’t created by the users—they are merely recycled.)
Where do comics fall in this decline? Are they in danger? What do you think may save them if they are?
-Talk about the writing process. Can you walk us through an example where either yourself or an author/artist may have come to a certain product because of the ordering of the steps they took? Do you think knowledge of the process is necessary? Do you think you’d come to the same interpretation of a work if you did know verses if you didn’t know? If the meaning of a piece feels arbitrary and came about without intention (I guess a sort of happy accident), does it feel as valuable to you? (Loaded questions, I know!)
Why might you think this is the case? Why might it be a similar case for books and publishing? (I’d suggest the age of technology which fulfills all the evolutionary needs for art. For example, a lot of youth are choosing to express themselves through blogging on sites like Tumblr, yet while it’s a curating of images they aren’t created by the users—they are merely recycled.)
Where do comics fall in this decline? Are they in danger? What do you think may save them if they are?
-Talk about the writing process. Can you walk us through an example where either yourself or an author/artist may have come to a certain product because of the ordering of the steps they took? Do you think knowledge of the process is necessary? Do you think you’d come to the same interpretation of a work if you did know verses if you didn’t know? If the meaning of a piece feels arbitrary and came about without intention (I guess a sort of happy accident), does it feel as valuable to you? (Loaded questions, I know!)
Chapter eight is a
short aside on color in comics. McCloud basically talks about how the
use of color is limited to factors of commerce (money) and technology
(range/way to go about printing the color). The
systems that developed in American comics made additive and subtractive
primaries prominent, leading to a flat, over-saturated and highly
contrasted color palette. This color lacked a certain expressive
potential, but did lead to a focus on the shapes and space,
whereas a black and white composition leads to a more direct,
language-like communication in which pictures act as words.
In addition, American comic coloring lead to loaded, easily recognized iconic colors for specific mascots.
-Can you
think of any other illuminating observations on colors in your
experience in reading comics? Were any of the points particularly
surprising—can you relate to being more form focused when you
read a colored comic?
-The talk about iconic colors made me think of some of the popular applications for smartphones. Maybe you’ve tried them out? Basically they’ll name a brand or character and you have to select the specific hue that matches this brand or character. I was surprised (ashamed) of how well I popped through them when I tried playing! I actually ended up deleting the app because it was so easy it was boring.
Because colors have the power to become so iconic, and iconic colors are so tied into forms of advertising and consumer culture—how might this have bearing on comics as a medium? Do you think that comics that utilize the traditional additive/subtractive primaries have a negative connotation of being cheap commodities?
Chapter Nine wraps
everything up and talks about the wide, expansive possibilities of
comics, examining their prevalence, importance, and power in the past,
present and future to be a “bridge between minds.”
Comics in particular are significant because they occupy a unique space
in which there is the expressive potential of visual iconography
combined with language.
-How did
McCloud utilize some of the techniques of the comic medium in the final
chapter? Did you notice the shift? You might if you choose to flip
through the pages—watch what occurs visually. How
do these features work to serve McClouds rhetoric? Do you think they
were too strong? Did you resist any of his assertions? In general, how
might the visuals have had a bearing on your judgments?
-Think about
the way we process words verses the way we process images based on
McCloud. Comics are unique in having both of these features and he talks
a lot about the advantages of this—can you think
of any negative implications (in light of other mediums and comics as a
growing medium)?
-This was
the wrap-up chapter! Any final thoughts on McCloud’s book? Can you think
of any modern developments in the world of comics that may be useful to
add to what we already know? What was your
biggest takeaway?
In chapter 8 McCloud talks about color and it's connection and disconnection of comics. The choice to use color had to be a difficult one in the early days of printing. Color in newsprint was so pixelated as to distract as opposed to helping in comic strips and early comic books. I can see why some artists would have chosen to stick with black and white art work (i.e. - Nancy and Family Circus). But just imagine Superman in black and white...without his red cape and bold red S he might just shrink in our imagination. Those bold colors gave him life and immortality, so to choose color cannot be a simple task.
ReplyDeleteIn Maus the author chose to forgo color and instead show us a world dominated by animals of different species trying to survive. Color might have taken away from his vision and pointed out the otherness of each species where in black and white it seems like all the animals are the same even though they are different.
