Synopses & Reviews
Comic strips and comic books were among the most popular and influential forms of mass media in 20thcentury America. This fascinating book focuses on fifteen pioneering cartoonists—ranging from Winsor McCay to Chris Ware—who brought this genre to the highest level of artistic expression and who had the greatest impact on the development of the form.
Organized chronologically, Masters of American Comics explores the rise of newspaper comic strips and comic books and considers their artistic development throughout the century. Presenting a wide selection of original drawings as well as progressive proofs, vintage printed Sunday pages, and comic books themselves, the authors also look at how the art of comics was transformed by artistic innovation as well as by changes in popular taste, economics, and printing conventions.
First appearing in newspaper Sunday supplements, the comic strip became immediately successful and created the largest audience of any medium of its time. The comic book first began as a way to print existing newspaper comics, then subsequently established the mass popularity of superheroes in the 1940s and 1950s before it matured as a vehicle for independent personal expression in the underground comic books and graphic novels of the 1960s.
Included in the book are insightful and entertaining essays on individual artists written by major figures in the fields of comics, narrative illustration, literature, popular culture, and art history. Masters of American Comics convincingly positions the genre of comics into the history of art and is destined to become a classic text for years to come.
Review
“The most important recent book about comics
...When the text is itself a work of art, thats an unexpected bonus.”
Publishers Weekly
Review
"The most important recent book about comics...When the text is itself a work of art, that's an unexpected bonus."
Review
"This is the best book ever written, as far as Im concerned. . . . Its the best book Ive ever read on cartooning, and its so generous. Its like, anybody can do this. The book is so good."--Lynda Barry, cartoonist
-- Paul Schroeder
Review
"Brunetti has given the cartooning world something very similar to what Strunk & White gave to prose with their Elements of Style. . . . keep it right next to your desk where you can find it at a moments notice."--Tim ONeil, PopMatters.com -- Lynda Barry
Review
and#8220;The most importantandnbsp;recent book about comics
...When the text is itself a work of art, thatand#8217;s an unexpected bonus.and#8221;
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Synopsis
The first comprehensive history of 20th-century American comics to examine the genre's significant and varied contributions to art and culture
Synopsis
Comic strips and comic books were among the most popular and influential forms of mass media in 20thcentury America. This fascinating book focuses on fifteen pioneering cartoonistsand#151;ranging from Winsor McCay to Chris Wareand#151;who brought this genre to the highest level of artistic expression and who had the greatest impact on the development of the form.Organized chronologically, Masters of American Comics explores the rise of newspaper comic strips and comic books and considers their artistic development throughout the century. Presenting a wide selection of original drawings as well as progressive proofs, vintage printed Sunday pages, and comic books themselves, the authors also look at how the art of comics was transformed by artistic innovation as well as by changes in popular taste, economics, and printing conventions.First appearing in newspaper Sunday supplements, the comic strip became immediately successful and created the largest audience of any medium of its time. The comic book first began as a way to print existing newspaper comics, then subsequently established the mass popularity of superheroes in the 1940s and 1950s before it matured as a vehicle for independent personal expression in the underground comic books and graphic novels of the 1960s.Included in the book are insightful and entertaining essays on individual artists written by major figures in the fields of comics, narrative illustration, literature, popular culture, and art history. Masters of American Comics convincingly positions the genre of comics into the history of art and is destined to become a classic text for years to come.
Synopsis
The best cartooning is efficient visual storytellingit is as much a matter of writing as it is of drawing. In this book, noted cartoonist and illustrator Ivan Brunetti presents fifteen distinct lessons on the art of cartooning, guiding his readers through wittily written passages on cartooning terminology, techniques, tools, and theory. Supplemented by Brunetti's own illustrations, prepared specially for this book, these lessons move the reader from spontaneous drawings to single-panel strips and complicated multipage stories.
Through simple, creative exercises and assignments, Brunetti offers an unintimidating approach to a complex art form. He looks at the rhythms of storytelling, the challenges of character design, and the formal elements of comics while composing pages in his own iconic style and experimenting with a variety of tools, media, and approaches. By following the author's sophisticated and engaging perspective on the art of cartooning, aspiring cartoonists of all ages will hone their craft, create their personal style, and discover their own visual language.
About the Author
JOHN CARLIN is an independent writer and curator, specializing in the history of comics. He is also chief executive officer of Funny Garbage, a premier media developer in New York City. PAUL KARASIK is a cartoonist whose works have appeared in The New Yorker and Nickelodeon magazines. He was associate editor of RAW and published his own magazine, Bad News. He studied with Will Eisner, Harvey Kurtzman, and Art Spiegelman at the School of Visual Arts. BRIAN WALKER is a cartoonist and a founder of the International Museum of Cartoon Art. He has written and edited more than a dozen books, including The Comics Since 1945.