To me an artists book is a book created by an artist, the format can vary greatly, they push the boundaries of what a 'book' is. They meld text and imagery together. The work is original. A collectors piece.
I wouldn't consider a book that is bound up so it couldn't be opened to be an artist's book. For me personally, I believed that the text and imagery played a large part in what it was. Whether that was displayed in bizarre and different ways, it still needs to be depictable.
Aussie artist Imants Tillers work of individual panels containing image and text to be viewed on the wall or stacked in sequential order..... this I would consider to fall within the artist's book realm. Even though the format is not traditional (pages within a book), it still adheres to the fundamental elements of text and imagery to construct its existence... whether they are displayed on wall or stacked together on a table top.
A portfolio of prints on the same topic presented in a box..... I would not call this an artists book...as it lacks the vital text. To me this would just be art. I think if text were somehow incorporated into the overall work.... then it would qualify. But as it does not.... then it it isn't an artist's book.
Monday, June 20, 2011
Monday, June 13, 2011
Artist's Books
The difference between the livre d'artiste, independent publishing and fine printing was that the livre d'artiste was more a commercial item meant for publication and replication. Independent printing was any form of publication not done by a commercial or organised body. And fine printing.... could mean either high end quality of print or the art of printing.
According to Drucker, the difference between a livre d'artiste and an artist's book was clear... and yet not that clear. The differences she made of the two are as follows:
livre d'artiste: Was initially a publishing enterprise who marketed deluxe editions of upcoming artists. Possible reproductions. Followed the tradition of the illustrated book. It conformed to format. Gave artists the chance to work in mediums they weren't accustomed to or could afford. Finely made works. Surrounded by blank margins.
Artist's Book: Original works that interrogate the conceptual or material form of the book as its intention, thematic interests or production activities. Structure and Meaning play a big role. non conformists of book structure and would bend the rules and conventions on craft decorum. Associated with offset, xerox, letter press, hand binding and relief images (woodcut, linoleum, engraving). Often poor, the artists would use what materials they had, and whilst the quality of material may not be fine... the work was. Was considered a highly malleable and versatile form of expression. No specific criteria for defining what and artist's book is.
Drucker wrote "While many livre d'artiste are interesting on their own terms, they are productions rather then creations, products rather then visions, examples of a form, not interrogations of its conceptual or formal or metaphysical potential."
William Cole considered the main failing of livre d'artiste to be that illustrationists were not considered artists. That by their structured format how could they produce credible art. That being no names of no famed appeal, why would their art be desirable. Cole's issue was the injust attitude toward 'designers' of the time, as they were up against some stiff competition - that of the snobby Art industry... and all that entails.
Artist and writers were contracted independently mostly, or at times collaborated but always directed by the editor... as they would orchestrate the entire project. The editor much like an editor by todays standards woudl oversea the work into project completion.
According to Drucker, the difference between a livre d'artiste and an artist's book was clear... and yet not that clear. The differences she made of the two are as follows:
livre d'artiste: Was initially a publishing enterprise who marketed deluxe editions of upcoming artists. Possible reproductions. Followed the tradition of the illustrated book. It conformed to format. Gave artists the chance to work in mediums they weren't accustomed to or could afford. Finely made works. Surrounded by blank margins.
Artist's Book: Original works that interrogate the conceptual or material form of the book as its intention, thematic interests or production activities. Structure and Meaning play a big role. non conformists of book structure and would bend the rules and conventions on craft decorum. Associated with offset, xerox, letter press, hand binding and relief images (woodcut, linoleum, engraving). Often poor, the artists would use what materials they had, and whilst the quality of material may not be fine... the work was. Was considered a highly malleable and versatile form of expression. No specific criteria for defining what and artist's book is.
Drucker wrote "While many livre d'artiste are interesting on their own terms, they are productions rather then creations, products rather then visions, examples of a form, not interrogations of its conceptual or formal or metaphysical potential."
William Cole considered the main failing of livre d'artiste to be that illustrationists were not considered artists. That by their structured format how could they produce credible art. That being no names of no famed appeal, why would their art be desirable. Cole's issue was the injust attitude toward 'designers' of the time, as they were up against some stiff competition - that of the snobby Art industry... and all that entails.
Artist and writers were contracted independently mostly, or at times collaborated but always directed by the editor... as they would orchestrate the entire project. The editor much like an editor by todays standards woudl oversea the work into project completion.