In the conclusion of the book I found that very little was new in the chapter, but in the book as a whole I have to say that I see comics in a new light. (Not that I was against them, I love comics and have read them for years) but I did believe that they had a place and time and should not deviate from them. I now see there is a valid voice and some unique opportunities to tell stories that might be difficult to tell.
Color can convey such emotions, which was a point made clear in the color chapter. However, because of expense, color was sort of swept under the rug and only intended for use by some pages of the book, rather than the whole thing. Color was considered a luxury for some of those iconic books that they kept to keeping color as symbolism. We all know what Spiderman’s colors are red and blue, or Superman is red and blue, or that Captain America is red and blue—do you see a common thread here. But some artists/writers have chosen to use this pre-existing condition of the craft to their advantage. Everyone has heard of Frank Miller’s Sin City—he uses a majority of red, black and white to convey his story, also making it very dark and fitting to his Neo Noir style of writing. And The Walking Dead, we all know this one—the lack of color the writing/artist team that writes it really emphasize the chaos of a world taken over by mindless Zombies. These two are both incredibly dark and menacing, it create just the right amount of fear in the story they are telling.
ReplyDeleteWhat is the "writing process"
ReplyDeleteMcCloud defines it in Six Steps. I have to laugh at that a little bit, though I completely agree with everything he says. To me, McCloud generalizes as much as much as he advocates against generalization. He wants to make bold assertions, he wants to "start a conversation" or even just get Comic Art into "the conversation," so I get why he is inclined to make indefinite observations of "art" and the "creative path." I think I've just spent so many hours staring at his little person, and he's starting to bug me with his snarky intelligence.
Anyway, to the point. Art is diminishing out of schools because of the utilitarian views of the elderly and levies and national debt and the internet and Obama, Osama, and Cheney. No one knows about "great artists" because we're decentralized. In your community, and my community, and everyone else's community that has ever considered art as a prevalent topic knows of "great artists" indigenous to our people. We don't have huge greats like Michelangelo, Picasso, Shakespeare, The Beatles, Nirvana — but there are still artists creating trenchant pieces with just as archetypal observations of where we are, evolutionarily, as people. Art is life, life is art, and so on. It's us — and just because you don't learn about ir in second grade anymore, doesn't mean its not impacted the community you live in or will never impact you.
Thinking too much about form and idioms and surface and all this and that of creation gunks up creative machinery. McCloud, more than likely, could DO everything he describes before he could EXPLAIN how he did it and i would have liked him reassuring will-be authors or artists to trust intuition.
I think finding the "meaning of a piece" is an outdated way of accessing Comics, writing or any art form currently in practice. If comics can do anything, I think they can teach readers how to take an artistic piece as a whole, without the need for dissection into standardized sections for analysis. But as McCloud says, "Time will tell."
Chapter 7: As a creative writing student, the lay out of steps in the process of comic creation really helped in my own creative thinking process. It opened up the directions you take for, not just comic creation, but what is needed to create anything artistically related. I was really interested in the final step of surface. A piece of art may look clean and modern and visually appealing on the surface, but that doesn’t mean anything if the idea isn’t presented in a fresh new way or if the piece holds some form of fault. There are a lot of steps taken to make something that appeals to an audience. Understanding the style of comics, you need to move in a direction that continuously pulls in and out of the old and new artistic examples to be new and appealing. There are comics out that I myself have read that lacked so much individuality. They have boring build-up to specific scenes, bland dialogue with multiple grammar mistakes and art that had been boring. Just seeing any of these faults left me a bit pulled back from the world. Comics should pull the reader in a not let them go until they finish reading. We control the movement of the story, and any odd mistake can shatter this mystique. Keeping close to these steps makes sure that an artist is moving in the right direction. I don’t think that skipping steps would cause much issue in an artistic product. Sometimes I write stories where I create a single scene that becomes the heart of the piece. This one scene is sort of like the surface and using this one surface, I move backward and start moving through the steps in my own time and pace.
