23.05.2006
DEVON CADY-LEE, USA ❧
"SERIES: HOMAGE TO THE YOUNG, THE NEW & THE EXCEPTIONAL CREATIVE TALENTS AROUND THE WORLD"
READ THIS FIRST: All images here are COPYRIGHT PROTECTED. You are advised to contact the artist direct for permission to re-produce any of his/her images. Contact details are available at the end of this article, or in absence thereof, please contact the Editor at Blue Mango TV.
"Preparatory Regimen"When
we find ourselves these days surrounded by electronic gadgets, and we
look at how television is so much a part of our lives, it is almost
impossible to imagine a life stark and empty without the sound of music
coming from mobile gadgets with earphones plugged to us. It is
impossible to sometimes think of living without the comfort of familiar
electronic devices created to make our lives easier.
Without electronics and electrical energy, our lives would be reminiscent of cave dwellers in the rocky hollow of a darkened receptacle within the bosom of Mother Earth - there would be no colour, only darkness and the flickering of light from the flames of a fire that would be there to protect us, and prove we live and life is around us.
And we would raise children ... without colouring and peppering their lives with gaily shaped mobiles above their cots, stuff toys, dolls, toy cars, building blocks, crayons, cartoons and comics.
It is hard to believe there was a time in the distant past when television did not exist.
Television, so integrated and integral in our lives these days and introduced so early to our children as a form of distraction and entertainment when we're too busy to play with them.
Television, bringing to life cartoon characters with the music and songs they sing.
Television, introducing humour, imagination and fantasy worlds and characters that imprint themselves in the mind of a child, a constant companion, influencing and inspiring the child through the years until the child in all of us grows.
What is it about cartoons and comics that appeals greatly to most of us, the real youths, and the adult who has never quite left happy childhood memories behind.
In
the beginning, and going back a century or so, the origin of cartoons
can be found in Switzerland in 1827 with the works of Rudolphe Töpffer,
the son of a German painter and immigrant, Wolfgang Adam Töpffer.
Initially, due to an eye defect, the younger Töpffer was unable to
pursue a career in the visual arts like his father, but after returning
from Paris where he studied, Töpffer started a series of "histoires en images" or picture-stories, from which he would earn his fame as these were considered the first in the comics genre.
Töpffer's published comic book, "The Adventures of Obadiah Oldbuck" (illustrated here) would be the first to enter the United States in 1842. Of course, the word "comic" evolved from the word "funnies" which were initially used to describe the comic strips and these were mainly available in book form then.
The super-hero comic books came out by 1936-8 with the creation of Dr. Occult and Superman by Jerry Siegel and Joe Schuster. And from then, the super-heroes would keep coming. We would have Flash Gordon, The Shadow, and Batman making his first appearance in 1939, the same year that the predecessors of The Human Torch (re-done as a teenage member of the Fantastic Four in 1961) and The Angel (re-done as an X-men member) were introduced together with Prince Namor the Sub-Mariner and Ka-Zar.
By 1940, we would have The Shield (Captain America would be one of the offshoot of The Shield's character), The Spectre, Captain Marvel, The Flash, and The Green Lantern. The super-heros would form the Justice Society of America by the end of 1940, with the original presence of The Flash, The Green Lantern, The Spectre, joined by The Hawkman, Dr. Fate, The Hour-man, The Sandman, Atom, and Johnny Thunder.
Wonder Woman and Captain America would make their appearance in 1941.
Without electronics and electrical energy, our lives would be reminiscent of cave dwellers in the rocky hollow of a darkened receptacle within the bosom of Mother Earth - there would be no colour, only darkness and the flickering of light from the flames of a fire that would be there to protect us, and prove we live and life is around us.
And we would raise children ... without colouring and peppering their lives with gaily shaped mobiles above their cots, stuff toys, dolls, toy cars, building blocks, crayons, cartoons and comics.
It is hard to believe there was a time in the distant past when television did not exist.
Television, so integrated and integral in our lives these days and introduced so early to our children as a form of distraction and entertainment when we're too busy to play with them.
Television, bringing to life cartoon characters with the music and songs they sing.
Television, introducing humour, imagination and fantasy worlds and characters that imprint themselves in the mind of a child, a constant companion, influencing and inspiring the child through the years until the child in all of us grows.
What is it about cartoons and comics that appeals greatly to most of us, the real youths, and the adult who has never quite left happy childhood memories behind.
In
the beginning, and going back a century or so, the origin of cartoons
can be found in Switzerland in 1827 with the works of Rudolphe Töpffer,
the son of a German painter and immigrant, Wolfgang Adam Töpffer.
