Ploog Power - Monster of Frankenstein

Today I'd like to discuss the incredible art of Mike Ploog (monster illustrator extraordinaire) as showcased on three covers of The Monster of Frankenstein, 1973. These three covers highlight not only Ploog's excellent ability and style, but three things I admire about original art as well. In the first image, we see the cover of issue #1 press-ready. The cover to #2 shows Ploog's blue pencil beneath the inks, which I just love. Lastly, the cover for #6 is recreated in fully detailed pencils. Incredible, indeed!

*Come back Monday for a review of the 1st appearance of the Sons of the Tiger! Then on Thursday we'll take a look at - near as I could find - the only original art online for the KISS story in Marvel Super Special #5 (and of course we can talk about John Romita, Jr. on that book).

The Painful Artworks of Marian Kolodziej (1921-2009)

In June of 2008, as I was sitting at school in preparation for teaching my summer course, I received an email from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC. At that point I had done contract work for the Museum's education arm since 2005, and had been a Teacher Fellow since 2002. The email was to inform me that I'd been one of 10 American teachers chosen for a one week study tour of Poland in mid-October, to be arranged and paid for by the Polish Embassy in Washington. On the itinerary would be several days spent in Warsaw working with 10 Polish educators and 10 educators from Israel. Toward the end of the week, the American group would move to Krakow to attend meetings at a secondary school in that city. I immediately turned down the offer, thinking there was no way I could miss a week of school, etc. Informing my principal, I was told that I had been foolish to have declined and to quickly see if my spot was still available. It was, and I was able to go on the trip of a lifetime - it has proven to be the highlight of my professional career.

I say that to say this: On the last full day we were in Poland, we drove from Krakow to Auschwitz. We spent the morning touring Auschwitz I, and then moved for a brief tour of Auschwitz II-Birkenau. But when we were informed that our stay in Birkenau would be less than one hour, we were upset by that. We were told that we had one more stop on the day. We begrudgingly boarded our bus and off we went to a mysterious place - we'd not been told where. About halfway along we learned that we were going to a monastery, to see an art exhibit. To say we were further puzzled that we'd left Birkenau for an art exhibit would be an understatement. But when we arrived, it was clear that this would be no ordinary art gallery tour.

Marian Kolodziej spent 4 ½ years of his life in Auschwitz. As Prisoner #432, he entered the camp on the day it opened; he was liberated in January 1945, being one of only a handful of people to survive Auschwitz each day it was operational. He never spoke of his experiences for almost 50 years. After a serious stroke in 1993, on the recommendation of his physicians he began rehabilitation by doing pen and ink drawings depicting what he and others had endured in the concentration camp. What came out of his mind through his hand is a shocking testimony to his experiences, relationships, and reflections on the life Auschwitz stole from him. His drawings are housed in the basement of St. Maximilian Kolbe Franciscan Church in Harmeze, Poland, about six miles from Auschwitz.

The image above is elevated to the left upon entering the basement gallery. I have to tell you, it was somewhat alarming as we descended a dank outdoor staircase to a heavy wooden door. The monk (yes - you read that right) who was our guide keyed into the door, we entered, and then he locked it behind us. To be greeted with the strange faces, the seemingly endless images of barbed wire, and the heavy beams that framed the image provided us with a certain uneasiness. That, and being locked inside the basement of the monastery...

The image below is very large - the faces are close to life-sized. On the day we were there, and for years afterward I viewed this as a target. But upon inspection, one of my students correctly proclaimed that it is a clock. In the center is, I assume, Death. To the left is Kolodziej as a young man, to the right is the contemporary artist.

Kolodziej was a Polish political prisoner, as he shows in the image above at left. At right is a memory of being in the "standing cell" in Block 11 at Auschwitz I. No larger than a phone booth or shower stall, as many as four men could be made to crawl from a door only two feet tall at floor level into this space. While stooping to gain entrance, prisoners would have been kicked by guards, perhaps beaten with batons or rubber hoses. Kolodziej draws the men crowded, and overcome by the lice they'd have carried. The punishment often lasted 24 hours and probably included beatings afterward as well. 

Death rides as an SS officer, above.

