paperback edition
By Ron Tiner (David & Charles)
ISBN13: 978-0-71530-646-8
Having sat through a very large number of portfolio shows (where aspiring artists show their work in hope of advice and eventually a job) I’ve heard – and I must admit, uttered – the phrase “you need to do more life drawing†many hundreds of times. It’s a cliché but it’s universally absolutely true. The human body is the basic unit of meaning and communication in narrative fiction. Everything an artist needs to say depends on how you can render and manipulate that basic unit. And no-one ever EVER reaches the stage where they stop needing to practise observing, constructing and reducing 3-dimensional forms in real space into 2-dimensional analogues.
Rant over, I can admit that finding suitable classes and even the time to practise can be a real bother. So this book by illustrator, teacher and comic artist Ron Tiner, designed with the specialised needs of the narrative artist in mind, is an absolute gem for the aspiring and dedicated would-be creator. All the fundamentals are covered from Structure and Proportion, The Figure in Action, Imagination, Character and Expression, Picture and Composition and Graphic Narrative.
Especially useful for our purposes is the section on The Definitive Moment – depicting the most useful static image that best defines the intent of an action. When Splatman punches Doctor Deadly, what is the most telling, most satisfactory and most efficient figure, angle and composition to communicate the writer’s intention? Sounds woolly, I know, but it’s always the hardest skill for creators to develop, especially in scenes that need mood or tension rather than explosive drama, and this forthright examination here sells it perfectly.
This wonderful book, lavishly illustrated by a master of the comic strip, shows what the reader needs to know and reveals how the artist needs to think. Great stuff and absolutely invaluable – but still not a substitute for life-drawing classes…
So get both.
© 1992, 1997 Ron Tiner. All Rights Reserved.