Initially, due to an eye defect, the younger Töpffer was unable to
pursue a career in the visual arts like his father, but after returning
from Paris where he studied, Töpffer started a series of "histoires en images" or picture-stories, from which he would earn his fame as these were considered the first in the comics genre.Töpffer's published comic book, "The Adventures of Obadiah Oldbuck" (illustrated here) would be the first to enter the United States in 1842. Of course, the word "comic" evolved from the word "funnies" which were initially used to describe the comic strips and these were mainly available in book form then.
The super-hero comic books came out by 1936-8 with the creation of Dr. Occult and Superman by Jerry Siegel and Joe Schuster. And from then, the super-heroes would keep coming. We would have Flash Gordon, The Shadow, and Batman making his first appearance in 1939, the same year that the predecessors of The Human Torch (re-done as a teenage member of the Fantastic Four in 1961) and The Angel (re-done as an X-men member) were introduced together with Prince Namor the Sub-Mariner and Ka-Zar.
By 1940, we would have The Shield (Captain America would be one of the offshoot of The Shield's character), The Spectre, Captain Marvel, The Flash, and The Green Lantern. The super-heros would form the Justice Society of America by the end of 1940, with the original presence of The Flash, The Green Lantern, The Spectre, joined by The Hawkman, Dr. Fate, The Hour-man, The Sandman, Atom, and Johnny Thunder.
Wonder Woman and Captain America would make their appearance in 1941.
"Nightmare Soul Calibur"The comics industry would face a dark period after 1941, and there would be a hiatus in comic super-hero creation from the somewhat effective censorship efforts of a highly distinguished psychologist, Dr. Frederic Wertham, who thought comic-books were bad for kids. It would take almost 20 years before the next group of comic super-heroes would emerge in the Silver Age period of the comics super-heroes.
By 1961, censorship of super hero comics would weaken its effect on the generation of youths of the time, and we would then see the emergence of The Fantastic Four, The Hulk, Spider-Man, The Avengers, The X-Men, and Aquaman.
In 1966, the first set of black super-heroes would emerge with the Black Panther, The Falcon, Power Man (Luke Cage, hero for hire), Black Lightning and Spawn.
The 60's was also a time for gradual but significant change as television was beginning to make its presence felt and television penetration to household across the world would start to spread, never to stop. Television would add a new dimension to the production and distribution of comics and cartoons, and the transition from print to broadcast and a wider audience would provide challenges to the artists who had to learn new tools to supplement their traditional ink and paper storyboards. It is easy to draw a correlation to the transition of traditional ink and paper storyboards to broadcast in the 60's and 70's and the transition, some 30 to 40 years later, from broadcast to the digital format with computer graphic animation and the internet of this recent decade.
And there you have it, not all of the super-heroes have been mentioned, there are of course more, but the little bit of history helps in understanding something of the craft of cartoon and comic making and its evolution.
"Post Mortem"A century and six decades of comic and cartoons in the United States and what incredible evolution from those beginnings to now. These days, how many of the super-hero characters have been brought to life through movies and the effects of computer animation, to cinemas around the world? The art genre that was previously persecuted for psychologically affecting kids negatively is now appreciated worldwide, and here to stay.
"Tengu"Graphic illustration is not easy even though it may look easy. Like the comics genre of art, most people misunderstand that to be probably one of the "easiest" form of the art genres.
The comics genre, when you take it against the traditional classic art, particularly the world of the Old Masters and the Impressionists, (and we can add more here but we will not) is sometimes looked upon as an inferior form of art expression. You look at the comics and you think from the simplicity of the lines and characters, the colours ... nothing complex, deep and heavy, symbolic and meaningful, let alone painstaking effort seem to come from the fantasy/science fiction artist. Did the cartoonist "suffer" enough for us to warrant praise and admiration of his work? Somehow, the illustration does not seem to give us that impression as they seem so effortlessly produced.
"Anatomical Sketch Series I"Yet, the work of these artists have the greatest appeal and impact on the world en masse, and this encompasses both young and old alike of all race and nation, because of its ability to deliver simple messages easily. The simple illustrations are able to ingeniously capture emotion and expressions perfectly and relay them to us. The accompaniment of short scripts deliver the message straight and clear.
Take political caricatures and how through one single execution of lines on paper a message is illustrated and delivered clearly. You recognize the familiar character even if drawn with exaggeration and made to look ludicrous. Just one image, captured effectively and depicted seemingly innocuously in a cartoon format by the caricaturist is able to project accurately certain obvious viewpoints of the general public and their reaction to a particular political blunder or a compromising situation.
Quite unlike the way we have to decipher, for example, the Mona Lisa's smile and the meaning of her smile, the situation and thought-process, and how there are interpretations to the image and the message it is trying to deliver. Traditional art makes our brain work harder whereas the comics genre of art lightens our load.
Will this art form of illustration move people? We can easily see the effects of that from the recent global outcry resulting from the caricatures of a religious figure-head by a cartoonist in Denmark.