There are hundreds, if not thousands, of artworks in the galleries. The gallery itself, honestly, is an artwork. Kolodziej was a designer in the Polish theater in the post-War years, and it shows through the various ways in which his work is presented. I asked our docent if Kolodziej was at the time still continuing to build the galleries. Yes, was the response. And he related a story that speaks to the permanence of the PTSD afflicting many survivors: Kolodziej had recently brought in and installed several artworks and had informed the church that he was done. His work was complete; he'd said all he felt he needed to say. And then he returned some weeks later with additional memories and feelings set to art.

 

In the image above, Kolodziej paints all those he encountered who persecuted him. Most of the people in the image are the artist's fellow inmates. In person, this particular painting exudes evil. It is captivating and haunting. Close inspection is necessary, yet incredibly disconcerting.

Below is an image of the victims of Auschwitz. Auschwitz I had one gas chamber/crematorium. At Auschwitz II-Birkenau there were four such installations. At the bottom of the painting below, you can see the five chimneys.

Unlike many of his peers in the Hell of Auschwitz, Marian Kolodziej was a Catholic. In the final exhibit in today's post, the artist draws himself as crucified with Christ. Yet notice the composition of the crown of thorns... more of the barbed wire, which was omnipresent in Kolodziej's art.

More information concerning the artist is available online. Suffice it to say that this was certainly not a pleasant way to end what was a very difficult day. Our bus ride back to Krakow was mostly silent. Decompression of the day's emotions took the better part of our evening, and still weighed on us as we made preparations to leave for the States the following day. 

John Byrne's Star-Lord

At some point I may review the 1st appearance of Star-Lord in its entirety, as originally presented in Marvel Preview #4 back in 1976. Memory fails me now, but I believe it's either in the Marvel Firsts: the 1970s trades, or the Marvel Visionaries: Chris Claremont hardcover. But until then, enjoy this splash page from John Byrne:

Who knew back then that Star-Lord would (almost) become a household name? The Guardians of the Galaxy were still relatively new, although gaining popularity - and their own series in Marvel Presents. I have zero experience with this iteration of the character, but as I said above, need to fix that problem.

*On Monday I'll feature a special review of the work of a Polish artist. Thursday we'll take a look at some Mike Ploog monster art, in various stages of production. Stay tuned!

Ross Andru's Amazing Spider-Man Artist Edition - a Review

Ross Andru's Amazing Spider-Man Artist Edition
IDW Publishing, March 2018

Now I love me a good Artist Edition, and today's fare certainly falls into that category. I pre-ordered this from the fine folks at Tales of Wonder, and received their always-expertly packaged box some months later. I've had this for quite some time, but only recently reserved a day (and the kitchen counter) to read from it. If you humored my live-tweet of my reading via the @bronzeagebabies Twitter feed, I thank you. Today, you are the lucky recipient of more of my photos as well as some thoughts on the book and on Andru's work.

First, the tale of the tape from the good people at the Artist Edition Index:

Ross Andru’s The Amazing Spider-Man Artist’s Edition
Includes Amazing Spider-Man 125-127, 153, 165 and 167, plus a special gallery section. Review.

• Publication Date: March 28, 2018 (solicited for January 2018)
• Publisher Series Number: 57
• ISBN: 978-1-68405-286-8
• 12″ x 17″
• 144 pages
• $125 USD
• Editor: Scott Dunbier
• Production: Scott Dunbier
• Design: Randall Dahlk
• Initial Reported Sales: 353

This is the twelfth Artist Edition I've purchased; unfortunately, these books are so large that I had to sell two to make room for others. First-World problems, I know... For those who are not familiar with Artist Editions (or their counterparts from other companies, i.e. Gallery Editions from Fantagraphics, et al.), these are collections of original art. When possible, complete issues are included, and the art is scanned in color - that means that all white-out, margin notes, blue-line pencil, paste-ups, etc. are visible in high definition... these books are the next best thing to owning the actual pages.

Ross Andru was my entry point to Amazing Spider-Man, c. issue #138. I think for many long-time fans, "you never forget your first". So while Andru may not be my favorite artist on the Wall-Crawler, I have a soft spot for his work. I hope you find, through the pages and panels I've presented, that Andru's run is pleasing to your eye as well.

