The Art of Speigelman

Art Spiegelman
Self Portrait with Maus Mask, 1989

It was a gorgeous day yesterday, and I went downtown with my wife and daughter (Cathy and Brynne), to — among other things — take a stroll through the Vancouver Art Gallery. The exhibit that intrigued me the most was Art Spiegelman’s CO-MIX: A Retrospective of Comics, Graphics and Scraps. The exhibit includes more than four hundred preparatory drawings, studies, detailed drawings, sketches, et cetera, with connections to his early 1970s work in underground ‘comix’ (under the leadership of Robert Crumb), his award-winning Maus, and some newer works.

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I was amazed at the extent of Spiegelman’s high-quality output, and with the variety of style, subject, and composition. It was particularly interesting to see the process from scraps, through sketches with notes, studies, detailed drawings and, finally, the finished work. It was also nice to see some of the imperfections in his work; the kind of thing that is sanitized for public consumption — I rather like the slight smudges, et cetera: they add an essential layer of reality.

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It was also an eye-opener to see the detail, depth, and quality of the Maus compositions: the product available in book form doesn’t do the work justice.

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If you have a chance to see the show in Vancouver, or if it comes to a city near you in the future, I highly recommend a trip to view the works; particularly if you have any intention of becoming an illustrator, graphic artist, writing your own graphic novel, or if you just enjoy the art form; especially, of course, if you are a fan of Art Spiegelman.

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The Map and the Territory; a book review

In the past, I’ve often considered reading a Michel Houellebecq novel, but I kept discovering reviews that left me cold; fortunately, when The Map and the Territory was translated (from the French, by Gavin Bowd), I read an interesting review that induced me to read the book (there was another contributing factor: it won a French literary award — The 2010 Prix Gongourt).

As the novel unfolds, the author persistently distorts the fourth wall: the protagonist, Jed Martin, is an artist who is curiously attached to the author:

The artist in the novel paints a portrait of Houellebecq, who is a character in the novel. When Jed Martin gives the painting to Houellebecq, the author seems reluctant to accept and acknowledge the painting: Houellebecq’s reluctance in the novel may allude to his reluctance in parceling out private thoughts; the author’s personality is exposed (warts and all) while the artist plans and completes the painting.

Houllebecq-in-the-novel also writes a lengthy catalogue blurb for Jed Martin’s first vernissage [which is apparently another term for varnishing day, and is also “…a reception at a gallery for an artist whose show is about to open to the public.” — Dictionary.com].

Jed becomes a wealthy man; his early successes come with his photographs, especially his work with Michelin Maps; and, later in his career, his series of portrait paintings solidifies his name; coincidentally, his bank account swells.

The novel explores themes such as: the creative process, relationships, social decay, the challenges of an introverted existence, the evils of assembly lines, and aging.

There is hope and happiness, but a melancholic thread runs through the book, and one character is the (somewhat surprising) victim of a ghastly murder, but it all seems apropos after the book’s epigram (a quotation from Charles d’Orléans):

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“The world is weary of me,

And I am weary of it.”

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Recommended

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