Winsor McCay VS Art Speigelman
Little Nemo in Slumberland was produced by Winsor McCay (below). As Maus (above) was produced by Art Speigelman. Both men worked on their projects single-handedly to produce their brilliance.
There is a strength in the consistency of both these works that radiates throughout - as both Art and Winsor were the sole workers on these comics. No ideas are lost or interpreted differently by a team. No compromise is necessary. The job is begun and ended by the same artist who had the original thoughts.
The graphic novel of Maus if more book-like. One instinctively reads it as a storybook - merely because of our associations with previous books. There seems to be less windows and their smaller, more concise. "Spiegelman's first published version of Maus was a three-page strip, printed in 1972 in Funny Aminals (cq), an underground comic published by Apex Novelties."* The full page comic of Nemo have longer drawings stretching out the spanse of the page.
What stands out in McCays comic is that the illustration take precedence over the text. His sense of drawing perspective is quite sophisticated for the time. His sense of time movement is illustrated through the repetition of the frames, and the slight variation to show the motion. McCays illustrations have been likened to Muybridge's art with his horses and sense of time/motion manipulation. World War 2 was an imperative influence on Maus as it conveys the true story of a mans journey and survival through the holocaust.
I find in McCays Little Nemo in Slumberland that his illustration dominates the text. The dialogue is secondary to the imagery. It almost looks a little awkward in the frame. His use of panel or frame repetition to create motion and time is amazing though. His drawing perspective is advanced for the era. His use of colour is bright and characterises the pace and progression of the story.
I quite liked Maus. Mainly because of the storyline but also because of the art. The image and text are tightly united in this comic. The text almost a part of the illustration in some panels and is shown through the shape of text or speech balloons. It is spatially accounted for in the illustration and not just added as an after thought as it seems to be in Little Nemo. In Maus, the elements of text and image, both are equally important in narrating this story.
*Internet resource - Wiki.
Comic examples cross referenced by Abbott's ideas
This example above is a good example of what Abbott was saying about the composition of text and image in the panel. And that even though the image may be bigger, the text is in proportion and is linked to the image. I don't always think comics have the right proportion... but I think its better if they do.
I don't think a comic artist needs to have lots of individual frames to display movement. I think this image above shows quite a lot of motion. But in saying that, it is suspended motion. There is no pre or post movement. So maybe Abbott had something about the individual frames assisting the idea of movement.
Above is a fantastic depiction of how text and image relate and effect the comic. This artist has drawn the same text to differing facial images. And how we 'read' this as a viewer is interesting.
And as Abbott had said - that we need the two elements to read a comic.... in this case i agree. It shows you how integral each element is.
'Reading' comics and graphic novels
Abbott noted some important differences between comic art and other two dimensional art. Mainly that the comic, unlike other two dimensional art - incorporates both text and image as the whole work. Rather then just the image. Both text and imagery are used to narrate or tell the story of the comic. That to view a comic..... as one views a painting - with a comic one reads the comic both comprised of imagery and text.
I definitely think that the images within a comic should be considered a fourth language. It is not only the text that tells a story in a comic. Nor is it only the imagery that tells the story. It is the combination. And each element holds its own. Neither can be used without the other to narrate a comic - or it would not be a comic. But the visual element tells a story - much like the Mona Lisa tells a story. It is a powerful element within the comic, it is utilised as a communicative tool - and should be classified its own language.
The relative space given to images and texts within a comic is considered by Abbott to be compositionally balanced even though the image may appear to dominate the text. He thought that the text decides where you looked at the comic image. That image and text are used to direct the readers eye, from singe frame and from frame to frame, by steering via patterns of perception.
The representation of Time in the comic form is manipulated by text and image to achieve its results. Time manipulation in particular was created through the multiple frames where one could discern the actual movement. Little Nemo in Slumberland by Winsor McCay is a great example of this. He would draw frames say of a bed on long spindly legs walking down the street amidst the high rise buildings, and his use perception and angles and slight variation which depicted the movement - all played part in time manipulation. It was fantastic. Each single frame was drawn. There were no programs to create this effect. Text would also be incorporated into the representation of time. You could start a sentence in one frame and not finish it until the 7th frame onward... or visually draw the text (like a sound) over several frames.... there was so much scope to manipulate time. These were some of the the ticks of the trade in guiding the reader through the comic. It's progression could be gaged and the pace set through text and imagery..... creating dramatic tension and slowing or speeding up time. Panel and page size, format, image and text are all used to control the pace and progression of the story.
