fourth world
Darkseid
As promised! This is a portrait of Darkseid (of the New Gods, to the uninitiated!) I did back in May, which I only just got round to scanning…
Cyberleader & New Gods
Just a couple of new drawings finished recently. First up is a portrait of David Banks and his alter ago, whom he portrayed in the classic run of Doctor Who during the 1980s, namely, the Cyberleader (of the Cybermen). Secondly, a pinup of Orion and (as a large floating head!) Darkseid, from Jack Kirby’s New Gods.
Jack Kirby
It’s Jack Kirby‘s 94th birthday. Quite a lot of people will be remembering him, but arguably fewer than his long career might suggest. His major involvement in the development of the 1960s Marvel Comics line—a period that resulted in characters that have become multi-million dollar franchises—has still not received full recognition. Marvel’s then-editor Stan Lee took all the creative credit, and continues to do so.
The 1960s were a significant period of artistic growth for Kirby… but, the development/success of the line did a few (negative) things to him: (1) it forever typecast him as the “King” of superheroes and POW! BAM! action; (2) it cemented perceptions of Kirby as an “artist” more than a creative writer-artist (cartoonist), thanks to Stan’s most creative work—the credits on the books; (3) it put him in a straightjacket for ten years, where his ideas were restrained by mannerisms of a genre he was to some degree pulling away from.
