Inspiration and influences … and the wonders of Internet

All artists grow up admiring and trying to emulate other, older artists that inspire them. In addition we are also, consciously or not, influenced by the general culture we live in. Personally I’m still heavily influenced by the French-Belgian comics style of the 70’s and 80’s. Artists like Jean Giraud and Hermann Huppen have left an indelible impression on me. Not for me the large eyes of present manga inspired characters nor their spiky hair. But, had I been twenty years younger I would probably be drawing my characters in exactly that style! What really matters is your basic drawing skills and those are easy to spot regardless of of style.

Being aware of how I’m influenced makes me very interested in how the artists I admire in their turn were inspired. What traditions and styles went before so to speak. If you are a fine artist, a few books on the history of art will generally help you in this. Along with trips to nearby galleries. But what do you do when you are an illustrator? I have yet to see a general history of illustration that treats the subject the same way as fine art is treated. Try searching Amazon and see what you find. And all am asking for is one book on the subject, not a library! Of course there are books about single illustrators and about specific topics or periods but a general, trans-national overview is difficult to come by. As an illustrator you have to piece together the background of your profession. One solution is to collect older books and magazines where illustrators were published. This is not very practial, potentially very expensive and you are never sure if you missed something important. And the illustrations alone of course say nothing about the artists themselves, their lives and their approach to their art. Which brings me to the following two blogs:

http://todaysinspiration.blogspot.com/

http://goldenagecomicbookstories.blogspot.com/

Wonderful! They differ in how they define and present their subject matter but they both go a long way in filling in gaps in my knowledge of the history of American illustration. Today’s Inspiration even deals with British and Spanish artists (being Norwegian I grew up with both European and American influences – these «European» articles are therefore very interesting and useful). Hopefully there will be more blogs out there about these and other time periods. (I know – I am thinking of it and I have a specific subject matter in mind. All I can say for now is that it will be a while before I can start posting – collecting and scanning takes time.)

Anyway, here are a two samples (out of many!) of what I found interesting in the above mentioned blogs:

1.

I knew Frank Frazetta was heavily influenced by Hal Foster (who in turn worked in the tradition of the romantic illustrators of the late 19^th century). What I did not know but suspected was Frazetta’s other influences. Now I see the traces of N.C. Wyeth (goldenagecomicbookstories has a large collection of his works – previously I had only seen a few of Wyeth’s illustrations) in his compositions, his choice in colors and in how he painted specific subjects like trees, water etc. And there are other artists that obviously were important to Frazetta – the following images by Arthur Rackham made a particular impression on me.

Contrast them with this later cover illustration by Frazetta.

Growing up I adored Frazetta’s work and this is one of my favourite Frazetta images. Seeing Rakcham’s drawings puts Frazetta’s work in a different and richer perspective. I certainly do not feel that it detracts anything from Frazetta’s work – his art is the stuff of legend no matter his influences. But it gives me context and better understanding.

2.

The same goes for the second sample. Drew Struzan is a contemporary artist that I greatly admire.

© Drew Struzan

© Drew Struzan

Today’s Inspiration made me aware of Bernie Fuchs, an important illustrator in the 60’s.

Add to that  a book about J.C. Leyendecker that I recently read and I think I see where Struzan is coming from.

Again, this does not detract anything form Struzan’s work. On the contrary, as with Frazetta, it merely puts it in perspective and adds to my understanding of the Art of Illustration.

New Book Illustrations 2

Another project finished: Illustrations for Eirik Bloodaxe, written by Gareth Williams and published by Saga Books, Norway/USA. Release on June 2^nd at the Viking Ship Museum in Oslo.

Cover for Eirik Bloodaxe:

Illustrations:

New Book Illustrations

This spring I have completed the illustrations for three Popular History books, published by CappelenDamm, Norway. One on Marco Polo, one on the medieval castle of Akershus in Oslo and one on the history of piracy (this last one I also wrote). Part of a larger series of books all of them were designed by Rune Mortensen, who did an excellent job of it.

Marco Polo:

Pirates:

Akershus:

Manahatta

As an illustrator I often get tasked with portraying the past. Added to the usual challenge of composition and general references, historical subjects demand reasearch into each particular time period. Sometimes this is an easy job – a lot of good books have been written on various subjects such as clothing, architecture, tools, weapons etc. Then there are the more difficult assignments, where historians and archaeologists have to be consulted directly. And then again there are times when one simply have to make an educated guess.

Any new reference I come across is always welcome. Especially when the information is something hitherto unknown or unavailable. A few years ago I had a particularly happy time in the Danish National Archives digging up references on 18^th century ships. Original construction drawings and sketches of the ships made it possible to paint fairly accurately some famous ships from Danish-Norwegian naval history. Going to the archives in Copenhagen I knew this material was there, some of it has been published or written about. So the pleasure was more in finding the specific drawings I was after, which I had never seen before. But sometimes you come across something truly unexcpected and wonderful. Recently I became aware of The Manahatta Project (www.TheManahattaProject.org). It is presented in a book well described by Publishers Weekly:

In this brilliantly illustrated volume, Sanderson and Boyer recreate the ecology of Manhattan as it was that 1609 September afternoon when Henry Hudson first saw it, “prodigious in its abundance, resplendent in its diversity.” The project began as a simple thought exercise, when senior Bronx Zoo ecologist Sanderson (Human Footprint: Challenges for Wilderness and Biodiversity) tried visualizing pre-colonial Manhattan, but was promoted to full-blown science project after Sanderson discovered an “extraordinary” 1776 British Headquarters Map detailing the island’s natural terrain. Developing a “georeference” system to coordinate the old map, Sanderson “relates its depiction of the old hills and valleys to their modern addresses.” From there, he reconstructs data missing from the historical record using standard scientific tools-examining pollen layers, tree rings, archeological information, etc. Sanderson’s text integrates political and sociological history; examines the culture of the original inhabitants, the Lenape (their word Mannahatta means “Island of Many Hills”); and covers a wealth of ecological data; he even shares his vision for the ecologically sustainable city of 2409. This wise and beautiful book, sure to enthrall anyone interested in NYC history, boasts maps, charts, photos and artist renderings, thorough appendices (including Lenape place-names and Manhattan’s flora and fauna), and an extensive section of “Notes, Sources, and Elaborations.” 120 color illustrations.

Having a particular interest in the history of New York I find the project and the book fascinating. Below is my own effort a few years back of recreating New Amsterdam, later New York, in 1660, based on The Castello Plan of 1670, a copy of a Dutch survey of the city drawn in 1660.