18 November 2009

A Kubert and a Span

Heritage Auction Galleries got exceptional coverage from the New York Times yesterday (including a slide show) for its upcoming sale of work from the collection of comic-book artist Joe Kubert. His career matches nearly the entire span of the business since he began work as an artist’s assistant at the age of (at least in this article) eleven. Between Kubert’s work, his sons, and the many people who’ve attended his school for comic-book artists, he’ll continue to influence the field for decades to come.

The Times article was illustrated by the image Kubert created for the cover of DC Comics’ The Greatest 1950s Stories Ever Told. By coincidence, I’m reading another edition of that very volume (to see if it’s appropriate for Godson, natch). As a result, I could actually identify most of the characters Kubert had drawn.

I couldn’t help noting whose face is closest to the center of the image, and thus who symbolically stands at the center of the DC Universe.
I’m just saying.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

You mean Wonder Woman's breasts?

That would make sense. . .

J. L. Bell said...

“Whose face,” Alice! “Whose face!”

Of course, the exact center of the image is a spot on the Flash’s abdomen, and his chest emblem is another nearby visual focus. As it turned out, the recreation of that character in 1956 set the course for DC Comics over the next several decades: more superheroes, based in science fiction.