ReplyDeleteChapter 8: Color is wonderful. They are truly the scene setters when I look at anything from a film to a comic to even real life. Comics present colors in different ways, giving the series some individuality. Batman comics are drawn out to look much darker because the character himself is a dark and brooding type. Such a major leap from the first few comics and even the 60’s television series. Superman comics have a much lighter coloring then the Batman comics. They are almost presented at opposite ends of the color spectrum. Batman coloring creates a mysterious tone that pulls the reader down closely into the world while Superman has a less mysterious tone and opens the world up. Batman comics could easily be in Black and white and this whole tone could stay the same while Superman needs the colors or he just wouldn’t stand out. The iconic coloring (blue yellow and grey for batman or red blue and yellow for Superman) sort of toned down the seriousness of the piece. Color is connected to emotion. While many characters share similar color schemes, it’s the way in which these colors are used that really reflects on the characters themselves. Spiderman and Captain America share the similar red and blue coloring, but they each represent two distinct characters with different personalities. These similar color schemes leave the reader with certain ideas of where they had seen them before, but can quickly change to reflect on any character. Colors stick to the reader but the emotions the present can constantly shift depending on who uses them.
McCloud has spent a ton of time on talking about the variance in art through this book. The talk about value found in modern abstract art in my opinion is a bit over complicated, talk about old art and the old ways of the masters. I think this can be much more simplified in the aspect that we find value in what we can relate to. With experience in a medium regardless of what the medium is we can over time find value. Contrast and comparison between art in all forms is part of building our appreciation and deciding on what we truly enjoy.
ReplyDeleteOn the topic of chapter 8 covered by Alyssa. Colors really do have the power to become completely relatable to something else we have seen before. If you see a McDonalds red and yellow character you likely think of something similar to food in a comic. More interesting is the reverse, when I think of a comic character like the flash I get a bit hungry. This is all caused by the association of colors. A comic written in a somber blue color and nothing else will take on a more mellow or sad tone and without any phrasing can shift the entire meaning of a short story or establishing panel.
When I think about a decline in art, I really think this depends on how art is being defined. I really liked McCloud's definition of art in the sense that it was very broad, as I think it should be. However, perhaps it is a little too broad. One thing that came to my mind was space exploration - I guess it could be argued that exploring space may eventually serve some sort of purpose in terms of our survival as a species (whether that be finding knowledge or another planet to inhabit, or foreseeing a potential catastrophe). However, at first glance it would seem to fit McCloud's definition of art and I probably would not call this an art. I think many things that do not grow out of our species’ basic instincts for survival and reproduction could be attributed to curiosity and a need to explore the world around us. Art, on the other hand, I might define as a need to express ourselves.
ReplyDeleteIt’s possible that art might simply be changing. I do think there has been a decline in the amount of people who visit museums, the support for school programs in art, and the amount of time people spend reading. However, there are other methods people use to express themselves today. By McCloud’s definition, movies, TV, and even things like Instagram could be considered art. Of course, I’m not going to try and argue that selfies are an art form on par with the Mona Lisa. However, I do believe that the existence of any sort of self expression is vital to society.
I read recently that some writers were sort of appalled at the idea of people not reading anymore and it was implied that adults reading comic books would be a sign that literature was deteriorating (http://www.teemingbrain.com/2012/08/28/on-living-well-in-ray-bradburys-dystopia-notes-toward-a-monastic-response/). I really disagree with this. First, because I agree with McCloud that comics is a separate medium and I do not think it should be judged alongside literature but in its own right. Second, because comic books have a long and rich history and are clearly not, as some critics might think, throwaway pulp for the masses.
I think that any sort of change is difficult, and it’s true that some art forms may be lost, replaced, or transformed beyond recognition. However, what would be truly alarming to me is if people in our society stopped expressing themselves altogether. Then we might be heading for some sort of dystopian future.
I think that the origins of what Alyssa identifies as a “public dismissal of the value of art” can be traced back to the rise of modern art. McCloud refers to this phenomenon on pg. 168, where people look at a work that they don't understand and say “that's not art” or “my kid could do that.” A lot of modern art is very unconventional- it takes risks, pushes boundaries, and challenges audiences. It's simply easier for a lot of people to just dismiss what they don't understand, rather than educate themselves on over 75 years of art history. To people who's definition of art is “something pretty to hang on the wall,” there is a lot of modern art that does not fit that definition. However, there are tons of things that fit McCloud's definition of art- “any human activity which doesn't grow out of either of our species' two basic instincts: survival and reproduction.” I think that a lot of people who don't care about art simply view it as a waste of time, just for this reason! It accomplishes basically nothing in and of itself, but still art can change the world.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed the chapter on color, and while I felt that these last 3 chapters of the book were definitely the weakest, chapter 8's use of color really felt like a breath of fresh air. The few color drawings really jump off the page, due to their vivid intensity and their juxtaposition with the rest of the book, in black and white. This chapter really made me think about newspaper comics, and how the Sunday versions of the strip get more space, full color, and generally make more artistic or experimental choices than their Monday-Friday counterparts.