I definitely think that the images within a comic should be considered a fourth language. It is not only the text that tells a story in a comic. Nor is it only the imagery that tells the story. It is the combination. And each element holds its own. Neither can be used without the other to narrate a comic - or it would not be a comic. But the visual element tells a story - much like the Mona Lisa tells a story. It is a powerful element within the comic, it is utilised as a communicative tool - and should be classified its own language.
The relative space given to images and texts within a comic is considered by Abbott to be compositionally balanced even though the image may appear to dominate the text. He thought that the text decides where you looked at the comic image. That image and text are used to direct the readers eye, from singe frame and from frame to frame, by steering via patterns of perception.
The representation of Time in the comic form is manipulated by text and image to achieve its results. Time manipulation in particular was created through the multiple frames where one could discern the actual movement. Little Nemo in Slumberland by Winsor McCay is a great example of this. He would draw frames say of a bed on long spindly legs walking down the street amidst the high rise buildings, and his use perception and angles and slight variation which depicted the movement - all played part in time manipulation. It was fantastic. Each single frame was drawn. There were no programs to create this effect. Text would also be incorporated into the representation of time. You could start a sentence in one frame and not finish it until the 7th frame onward... or visually draw the text (like a sound) over several frames.... there was so much scope to manipulate time. These were some of the the ticks of the trade in guiding the reader through the comic. It's progression could be gaged and the pace set through text and imagery..... creating dramatic tension and slowing or speeding up time. Panel and page size, format, image and text are all used to control the pace and progression of the story.
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
The Graphic Novel
Sabin considered 'The Dark Knight', 'Maus' and 'The Watchmen' as the BIG 3 in the comic world.
They differed from the run of mill comics as they tended to portray more serious themes. Maus was based on the true story of a mans survival through the holocaust. The Dark Knight and The Watchmen were about washed up old superheros who were cynical, drunks, completely disenchanted with the world. They were aimed at adult audiences and were very successful. Maus won the Pulitzer prize.
Graphic Novels were intended to be published in a more permanent form. The were book like. Their success can be attributed to the targeting of adult audiences with serious real themes, and that they were so different from other bubble gum flavoured comics.
They differed from the run of mill comics as they tended to portray more serious themes. Maus was based on the true story of a mans survival through the holocaust. The Dark Knight and The Watchmen were about washed up old superheros who were cynical, drunks, completely disenchanted with the world. They were aimed at adult audiences and were very successful. Maus won the Pulitzer prize.
Graphic Novels were intended to be published in a more permanent form. The were book like. Their success can be attributed to the targeting of adult audiences with serious real themes, and that they were so different from other bubble gum flavoured comics.
The Production of Comic Books
The advantages of working in a team - means that its a shared workload. No one person upholding the entirety of such a big body of work. People to bounce ideas around with and have several opinions on something before a final decision is made.
The disadvantages would be that no one person had complete control of the project and its final outcome. There would have to be a lot of compromise with so many differing ideas and skills.
Reproduction is never as good. When the Americans had reproduced comics for the British, often they would be in black and white and a lot smaller - losing quality.
The format of a comic indeed affects the final form of the comic. The layout dictates how its read and seen. The plot of a story can be given more dramatic tension by the way its set out on paper IE the layout. The dialogue in a single strip to a full page to a comic book - differs greatly. The space one is allotted to narrate changed the story and setting of the comic. Spatial aspect of the comic can alter a lot of things... how much room you have to develop the characters, narrate the story, build the dramatic tension up, the colours you would use.... it's endless.
The disadvantages would be that no one person had complete control of the project and its final outcome. There would have to be a lot of compromise with so many differing ideas and skills.
Reproduction is never as good. When the Americans had reproduced comics for the British, often they would be in black and white and a lot smaller - losing quality.
The format of a comic indeed affects the final form of the comic. The layout dictates how its read and seen. The plot of a story can be given more dramatic tension by the way its set out on paper IE the layout. The dialogue in a single strip to a full page to a comic book - differs greatly. The space one is allotted to narrate changed the story and setting of the comic. Spatial aspect of the comic can alter a lot of things... how much room you have to develop the characters, narrate the story, build the dramatic tension up, the colours you would use.... it's endless.
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