Relate what is said in this chapter to a work/artist/designer you have seen in lectures. Image, brief description, link to a source of information on the web.
"The mixing of words and pictures is more alchemy than science" [p.g. 161]
This chapter explores the beginnings as well as the interaction of words and pictures. The origins of sequential art begin with prehistoric man almost 20 thousand years ago: from cave paintings to Egyption heiroglyphs to modern day comic books filled with Super-heros.
Early cave painting of auroches (''Bos primigenius primigenius'') in Lascaux, France.
[Ref: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cave_painting ]
McCloud states that pictures predate the written word by a large margin as the very first marks made by humans were drawings and etchings on cave walls. He also says that the earliest words were actually "stylized pictures" in that they looked very much like pictures, but were more symbolic of what they represented.
Ancient writing then started becoming more abstract, until the modern written languages used these days lose all resemblance to the 'pictorial' or "visible" world and starts representing 'sound' instead.
The use of words and pictures, together and separately, have been varied throughout the years. At first, even when words and pictures Were combined, they were kept rigidly apart and had their own space [For example: German comic from the 1400's on p.g. 144]. Western art and writing drifted apart and developed into highly specialized fields of their own: art/pictures became less abstract and symbolic and grew to become more representational and specific. The written word also became more abstract and specialized, as well as more elaborate and complex.
"By the early 1800'ss, western art and writing had drifted about as far apart possible as was possible. One was obsessed with resemblance, light and color, all things Visible... ...the other rich in invisible treasures, senses, emotions, spirituality, philosophy..." [p.g.145]
McCloud illustrates how pictures and words were once used together (e.g. egyptian hieroglyphics) but drifted apart again during the 1800's. There was then a period of time where art/pictures developed at a rapid rate and artists strove to show more "meaning" in their work. In contrast, the written word started moving away from being elusive and abstract and started heading towards a more direct, informal approach.
"In prose, language was becoming even more direct, conveying meaning simply and quickly, more like pictures" [p.g.147]
To summarize, the primary functions of words and pictures became interchangeable and in modern day comics, are used in separately, or in combination. There are a few distinct categories into which words and pictures can be combined in comics, which include:
1. Word specific: Pictures illustrate but dont significantly add to a mostly complete text.
2. Picture specific: Words usually act as a soundtrack to a visually told sequence.
3. Duo-specific: Words and pictures send the same message.
4. Additive: Words amplify and elaborate an image or vice versa.
5. Parallel: Words and pictures follow very different routes without seeming to intersect at any point.
6. Montage: words are treated as intrinsic parts of the picture.
7. Inter-dependent: Words and pictures go hand-in-hand to convey an idea that neither could convey on its own.
Example of a "Montage"
[Ref: www.art.com ]
I found this chapter really interesting and thought provoking as it informed me about concepts and ideas I had never really thought about! For example, the use of words and pictures, and how they are separate entities but at the same time, how I have used them time and again and taken them for granted. It was really interesting learning about the history of words and pictures, and their interaction, and this chapter helped shed light on a different way of looking at the history of comics.
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