This book has really changed the way I view comics. I really love the quote from Simpson's creator Matt Groening on the back of the book- “If you've ever felt bad about wasting your life reading comics, then check out Scott McCloud's classic book immediately. You still might feel you've wasted your life, but you'll know why, and you'll be proud.” I don't think that this book really taught me anything new, but it made me organize my thoughts in a new way. I kept finding myself reading and going “yes!!” It made me use what knowledge I already have and rethink it. Reading this book has made me so much more passionate about reading comics in general. I'm really excited now to use this knowledge and analytical skill to analyze the rest of the texts we will be reading this semester.
I agree! I've been enjoying this book, but it was also really nice to see some color in chapter 8 after all the black-and-white. I agree about the Sunday comics, too. Adding in color in just this one chapter also reminded me of "The Wizard of Oz," when Dorothy leaves Kansas and everything is suddenly in technicolor. Does anyone know of any comics that incorporate a change from black-and-white to color (or the opposite) to show a transition between two different places or worlds? I think that would be very interesting in a comic book.
DeleteIn response to your first statement, I don't believe that fine art is in a decline. Fine art is in a transitional period as it adapts to new technology. More and more artists are self publishing, and large scale conventions allow artists to interact with their audience in a much more intimate ways. This cuts out middlemen like gallery owners and agents, but allows artists to turn their work into profit in a much more efficient way. As the medium begins to adjust to the technology the market will either open up, allowing more artists to make their art into a career, or become over-saturated, leading to a major bust in the art world.
ReplyDeleteMy greatest takeaway from Understanding Comics, is that comics are as varied and important as any other medium, and that they deserve the respect that every other medium gets.
I think that's a really interesting point (that fine art is in a transitional phase as it adapts to new technology).
DeleteI would agree with you, especially after reading what McCloud says on page 151: "each new medium begins its life by imitating its predecessors." Also, when McCloud is talking about the early use of color in comics and says on page 191: "The new form required the creation of new idioms."
Both of these statements rang true for me, because I think it makes sense that new art forms will always have a rocky start as they are developed and refined over time.
CH 7.1: I don't think there's such a thing as "pure" art. I don't think art can be divided in to categories like that. I think something as commercial as a Stephen King novel can hold as much truth as something by Vlad Nabokov. I also don't buy in to treating art as something sacred, not to be profaned by the commercial and the secular. I think that's puritanical and it actually does more harm to artistic expression than anything else.
ReplyDeleteI think DeepWaterLeviathan was right on point with his statement. Expanding on it, the arts are in the best state they've ever been. For the longest time the arts were a kind of circlejerk/echo-chamber of boring sad people with a few glimpses of light here and there. Now, you can find anything to suit your personal tastes. If you have a story, you have a way to tell it. If you have a song, you have people to listen. Art is being made public, and I can't wait until the complete death of the old artistic institutions that have stifled creativity for so long.
7.2: I think that a piece that tries to "say" something is even less valuable to me than art that simply is. I find too often that if someone sets out with something to "say" they end up producing work that is lifeless -- boring allegories and translucent lectures. The art that contains the most spirit is the art that flows naturally from the creator's mind. It's why I think more highly of literature that doesn't try to be "literary."
Ch9.3:
I liked this book, but I don't think it went to the places it should have. I feel as if it was stretching itself too far, and that it ended up spending more time in places that could have been spent elsewhere. Like, we get it. Comics are serious art. Cool. Now let's talk about the art form. There is some discussion about comics themselves, but that content's kind of drowned in a sea of apologetics and bland diatribes about "art." What there was, though, was fun to think over. And McCloud is a very talented artist. I enjoyed seeing his work, and it kept some of the dicier chapters from being unbearable.
I found chapter 7 very interesting for the way it took the reader through the six steps and modeled them with different "characters." I don't think the knowledge of these steps is necessary but I definitely feel better about knowing them because they seems to be inherently true whether one is aware of the truth or not. It is very easy to get to step 4, structure, and then fall short at craft (at least in my experience), or to get stuck in craft and not be able to take things to step 6. The knowledge of step 6 however, gives a kind of goal and having steps already taken, give an empowering feeling.
