Anonymous asked: As a comic book artist, how does one go about drawing effective environments for one characters?
This is one of my favorite questions, because environment is one of my favorite things to draw. I am a huge fan of superhero comics, where the genre is almost as much scenery as it is bulging muscles. The Superhero genre has its roots in the pulp fiction of the last century, whether it was the western, noir or science fiction, they have all blended together to create the modern superhero comic. This is where i find myself to be most comfortable, but i believe the lessons on environment i’ve learned can be applied to all storytelling.
The environment in a comic, is different than in film or literature, in that it cannot be passively described in the beginning of the chapter, or passively indicated throughout like in a movie. Each line must be drawn, or not drawn, and each panel is responsible for every particular glimpse of the universe your characters inhabit. The environment in a comic, is a character, more so than in other mediums, because of its active and elastic nature, which allows it to blend seamlessly from environment to background to paper.
My first concern when considering the character of an environment, is the central idea, that everything in our universe that we observe, is affected by our observation. This is not in a philosophical wimpy way, it is the idea that we cannot unsee things, and once they are seen, they are thought of in human terms. In a comic, every environment must also be affected in the same way. The asteroids in space are not simply compositional placeholders, they are a fictional shorthand for how readers believe the universe to be. On a smaller scale, every bedroom, every office, and every secret headquarters, has real people in it that interact with it everyday.
Oftentimes, i’ve seen artists draw backgrounds that are as static as highschool theatre sets. They are untouched, unblemished. Even the real world environments that strive to be untouched and unblemished, still have the unseen spectre of hands moving an object to one area, the vents where seats angle away from, and all matters of invisible kuroko constantly at play. It is not enough simply to decide where your characters are, it must be decided how your characters are there.
This is the only place, where showing not telling is not only paramount, it is the only option. One can not tell your reader “This is an old house” and draw every brick in it’s place. It must be shown, or it simply doesn’t exist.
This is not to say, that overdrawing is the answer. Like a japanese garden, it’s the ability to focus one’s eye on a particular scene, in a particular composition that is most important. Some artists, like Charles Schultz were immensely successful with almost completely blank backgrounds. But they are not blank, their absence indicates a simplicity of mood as much as the limited view of children. A TV, two lines at the bottom of the panel indicating some wood paneling, and thats all. As a child, we’re much lower to the ground, and there’s not much of interest in things above our heads. Many comics have simple backgrounds, but it’s this economy of line that separates a seasoned cartoonist from a lazy one. If you noticed that there was no background, then there isn’t one. But if it never crossed your mind, its because the artist made you see what he didnt have to draw. Just like the phantom time that occurs between panels, there is a phantom space that occurs within.
Lastly, do not underestimate the power of depth. Rooms are not caves, Caves are not voids, and Voids are not Nothing. Kirby Krackle, the practice of using a fluid pattern of dots to depict ‘space’, is so genius, in that it provides a symbol for the boundless energy of the universe. It endures in current superhero work because it is so effective. But in more closed off environments, artists too often ignore the rules of perspective, and draw living rooms as large as mansions. Even worse, artists will forget what people actually keep in their living rooms, and draw a plain couch, in front of a plain tv, with a poster on the wall if its a young person, but a portrait on the wall if its an older person. All homes have their own trails, that each person follows repeatedly. The path from the sofa to the bathroom, from the kitchen to the diner, and like a forest trail, will reveal the animals that walk along these paths. Perspective keeps the home static, allowing the artist to create these paths, and allowing the artist to use these paths to serve the reader.
The environment is a character, but it is mute. All it does is listen, and change for the reader. Revealing one side to tell the reader a secret, disappearing politely when the reader knows enough. In a city, there is no place that has not been thought up by man; and so, in a comic, there is no line that has not been decided by the artist.
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