Once upon a time I didn’t like Superman. I didn’t have anything against the guy, I didn’t go off on how boring or overpowered he is or anything like that, I just hadn’t found a reason to care. And then I saw the cover to “All-Star Superman” #1. I saw a figure of enormous, inhuman strength placed in such a classically human pose against such a wondrous background and I got it. I finally got it.
And at the same time, I feel in love with Frank Quitely’s artwork.
At the time, I didn’t realise that he and I (and his collaborator on the project, Grant Morrison) lived within an hour of each other, but when I found that out that love grew to something more like pride. With every book I found with Quitely’s artwork, be it interior or coverwork, I saw someone like me making it big time in comics. There was a connection to Quitely’s artwork I found through seeing inspirations in his artwork that seemed taken from home. While many would be quick to point to Moebius as reference for Quitely’s art, I saw something closer to Dudley D. Watkins filtered through the American superheroic artwork of Steve Ditko with a sprinkling of Jack Kirby.
Quitely then went on to become a pioneer in breaking conventional practices in how time and linearity of motion is portrayed through comic books with books like “We3” and his most recent work, “Jupiter’s Legacy”, making him, I think, one of the most important working artists today. If you don’t believe me, check out the documentary that BBC2 did on him, as part of their rather aptly titled What Do Artists Do All Day? programming.
The cover of “All-Star Superman” #1
D.C. Thomson’s “Oor Wullie” for the Glasgow Comic Con 2011 program
Cover to “Flex Mentallo” #4
Doctor Strange Sketch
Alan Moore Portrait
Illustrating the difference between Clark Kent and Superman from the “All-Star Superman” collected edition.
Pages from We3 #2
Variant cover to “The Walking Dead” #100
Variant Cover to “All-Star Batman & Robin, The Boy Wonder” – Featuring my favourite Robin costume ever
Superman & Lois Lane from “All-Star Superman” #3