ReplyDeleteI like Alyssa's question about whether art without intention feels valuable. I think there is a lot of art out there like this that takes a worse beating than it deserves. Example, "Twilight," now personally I don't endorse this book, but many people do or did, and although it is clearly devoid of substance, it meant something to someone. So it is still a valuable piece of art.
Color in comics is generally important to me. I definitely prefer comics with color and I have never really considered why until reading chapter 8. I have read plenty of comics in black and white, and it's fine, but color is so much more interesting to look at. There are some exceptions, of course. When the color is in the older style, as described in this book as flat and primary, that is actually less appealing than a well modeled black and white comic. However, modern comics have the advantage of digital painting that looks too great for me to pretend to like black and white nearly as much. And I suppose seeing a form in color makes it stand out more from the background, and essentially grab my attention better, making the comic easier to read. As for the primary coloring of the past making comics into a cheap commodity, I don't think so. In terms of super hero comics, which is what I think this is really referring to (Superman, red, blue, and yellow) and Spiderman (red and blue), and the Flash (red and yellow), it might have been easy (cheap) to color them this way but it also made them relatable and simple. No one's favorite superhero wears a complicated, rainbow colored suit. And on that point, I think these colors were intentional (artists working with they had to create real symbolism), as superman looks like America. Spiderman looks like America. The Joker wears purple and green, secondary colors and looks like... not-America.
- Is art appreciation in decline?
ReplyDeleteI feel that this question is a lot more challenging than it might initially appear. I think, on the surface, it certainly seems that for lack of a better term, “high art” is underappreciated in today’s culture. People aren’t interested in challenging themselves, going out of their comfort zones, or even considering new concepts and structures in their daily lives. The thought is enough to make most artists put their paintbrushes down and walk away. That said, I like to think about the situation in a broader context. “High art,” such as what you might find in museums or galleries, has only been completely available to the public for roughly a century, only a small fragment of human history. While it’s easy to imagine the Renaissance as a time of art appreciation and the growing of culture, the appreciating and growing was really only carried out by the aristocracy, while the vast majority of the world population was thankful enough for having food on the table. For the majority of mankind’s history, the primary goal of the common man has been to survive, and little else. To us, it may appear that interest in high art has faded, but was it ever there? The relatively recent backlash against modern art may demonstrate not so much a recent trend in art appreciation in the average man, but more a general feeling that the public holds for art in general. Today we hear “it’s just a bunch of blobs and lines,” but five hundred years ago a farmer might’ve said “it’s just a woman smiling.” All of that said, I do not think that a universal appreciation of art is impossible in today’s culture. And this brings me to another one of the discussion questions.
- Where do comics fall in the decline?
Like many other young media, comics are frequently targeted as a source of corruption for today’s youth. We’ve heard all too often the phrase “they’ll rot your brain,” or other similar insults. But I think that, rather than harming our appreciation of art, comics can improve it. One of the biggest hurdles for most people when getting into art is the amount of gravity we place upon it, as well as the high expectations that are built into the traditions of literature and graphic arts. They’re just too darn hard to approach, and unless you paid attention in English or Art class, it’s easy enough just to dismiss it all. Comics, meanwhile, with their reputation as a source for fun and easy escapism, are much more accessible for people, provided they disregard the stigma of puerility attached to them (sigh). But with this medium’s approachability is an almost peerless level of flexibility and potential for depth, meaning that you can appreciate comics the same way you might with strong literature or other forms of high art, while doing so in a friendlier critical environment. You can still analyze comics like any other art form, but without worrying about the loftiness and tradition that makes graphic or literary arts so intimidating. There will always be plenty of people who will refuse to challenge themselves with the media they consume. But I think comics can act as a stepping stone for many people who do want to get more out of the art they enjoy.
- Any final thoughts on McCloud’s book?
Personally, I loved the book. It was thorough, engaging, whip smart but nonetheless approachable. My earlier posts will show that I took issue with a number of arguments that McCloud raised. I stand by my dissent. What’s more important is the fact that I feel comfortable dissenting in the first place. As I said earlier, a big problem with art is trying to feel comfortable voicing your own opinions after centuries of history behind it. For McCloud to explore this medium, as well as the concepts behind in art in general, in such a way that I can readily articulate my own responses to it is highly valuable. Understanding Comics teaches us a great deal, but it allows for and expects critical thinking with its material, something that is not often achieved in textbooks.
