Masters of American Comics [Hardcover]

If 'art' can be defined as a view of the world or reaction or politicizing or representational through the many guises of that term as perceived by one who paints, sculpts, photographs, or draws, then the premise that 'comics' or 'cartoons' deserve the stature of an art form is certainly a viable decision. This large and generously illustrated volume, produced to accompany a museum exhibition, is probably as fine a treatise as is currently available, and if the book is representative of the exhibition to soon follow at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles, then expectations can be justifiably high.

Editors/curators John Carlin, Paul Karasik, and Brian Walker have complied a group of 15 comic artists, those whose works have been significantly before the public since the 1940's. By limiting the number of cartoonists presented, the writing contributors of this large volume have concentrated more on issues as defined by comics, the effect of comics on the reading American public, the viability of comics as a forum for public statement and parody, and as a means of entertainment. While many of the artists' names will not be familiar (Chris Ware, Winsor McCay, Lyonel Feininger, EC Segar, Chester Gould, Charles Schultz, Will Eisner, Harvey Kurtzman, Ari Spiegelman, Gary Painter, George Herriman, Jack Kirby and R. Crumb) certainly their comic strips, comic books, and individual drawings will strike chords of acknowledgement with the public. And the proliferation of comic book character driven films has already paved the way for the public's interest in a comics survey.

The many contributed essays are variable, from entertaining to illuminating, and are from a well-chosen and curious band of writers: Jonathan Safran Foer, Raymond Pettibon , Tom De Haven, Pete Hamill, Cynthia Burlingham, Jules Feiffer, Glen David Gold, Matt Groening, Staley Crouch, Karla An Manning, Robert Storr, and Dave Eggers. If at times the essays become dry and didactic, veering from the content of the form, each still adds important information about the various artists and the history of comics.

Though some artists, such as Raymond Pettibon and Mike Kelley, have always made art in the form of comic strips thereby setting a precedent for the museum presentation of this medium, it still remains to be seen how the size inherent in comic strips will look on the walls of a vast museum. Some fear the space will not add to the power of the works, that they are better viewed in the context of this book. But given the creativity of MASTERS OF AMERICAN COMICS it is probable that Curator John Carlin and his associates have overcome this potential visual presentational boredom. But even if the exhibition is not wholly successful in format, this book/catalogue certainly is! Grady Harp, November 05

MASTERS OF AMERICAN COMICS strives to be an overview of this interesting group of artists, but suffers from the fatal flaw of examining comic strips and comic books in the same work. These two very different types of storytelling don't really belong together and it gives the book a split personality. While beautifully illustrated and well-researched, this would have proven to be more valuable had it focused on one genre or the other. Despite my affection for both of these men and their creations; Charles Schulz and Jack Kirby are just not natural companions in any book. Also missing were any number of comic strip artists. Al Capp, Noel Sickles, Walt Kelly, and Alex Raymond are all mentioned but are given the short end of the stick here. Their presence would have been preferable to Crumb or Panter's; not because these men are not talented, but rather it would have made this work more cohesive. I understand this is a companion book to a joint exhibition of Hammer Museum and The Museum of Contemporary Art, but as such the exhibition suffered from the same flaw. If you are interested in the history of the comic strip in America this will be a nice sampler, but it obviously could have been much more.

The newspaper comic strip has been around for a little over a century and the earliest comic books are around eighty years old themselves. That's a reasonably long time, and there have been a lot of people who've worked in the field. Many have been pretty mediocre, a small group have been good, and there are an elite few who've been truly great. Although you may not agree with the complete list (I don't), Masters of American Comics does a pretty good job selecting the artists who belong in this elite group.

This coffee table book is divided into two parts. In the first section, we get a history of the comics in general, with a particular focus on the contributions of the elite artists. The second section is a collection of essays by various writers both inside and outside the comic industry; each essay deals with one of the fifteen featured artists.

Who are these artists (who also often wrote their material)? The first (both chronologically and within the book) is Windsor McCay whose Little Nemo in Slumberland remains one of the most wildly imaginative comic strips ever. McCay, incidentally, was also one of the very earliest animators. Lyonel Feininger's career was pretty brief, but his Kinder-Kids strips offer some more mind-bending art. George Herriman was the creator of arguably the greatest comic strip ever, Krazy Kat. E.C. Segar brought Popeye to the world in a comic strip that was far more clever than any of the cartoons.

Frank King's Gasoline Alley dealt with more of the mundane aspects of life, but did so brilliantly; it is the longest active comic, though King's successors have made it a pale shadow of its former self. Chester Gould's Dick Tracy brought hard-boiled crime to the comics, and Milton Caniff raised adventure to a new level with Terry and the Pirates (and later Steve Canyon).

More modern artists include Charles Schulz, whose Peanuts is probably the most popular strip ever. Will Eisner brought a new respectability to the medium with The Spirit. Jack Kirby, the first real comic book artist in the bunch, is well-worth mention for his part in creating most of the great Marvel superheroes (and a few DC characters too). Harvey Kurtzmann does not have a single famous character, but his role in the EC comics of the 1950s and the early Mad Magazine was considerable.

R. Crumb was a major figure in the early underground comics movement. Art Spiegelman, Gary Panter and Chris Ware are all still active and further extending the boundaries of what comics can be. Spiegelman would also win a Pulitzer for his Holocaust epic, Maus, demonstrating that the medium was more than just kids' fare.

There is a heap of art in Masters of American comics, much of it in color, making this quite a treat, and an excellent companion piece to the museum exhibition which inspired it. It also shows that quality and popularity are two almost separate fields: the big strips of today - Garfield, Dennis the Menace, Cathy, Marmaduke, et al - are not even mentioned. Yes, you might not like every artist selected (for example, I cannot find much to like about Panter, whose distinct art must be an acquired taste) and you might think of others worthy of inclusion (for example Steve Ditko, Alex Raymond or Bill Watterson). Nevertheless, this book is a gem which not only provides a history of the comics, but is a great pleasure to read.

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