"Drifting Phoenix"Devon Cady-Lee, who I am using here as a perfect example of an incredible talent in the art of illustration and the comics genre is an intuitive, intelligent and gifted illustrator with natural amazing artistic abilities and range. His interest and skill is in the world of fantasy and science fiction and he mostly draws characters of his own creation, dabbling in random sketches of aliens, women and various mythical creatures. He has, for such a young man, an incredible inherent and formidable mastery of his tools and it shows.
Devon's work reminds me strangely of the spirit of Hergé (the famous pseudo by which the cartoonist Georges Remi is known), the father of the European Bande Dessinée tradition of comic illustration where the cartoonist is king, and the "clear line" style he pioneered through his phenomenally successful character - Tintin. Hergé work on his character Tintin started in 1929 when he was 21. Hergé character had such a strong appeal to a worldwide audience and that can easily be noted from the sale of twenty-three volumes of Tintin's adventures now exceeding two hundred million copies with translation into fifty-five languages.
"Tourist"I asked Devon a few questions about himself and what he felt about the world of illustration and his role in it.
How young were you when you first started to take an interest in drawing, and did it start with drawing?
Devon: I started drawing before I can even remember I was drawing. I think most kids start that way even if they don't pursue drawing as a career. I believe I started drawing on the computer at age 4! I became more serious about it when I started my elementary school because I thought I was going to grow up to be a naturalist, a zoologist, paleobiologist, etc. Of course, since I nearly failed middle school and highschool, the science aspect became less feasible for me and the drawing then became my all consuming goal in life.
What cartoon character and super heros inspire you and why?
Devon: Eccentric, abnormal and "real" characters inspire me. Characters that, despite their abstraction in form or story or personality, represent something very real to the human condition. If I were to choose particular artists, anything by Miyazaki, Disney or Giraude is a good example of what I love. I am also inspired heavily by film and classic narratives like faery tales when it comes to characters. Kurosawa is one of the best character creators in film history and someone I always look to for inspiration.
Do you feel cartoons and comics are bad for kids because they could affect them negatively psychologically, or are they necessary for kids, and why?
Devon: There is no logical reason to believe that comics and cartoons by themselves are bad for anyone. The mediums themselves are not detrimental, it is their application in mass media. They can be some of the best teaching and narrative tools society has to offer. Cartoons themselves are completely necessary, as far as I am concerned, from the moment of their creation to the end of story-telling. Cartoons aren't just comedic relief all the time; they are expressions of the human psyche, abstracted into simpler forms in order to reach a wider audience. There is nothing more useful to me than a method of communication that reaches a wider audience, as far as illustration and story-telling is concerned.
Do you enjoy your art? What are the ups and downs of it?
Devon: I love making art because it lets me get a lot out of my system. The stories and characters that I create are part of me and talk about what I think. I really try to boil down what it is I'm trying to say into the simplest possible idea and then base my art off of that, and the whole process is so engaging for me. I really love to see things I think manifest in front of me as quickly as possible and art allows me to do that on some level.
The worse parts about art are the parts you're not conscious of while making it or the parts that you are entirely too conscious of while making it.
Let me explain.
The part you're not conscious of while making art is that you are far less original than you believe yourself to be no matter how special and talented you think you are, and that there are a million ways to skin a cat. You chose one way, or maybe more. But never a million.
The part you are entirely too conscious of is that if you are trying to make a living as an artist, you need to acknowledge other people seeing your artwork and marketing it so they buy from you, as well as the fact that everyone is not going to see your work the same way you do. That's probably my largest drawback and drive. As an illustrator, I really want other people to understand what my work is about so I need to show it clearly to them.
Painters can get away with making personal pieces only understood by themselves, and that's fine, but not for me."Sniper's Breath, Coloured"
What are you hoping to be, and why?
Devon: I hope to be a concept artist for cinema, television, books, video games or any other narrative medium. I want to be involved in this type of illustration because I love this type of problem solving.
In a nutshell, the job involves a story with characters that need to be manifested visually and it is the concept artist's job to make them up.
Each character becomes a challenge to best represent an idea or motivation in visual form, and it should be clear to at least some degree what those ideas are without even being told beforehand from visual cues. The process of discovering those visual cues is what excites me. Even seemingly repetitive ones like: "make a monster that wants to kill the main character", are fun because it is challenging to do it in an original or purposeful way.
Devon's diversity and artistic skills and the minute details of his work is a joy to note and discover. I am sure, like Hergé, if Devon continues to follow a path that will lead him producing work he naturally loves, success will quickly follow.
Devon is not an artist one should ignore, nor should one forget that in simple packages often comes amazing, intricate, and surprising creations.
editor@bluemango.tv