The historical context you provided in your answer was really helpful for me. I did not consider how long "high art" had been available to the public as opposed to aristocracy only, but it definitely gives a fuller perspective. I also agree that comic books are a relatively accessible form of art - maybe this is the silver lining of the stigma associated with comics? I liked this book as well - as someone who is new to this medium, I learned a lot.
DeleteChp 7. McCloud broke the artistic process of comics into:
ReplyDeleteIdea/purpose, form, idiom, structure, craft, surface.
As a product designer, we have a similar process with our design thinking and making:
analysis, synthesis, evaluation, communication and documentation.
and to be honest….we can even do the exact process McCloud used. It just depends on what we are designing.
The processes almost line up perfectly with each other. Starting with research and analysis of the situation. That is similar to the process of understanding the idea/purpose of what your illustrating in a comic. Next Industrial Designers use ideations and hundreds of sketches to understand form of the products we are designing. We evaluate all possible angles and how humans will interact with these new products, which correlates with idiom. We communicate the structure of different levels of product development using craft in our prototypes. Through all this comparison, it comes down to many development process like comics to product design to scientific studies follow similar processes. Can anyone else relate to these processes?
Chp 8. Since I don’t really read comics I can compare color themes to other design elements we are exposed to everyday. When you think of branding and company logos, you can recognize them by their colors and graphic icons. A well designed logo has a limited color pallet and those colors are carefully chose. This is similar to how comics have limited their color choices, since pricing is one factor. But it works in their favor since color, naturally grabs your attention; because it’s color. So when put in a black and white backdrop/environment it just emphasizes their color choice for their mascots. There are purposeful choices behind every curve and line in a logo where marketing researchers and designers have studied how people relate to different forms and choose which collection of lines and shapes will imulate what the company stands for. (I’ve branded myself and I am required to revamp my logo, website and portfolio every semester, so I have some good practice with branding)
Overall, McCloud has made some great points and he expressed some interesting theories and connections comics have with the art world. A lot of things he brought up remind me of discussions I’ve had in my art theory and design classes over the years. It was was refreshing to hear some new perspectives on different art mediums and how they have influenced our cultures around the world.
Chapter Seven and the six steps is a chapter that is focused on premising McCloud's definition of Art. The biggest point I pulled away from this chapter is that Art is more important than many people think. McCloud's use of Caveman to demonstrate the intimate link between people and art is a great analog. The dance, art, music and innovation that comes from art can not be understated. In WWII the military knew of the advantage of using art and artists. Camouflage for troops and vehicles were designed by artists wanting to help their nation. Art is a way for people to express themselves, when in real life they may not be able too. The evolutionary benefits that McCloud describes is something that we continue to study today. There are studies that use music as a way to connect Alzheimer's patients to their lost memories.
ReplyDeleteAs for the decline of arts, or "pure" arts, I would argue that the worst is behind us for now. Many schools, and communities have become committed to restoring the arts. There are many programs, and awareness groups who fight for these essential lessons to be restored. I was surprised that there wasn't any mention of the power of art to bring groups together. You mention that arts being hampered by technology, due to the oceans of recycled content, loss of revenue for museums, and public dismissal of arts. These effects may not necessarily be because of a lack of interest in art, but do to the accessibility of art online. One of the biggest problems facing original creators is piracy and theft. Many of the recycled content is posted to the main page of a website, but underneath it is an ocean of new and amazing content. The spread of information via the internet has made it so anyone can post their creations into the world. We may simply be drowning in some art that it actually lessens the impact of extraordinary art. This is just an idea. The processes involved in creating content is used even when art is accidentally created. I personally love to write, and desire to publish a book of my own one day. What I found interesting is that even when I am writing whatever random thought that has entered my head, the six step process still applies.
I wouldn't say art has been declining at all. I'm a grad student in fine arts and if anything art has only gotten stronger over the years. It's completely necessary for our lives in ways people don't appreciate. The thing is right now the supply is very high since there are a lot of self taught computer based artists, and this is diverting public attention from galleries and such. It's sad to me that someone would even think that. But I do agree there are a lot of idiot artists who hog galleries making "art for artists" that nobody cares to see.
