Comic book cover parodies

When I was a youngster I was fascinated by comic strips and comic books. Most kids, whether they liked to draw or not, felt the same way about the comics. I was determined to become a comic book artist. I loved the work of Lou Fine, Will Eisner, Noel Sickles, Milton Caniff, Simon and Kirby, Fred Guardineer, Roy Crane, Hal Foster and a host of others.
My high school teacher, Margaret Stein, broadened my view by introducing me to the worlds of commercial and fine art. Margaret was a very tough teacher, she used to give me "D" grades because she felt that I wasn't working hard enough. At the time I was winning national Scholastic art awards ! She certainly prepared me for the commercial art business. Margaret had actually worked in a New York art studio and had a good grasp of the business. How lucky can a fledgling art student be ? You rarely have knowledgeable teachers like this at the college level. She was also responsible for the production of the school yearbook and assigned me the job of art director. More about this in a future post.
A couple of years ago I began doing a series of comic book cover parodies which are all created using Photoshop Elements 2.0. They are signed limited edition prints on 13 x 19" archival paper that are exhibited in galleries and Art centers.


IF DALI HAD DEADLINES

This image is one of a series of parodies on the fine art world, DIGITAL DREAMS, which I later adapted for one of my comic book cover parodies.





More nonsense, Dali's work is made for parodies.



This is also a great way to practice digital techniques. Dali would have certainly enjoyed working on the computer.



These images are really a combination of art and the collage technique. I add photos and pieces of Dali's paintings until I have an interesting composition. While these images are not planned, I do have a basic idea when I begin which often changes dramatically during the process.



Forgive me but I just can't resist mimicking those old "Draw ME" ads. More comic book cover parodies on my next post.