Comic Art Presentation for Comic Art students 1 1

[thethedew]

Next week, I've been asked to bring along a selection from my collection to the local Art College, and perform an informal presentation to the school's Comic Art students.  It's been requested for me to make as varied a selection as possible, (a little bit of a challenge given the focus of the collection) but I think I can manage a few things:

1) Bring along an entire issue of sequential storytelling, executed by a master (Michael Golden).  Bring along both published versions of the comic, to better show off the difference different colorists and quality paperstock can make on the finished product.
2) Examples of different inkers over the same penciller  (differences between Rubenstein and Milgrom over Golden, probably)
3) Examples of different pencillers with a common inker (Klaus Jansen over Simonson, Sal B, Brent Anderson and Jim Mooney; all Galactica pages)
4) Some examples of single-page compositions and how they're different: Covers vs Pinups vs Splashes
5) Pages from different eras: Bronze Age, Copper Age, Modern/Digital Age.  This would include pages where lettering was just becoming digital, sets of penciller pages with their bluelined-inker pages, and a page or two of digital-pencil/manual-inked pages.  (I don't own any Silver or Golden age stuff)
6) The above could follow into a discussion of creation of published art from the perspective of a collector.  In other words: if a deadline allows, it may be a good idea from an additional income-stream perspective for artists to execute the art traditionally.
7) Discussion of Commissions and management thereof.

Anyone have any other suggestions on discussion points?
Andrew

Edited November 17, 2017 by thethedew

[vodou]

Andrew! This is fun and I hope you enjoy yourself. Likewise I hope the students enjoy engaging with you and your collection, there are some interesting angles there that could be explored.

The most important thing I learned in my communications minor was: know your audience so you can tailor your message to them. If these are already "comic art students", what is their student experience level? If it's greater than "first semester", some of what you're planning to share may be ho-hum and you could lose some/all of them early on that basis. You may also consider targeting either a general high level discussion or a specific aspect of 'making' comic art, and whether or not the collector's pov has any place at all. Or if it does, just focusing on that. Otherwise, imo, you risk quickly skimming too many big topics without having the time dig in deep where the meat is, from your end but also theirs via Q&A.

Hope that's not too critical and instead helpful!

[SquareChaos]

Along the lines of what @vodou suggests concerning your audience... if they're not deep into their studies, maybe some basic points on being sure to leave room in their layout for trade dress. Maybe a discussion of how an artist moves from -script, to storyboards, and eventually on to final page with whatever detail you want to put in there.

 

Also, place a heavy emphasis on #6, there are a lot of us who want to give them money for their work - getting paid twice is awesome  

[thethedew]

Just like any classroom, there will be an eclectic mix of styles and skill levels present.  For the most part I will keep close to the instructor's lead.

[comicwiz]

Great idea! Is there a possibility this could be video recorded for a wider viewing audience? I'm a big believer in continual learning, and even though I'm long out of academia, I've always enjoyed art research and studies. Except when I had to attend and be marked on it.

[J.Sid]

41 minutes ago, SquareChaos said:

Along the lines of what @vodou suggests concerning your audience... if they're not deep into their studies, maybe some basic points on being sure to leave room in their layout for trade dress. Maybe a discussion of how an artist moves from --script, to storyboards, and eventually on to final page with whatever detail you want to put in there.

 

Ha! Don't know if you can swing it, but it's great to talk about how the process has changed over the years:

Compare an old Kirby Marvel page with his handwritten plot notes in the margins against one of the more modern "full -script" pages. Something written by Alan Moore would be the other extreme. He's been known to type out a full page describing a single panel in some instances.

[vodou]

58 minutes ago, thethedew said:

Just like any classroom, there will be an eclectic mix of styles and skill levels present.  For the most part I will keep close to the instructor's lead.

LOL! Joke's on me - clearly I didn't know "my" audience ("you"), assumed you were giving a standard lecture/demonstration (where you are the sole speaker and point of focus for a period of time), not assisting (or not even that, perhaps only providing the props?) against "instructor's lead". With that in mind, of course, just go with the flow. If your role is mostly providing props, I think you already have a nice mix of things and J.Sid's could be added if it's not too much (or too hard to source on short notice).

