WAR COMICS!

My latest release is an affectionate exploration of the evolution of British war comics portrayal of military subjects from the 'gung ho' heroism of Victorian story papers, through World War patriotism and eventually the so called 'golden age' of 1970's action and adventure comics.    

The journey is framed from the viewpoint of a news vendor's family experiencing those historical and industry changes first hand and illustrated in the art style appropriate to the publications of the time.

Initially inspired by a commission from the National Army Museum, this was a fun and thought provoking project to pull together and I was delighted to again work with Matt Soffe who did a great job of colouring according to each period's industry practices and available technology.

It's both a nostalgic look at bygone eras but also a reflection on the potential power and influence the comics medium may have on its readers. While war comics may have all but disappeared from British newsagents (hang in there Commando!), there are plenty of graphic novels dealing with the subject of both historic and contemporary conflicts which I highlight and included in my talk at the recent Battles Through History event.  

I had a few advance comics of this at Ardingly which I'll also bring to Wow Comix's 'Spooky-Con' in Sale on Saturday 1st November followed by its official launch at the Thought Bubble Comic Art Festival where I'll be in the 2000AD Hall, table B46!

Drawing the Charge of the Light Brigade!

Going through my art files I was reminded of this wee sketch I did of the Charge of the Light Brigade as part of my commission a couple of years ago for London's National Army Museum's new 'Society' gallery - art by me, colours by Matt Soffe. 

My long held interest in this subject was borne by a childhood viewing of Tony Richardson's landmark 1968 movie. I was probably 9 or 10 when I spotted a late night television scheduling of the movie and successfully negotiated with my parents to stay up late on a school night to watch it - clearly the sign of a young mind brainwashed by a love of history!

An old sketch of mine of a couple of the brave 600!

Although I retained an interest and have a few books on the Crimea, I'd only ever done a couple of sketches and had never seriously thought about doing something 'comicy' about the period in the same way as I had, and continue to do with the Anglo-Zulu War, so this was the perfect opportunity.

The project brief was to provide a pictorial progression of how 'Society' had depicted the army/military  in popular culture over a 100+ year timeframe, so starting with 1850's story papers, I chose to show a dramatic image from the famous charge, inspired by some of the period paintings of the time, particularly Richard Caton Woodville's dramatic painting, which I had a postcard copy of. 

Caton Woodville's The Relief of the Light Brigade (1854)

Suitably inspired, I started pencilling the action.....

Adding a little detail to better show the chaos of when the Light Brigade finally clashed with the Russian lines, cannons and all! 

Then beginning the inking....

.....and inking some more.....

... until completed, ready for Matt's colours, as shown in the final version at the top of this page.

And here's a little glimpse of the artist by the entrance to the NAM's Society gallery where the final piece was installed as a 'flip book/comic' for all visitors to see!

 

Interestingly enough, the NAM's Society gallery also featured a copy of the same Caton Woodville painting that had sparked my inspiration!

Not sure if I'll return to the subject but it was fun, with a soft spot for this previously unseen colour image of a Crimean-era Highland Soldier, (again coloured by Matt) when the final version remained in black n white, in keeping with the era the periodical presented.