07 June 2006

Understanding Comics — book review

Whenever there is a discussion or an exchange of messages concerning comics or visual narratives, one name crops up again and again - Scott McCloud. This is his now classic work on understanding the comic designer's art. It's presented in the form of a comic itself - but don't let that fool you. He could just as easily given his book the sub-title 'The Philosophy of Graphic Narratives'. He starts with a chapter defining what comics are (sequential visual art) and shows something of their history, going back as far as Egyptian wall paintings in 1300 BC. If at first this seems rather obvious or over-simplified, two or three pages into chapter two, he is discussing the theory of visual perception and the nature of iconic language ... Read more >>


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2 comments:

Jeff DiScala said...

I just finished this book. I really enjoyed it and feel like I can get so much more out of the graphic format having read it. Have you looked at Reinventing Comics yet? I'm curious to know if it is as informative and entertaining as Understanding Comics.

MANTEX said...

Yes - I felt the same way, which is why I mentioned his philosophic approach to the subject in my review.

I've not read Reinventing Comics yet, but look forward to doing so.