I am an enthusiast of the production process. I come from a family of printers, so seeing the blue line pencil under the inks, the stats, the yellowed paste-ups, and the white-out is wonderful. In that vein, the page below is what I'd consider a prime exhibit of the purpose of the Artist Edition:

Amazing Spider-Man #180, by Ross Andru and Mike Esposito

Not only is this a great composition by Andru, the fact that all the word balloons are paste-ups is a curiosity. Of the 144 pages in the Artist Edition, this is the only one like this. You can find stats/paste-ups here and there, but never an entire page. It just makes me wonder a) what it looked like before, and b) was it the entire plot that was changed, or just wording here and there?

When many fans think of Ross Andru's tenure on Amazing Spider-Man, it's his attention to the details of New York City that come to mind. I've only been to NYC once, and then only to Manhattan on a drive-through and to a Yankees game in the Bronx. So for this Midwestern boy, Ross Andru provided me a window to another world.

 

 

The splash pages included in the AE are also an Andru tour de force. It's nice to see the influence of the various inkers on Andru's pencils, too. The varied camera angles are cool as well.

       

 

  

 

 And speaking of inkers, here's a closer look at some of the embellishers featured in the book. Left to right, top to bottom you'll see John Romita, Sr., Jim Mooney, Mooney again, Frank Giacoia, and Mike Esposito.

 

Gerry Conway and Len Wein were the scripters on the issues that were chosen for the book. Even with only these six issues as a sample, the rough and sometimes rocky relationship between Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson is on full display. This also serves as a time capsule for me, as I watched these events play out monthly after my trips to the corner drug store.

 

Early in the AE, in Amazing Spider-Man #s 126-127, Spider-Man is commissioned to build the Spider-Mobile. The panels featuring Spidey and the Human Torch working were fun - always some nice banter when those two are together. And darned if the guys pitching to Spidey don't resemble Funky Flashman and Houseroy!

The IDW folks did a great job - this is one of only two pages in the book not shot from original art.

 

The focus of an Artist Edition is not only the production process, as I mentioned above. I think that with the color stripped away, my concentration often goes to page layouts and panel composition. Ross Andru was a master of motion, specifically action. But if you notice in the final panel in this section, he was also pretty darn good at the conveyance of emotion.

Lastly, just by chance the issues chosen for this wonderful exhibition happened to include three Christmas pages. Since we're fully in the thick of the holiday season, here are those panels -- I bet they jog a memory for many of you!

Thanks for humoring me with this tour of a great book - one I'm very happy to have purchased and set alongside similar collections featuring the work of Jack Kirby, John Romita, Gil Kane, and John Buscema. Drop a comment below if you're so inclined, and stop back by this space on Thursday for another look at some great Bronze Age comic book art.

The Unmistakeable Forms of George Tuska

What's your experience with the art of George Tuska (1916-2009)? When I think of Tuska's career, my attention tends to focus on Daredevil, Iron Man, and the Champions. Those were the books where I most often encountered his pencils, often inked by Vince Colletta. As I grew older and my collection began to reach back into the Silver Age, I found that Tuska had done work on some of my all-time favorite titles, including the Avengers and the X-Men. And how many of you remember the DC Super-Heroes comic strip of the early 1980s? Tuska.

I've always found Tuska to be a serviceable storyteller. While I'd never list his work among my favorites, I don't want to go so far as to merely say I "tolerated" him. No, it's more than that. There's a sort of "comfort" in his work, a familiarity that I do not find off-putting. As a comics reader with several decades of experience behind me, what I now find charming are Tuska's "stock poses", those movements and contortions that you will always find in a George Tuska superhero mag. I think the images below serve to show what I'm writing about -- enjoy!

 

*Thanks for checking out this space all week. Beginning Monday, I'll begin what should be my regular schedule. When you return in three days, look for a review of Ross Andru's Amazing Spider-Man Artist Edition. Then on Thursday we'll discuss John Byrne's Star-Lord. Have a wonderful weekend!  -Doug