[suspense39]

One of the best instructional books

eisner's book:

https://www.amazon.com/Will-Eisner-Storytelling-Principles-Instructional/dp/B00HTJO5I8

as well as Scott Mclouds, "understanding comics

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_3_9?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=understanding+comics&sprefix=Understan%2Cstripbooks%2C272&crid=3RJJROTPW1T55

[romitaman]

I've done this at 2 separate college universities Here in Ohio a few years ago for 90 minute sessions each at CASE WESTERN RESERVE and HIRAM COLLEGE, and I explained to college students what comic book art was all about and i brought some high end art and some low end art.

I had a great time doing it both times..... a little nervous to start obviously......then like any lecture it all just starts to flow.........and these were POP CULTURE and ART class students i was lecturing, so they were all really into it and a lot of them were avid comic fans.....I picked a few VERY high end pieces to WOW THEM and to show them what some of this art is worth........and also some EYE CATCHING smaller pieces that i knew would make even non comic readers go crazy.  Also low end art they could actually hold  to get a close up look while i talked about comic art history as best i could, and of course i had about 30 minutes of Q and A from them at the very end which I enjoyed.

Mike Burkey

[r100comics]

It might be interesting to include some color guides so the students can understand how the original art transitions into the printed page.

[thethedew]

11 hours ago, r100comics said:

It might be interesting to include some color guides so the students can understand how the original art transitions into the printed page.

I have a few that are paired with their Master Pages which I plan to bring along.

[thethedew]

On 11/17/2017 at 2:20 PM, vodou said:

perhaps only providing the props?) against "instructor's lead". With that in mind, of course, just go with the flow. If your role is mostly providing props, I think you already have a nice mix of things and J.Sid's could be added if it's not too much (or too hard to source on short notice).

The class is 'standard art school format' - small and informal, with tables to crowd around rather than a standard lecture setup.  So, it will pretty much be letting the kids thumb through a couple portfolios assembled for the occasion, with the occasional point-out from the prof and me.

There will be some opportunity for questions and discussion, but my experience with students is that they can be hard to draw out if they're unfamiliar with you.  That's that stoic Midwestern cliche for you...

[Dick O.]

How'd the session go @thethedew? Any interesting thoughts on and insights from, the next generation of comics creators?

 

[thethedew]

9 hours ago, O. said:

How'd the session go ? Any interesting thoughts on and insights from, the next generation of comics creators?

 

The session went fine.  I brought three binders in total, two of selections from the overall collection, the other is an oversized binder with bitsNbobs that are irregularly-sized.

The class size was larger, around 15 kids, as two of the Comic Art profs had decided to merge their classes together for the presentation.  Very few seem to be 'Traditional' comic artists - lots of indie-style inclinations, I think.

As I'd mentioned before, we'd just laid out a binder on 3 different tables and let the kids mill around and look.  The Profs and I tried our best to hover and point out things from the art I'd brought.  The Q&A was before they started looking, and surprise, surprise, the students were more interested in the value of my collection and what I might have paid for any given piece.  But why not?  That's human instinct.   But that evaporated once they'd got a chance to look over some art.

In future, it might be useful for the Profs to review the art I'm bringing along in advance, so they can concentrate more on pointing out details to the students rather than geeking out along with them. 

I did get a chance to speak to them about keeping to their obligations regarding deadlines and commission promises.  I don't think I pushed hard enough about having the discipline to turn down commissions when they know they don't have time.  Tsk.  I also pointed out how traditional art can be an additional income stream. 

They applauded when I'd finished, and one student even followed me out of the building to thank me personally.

The Profs made noises about doing it again next semester, so I suppose that means they were pleased.

[Dick O.]

Sounds like a resounding success, keep up the good work Andrew!

9 hours ago, thethedew said:

I also pointed out how traditional art can be an additional income stream. 

 

[furthur]

I have now spoken twice to the comic history class at SCAD here in Atlanta. The first time around, I struggled with what to bring and what to talk about, but once things get going, time flies by  pretty quickly actually. I bring a couple of folios-one with mostly preliminary art, one with 11x17 modern art and one with some golden age material and comic strip art and discuss what I collect and why and also what I am looking for when I buy commission work. I talked some about the  new digital processes and how they have impacted modern art collecting.  Since these are all art students, I also put my money where my mouth is and have offered to review portfolios and to choose someone to do a commission for me.  I pay what I think is a pretty good amount for student work ($200.00) Last year I got a superb commission out of the deal and I think the students enjoyed the class and the chance to see both classic and modern comic art since I collect both. Its a class, so there were enthusiastic folks and a few that were obviously bored-just like I remember school! It was a ton of fun for me  though, and I will certainly do it again if asked.  Benno