ReplyDeleteWhere do comics fall? Well to further prove my point comics are doing freaking awesome right now compared to just a decade or so ago. Even Image comics is making so many sales it's starting to threaten the big two, forcing them to finally get their act together and produce better work instead of market for higher sales.
Digital wise, I sell on Comixology which just got bought out by Amazon (which I honestly don't like) but it proves how huge the market is currently for selling comics online. But people do tend to prefer the physical copies from what sales I pull in.
My current non comic work is actually in exploring the different paths in the writing and art making processes in order to create the same work to find better solutions to art making and writing problems for myself. Loaded question > Loaded answer.
Color in comics has had its world blown once we started using digital presses and CMYK. I was baffled McCloud paid so much extra to print color in this book with all the BW before! (I make comics so I know the cost is high. It basically tripled the price of the book) But anyway- color in a similar sense can be used to jolt the reader at its sparingly used importance. Sin City's That Yellow Bastard hits the reader like a truck and demands you look at that blaring yellow faced man every time he appears, whereas full color comics need to be selective in how to get certain characters to be illuminated for the reader. Usually through value instead of color. But in answering my attentiveness in a comic with color instead of BW... I think I'm going to have to say I prefer the color to keep me going if the story can't alone. Sometimes though in Japanese comics they'll give you two or three pages of color before the BW story. This I think is really annoying since it breaks up the story into two. the cool looking beginning, and the now inadequate BW version of the intro. In that sense, color can be crucial to either have completely, or not at all.
(Apparently I wrote too much... part 2!) F=ma
DeleteThose app games you played all show the exact color code that company pays for. Yes they seriously pay for colors. CocaCola will smite you if you even think about using their exact red for a drink. McDonalds even sued Bob Evans for using their yellow. (Ever noticed they use white instead now?). How this relates to comics isn't really clear anymore since we now have access to full color press printing that makes the halftone age obsolete. Comics that use it nowadays are basically trying to look retro. "Dots are the new cool" kind of thing.
McCloud's final chapter is fantastic where he basically shows off how brilliant he is and how he can utilize basically everything he'd covered in the book on a few sheets of paper. At this rate he assumes you've understood his concepts throughout the book in order to allow you to get all the crazy tricks he uses as he concludes his "comic pep talk." The trust in the reader to understand it all as he talks really enforces the 'wow" factor as you can now appreciate all of what a comic can do.
Negatively I can tell you comics don't translate from print to digital well. Digital art can utilize time based animations and sounds, as well as use a completely different shape of viewing screen than a printed page. Man his whole second book Reinventing comics is basically the answer to this question. I'm glad it exists. But of his three theory books it's clearly the most dated with ancient computers, but the information in relevant all the same. he predicted the issues of digital we have today, and gave solutions that we still haven't even begun to utilize.
Modern developments? Well outside of digital releases I've heard Image is now delivering comics as they are released to your home. I think this'll be huge. For one it gets people out of the comic shop (bad) and from looking at other comics they may like they stumble upon other than Image titles (good for them). If other companies catch on then this may start to kill comic shops and they may only live as conventions (also bad). This may be irrelevant but it's modern news nonetheless.
My big takeaway from his series? I scrapped my script for my first comic and started over! Granted I read this book years ago so the comic I'm referring to has been released. But still, that's a powerful read. probably my favorite graphic novel just because of how it can get the creative juices flowing.
ReplyDeleteKnowledge of the process may be necessary if one wants to understand the context of the work. This applies to both the inspiration for the work, as well as the length of time it took to complete and changes that may have been made that gave the work a different quality of craft, form, idiom, idea, or structure. The inspiration for the work may involve individual experience that is expressed too abstractly to appreciate without knowledge of inspiration during the process. Also cultural nuances and idioms may make parts of the work go unappreciated or noticed by the reader if they aren't considering the time and place where the work was made.
Colors in comics allow for greater depth of composition through coordinating or complimentary colors. Also emotional responses can be increased through the use of colors along with certain icons. Colored word balloons and narration boxes can also define voice for a character. For example, a character who is sullen and brooding might always have a grey or blue narration box, while a character who is bombastic might have a bright yellow or red narration box. Also coloring certain words may emphasize emotion and inflection.
A chapter about the recent popularization of comics and their future as an electronic or published medium would be appropriate to add. There are many more people becoming interested in comics as a hobby and art. This means that competition will be ever increasing and the expectations of quality of independently published work will probably also increase. Interactive comics seem an inevitable innovation and their creation would begin to merge video games and comics. This would be a new interactive media experience. New dimensions of multiple outcomes, sound, and an added level of visual depth would make it easier for the reader to immerse in the story.
Well, the decline of art as a whole comes from the fact that not many people (aside from critics and collectors) are willing to purchase art for their homes because they can easily obtain a $20 print from Kmart or Target. Other than that, its all bout how and where you present the art that will make somebody want it more, or see it differently. Presentation is everything, at least, that’s what the’ve been telling me at DAAP. If I were to put up a show all about comfort and tranquility, I wouldn’t host my show in a place that’s near something loud. Some exhibitions take place outside, just so their art will pop out more, but even then, because the price is so high and the need for it so low, no one buys when they can just get a cliché carbon copy from the self of the nearest warehouse store. Similarly with writing and comic nowadays, though this a tad bit of difference in which people are still buying. On Nooks, Kindles, iPads, you can get an app that would let you read all sorts of books. Most of the time, people publish to sties where they’ll be advertised like Amazon so people can purchase it. As a comic artist myself, I can honestly say that in today’s market, people are more easily drawn to the web-comic. They aren’t so much in danger of going extinct, but they aren’t exactly bringing in the money like they used too!
ReplyDeletePersonally, I get very distracted by colors, but in a good way! I find it interesting how comics play with value and certain color pallets to set a scene or a mood. (In this current one I’m reading, Feathers, the pallet is a lot of earthy tones in one area of the city, and richer, warmer colors in the upper class areas.) Using color is a really good way to make a charter memorable. I mean, if I give you the colors green and purple, would you think Hulk? if I said red and black, would you think Dare Devil or Deadpool? Colors put into use like this make advertising the books themselves a breeze because the beloved character’s themselves are being recognized. So if a commercial showed me an advertisement of the next Cap movie, and I saw it everywhere, the next time I’m in a comic shop and I see that same layout of color, I’m more inclined to buy it because I know it from mainstream media. Colored comics can do better because more people will see the character and it will be easier to sell.
Well he uses the panel-running-off-the-page on page 212, and the panel features a Space theme, and mentions that the possibilities with comics are endless. Because of the way the panel is set up, the running off the page creates a vastness/openness to it, much like looking at the sky or space itself. He sets up words around pictures, forcing us to pause when reading the words, and creating the “closure” he mentioned in the pervious chapter.
This book, as well as his book "Making Comics," (one that’s a must have if this is your chosen career)was incredibly informative on not only how comics work, but how to read them critically and how to understand why you are reading the way you are. McCloud is a brilliant artist and thinker, and I would have loved to read his story “Zot."
I agree with you about considering the decline of “pure” art, I agree in the sense that I too feel there is a decline in art programs in school, not many people seem to lean towards that major and I am guessing for many reasons like they don’t think anyone would understand them, or it’s not a career path that would make them a lot of money, but that doesn’t mean it’s any less important than any other programs in school.
ReplyDeleteI also see your point about the case for books and publishing. Nowadays there seems to be a serious decline and less of a need for libraries, bookstores, and books themselves because of how advanced technology has gotten. No one carries books around, because there’s the nook and they can download all the books they want conveniently without the struggle of carrying countless books. My thing is, I feel like if you don’t read the book from an actual text, you don’t get the same satisfaction as you do if you had read it from a paper back. And it is true, people chose to express themselves more on social networks and blogs than they would on an actual text that could possibly be published. I think with time, things have changed miraculously.
I honestly hope comics don’t fall in this decline, but with the advancing technology, it is a great possibility. People who love comics would probably fight to keep the comics alive, so let’s hope there are many of them out there!
I do not have extensive knowledge/understanding of American comics, and largely draw on a knowledge/understanding of manga. And while this may be true only of the American renditions of these, 99% of the time these are in grey scale. What i find interesting about chaper 8 is that he comments on being a little more form focused, as in the shapes and forms drawn because of the simplistic color scheme, and i would say Mange take this to an extreme, the forms and shapes in manga are usually very well drawn, and very stylistic. So i think McCloud does a great job landing this one right on its head, in that as colors become more simplistic, the art has to become better, more realistic, and more pronounced regardless of whether you're talking about more traditional American comics, or in looking at foreign comics, and especially graphic novels.
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