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The world of comics is complex and complex, often rooted in mythology and history, but in more modern times. Heroes and villains occupy a central place, with a battle for the ultimate good represented by the incredible talent of the best comic artists.
And now you can enter this world and play a role through a new exhibition at the Utah Valley Woodbury Art Museum of the University, a project directed by Chad Hardin but made possible by 12 different artists contributors.
"Heroes and Villains: How Mythology Became Comic" is probably best described as a living comic book, and it should remain open to the public until September 15 with a special reception of artists and a group of VIP screening for the Friday after the opening hours of the museum. The panels provided by the artists include a series of mythological characters, including Perseus, Athena, Jellyfish and more. The ultimate hope is that those who come will not only have fun but will see the parallels with the comic world today.
"What's cool about innovating is that it's something new," Hardin said. "The bad part is that it's something new, nobody knows what they're doing."
With contributions from the artistic community and a handful of favors to his friends, Hardin helped orchestrate an exhibition that includes 44 canvases measuring 40 inches by 60 inches with line drawings from a series of paintings. artists and professional illustrators who have transformed the entire museum gallery into a giant coloring book that only needs to be completed by visitors to the exhibition.
He is badistant professor of art and design at Utah Valley University, but has also spent a lot of time in the past illustrating Marvel and DC Comics, on popular characters such as Harley Quinn, Wonder Woman and even Spiderman. He also works with the Woodbury Museum's coordinator, Lisa Anderson, to help arrange shows for the venue, which has been behind the idea of the exhibition.
"The idea came The community could enter and participate in one way or another at a gallery event," Hardin said. "Then the idea came for a giant coloring book … And if we had pencils and inks in the comics, and that we turn the whole gallery into a giant coloring book Can the community use to color? "
And that is exactly what happened. An impressive series of leading artists, illustrators and comic creators have come together to cover the art walls online with a series of coloring guides to help attendees add to the exposure in a positive way. It has happened that a whole lot of people come forward and basically paint on line work and ruin it for everyone, "Hardin said of the guidelines for the exhibition." The paintings alone have taken months to be printed and they are extremely expensive. "
All this was possible thanks to the generous donations of the gallery and a series of private companies, not to mention the dozen artists who gave their time to work on the project
"We hope everyone comes here and behaves," said Hardin. "It would not take much for anyone to come here and to spoiling for everyone, which worries me, but we live in a community that is very attentive to others.We simply ask that everyone do their best to color the lines, which is something that we has been taught since kindergarten, and j & # 3 Hope it will work.
An impressive amount of time and effort has been according to Hardin, that could not have been done without the hard work and volunteer hours of the artists.
"I took advantage of all the favors I've ever done in the comic book industry," Hardin told me. "I went from people who now owe me to people, and I'm going to have people for a long time."
But if everything goes as planned, Hardin said it will be worth it.
"I hope it's something that families can do together," Hardin said. "I hope this will introduce them to comics, and hope that they realize that comics are essentially American mythology." One of the things we're talking about, it's that these types of art have basically been around forever – since humans started telling stories … maybe they will have some education and will benefit from it. a comic book or maybe they'll go read "The Iliad" too. We try to be educational, have fun and introduce people to it. Art – all these things and, hopefully, not to put anyone to sleep. "
Get to know the artists
With Hardin as a creator, the extensive list of contributions includes Guy Francis, an illustrator of children's books, Bill Galvan of "Archie" and "The Simpsons", Mike Grell, whose work includes "Superman" and "Green Arrow", Ian Johnston, who has for the Justice League; Mel Milton, a Disney animator whose work includes Disney Interactive video games; Philip Sevy, who worked on "Tomb Raider"; Sal Velluto, who once created "Black Panther" and "Flash" and Jemma Young, a web comic artist and creator of the "Children of Eldar" series, with additional comments to Ryan Brown, Chynna Miller and Travis Walton, the last of them spent a lot of time creating color guides for the work.
Each artist came up with different backgrounds, experiences and motivations, but offered the community the experience of a lifetime
. "Normally, museums do not let you draw on their walls, they do not transform the museum into canvas," said Anderson, the museum's coordinator. "But in this case, almost all the museum will be a living cartoon, a giant public art project.The twist with this show is that visitors can co-create art with famous artists. "
Jemma Young
In addition to creating the image of Hecate, the goddess of magic and contribute to other personal works Young has helped to create color guides for the & 90 Young ate [[[[exhibitionandhasessentiallyadvancedtheorganizationofeverythinginarolethatHardinsaidwasvitaltothesuccessoftheexhibition
Although this involved a lot of work, according to Young, the experience was amazing.
"It looks really amazing – I'm excited that people can see it and be able to get involved in it," said Young. "(These artists) have done so much in the comic book industry, so being able to color some of their work as part of this project is really cool, and I'm honored to be part of it. and to have my "
Young has already taken her own children to the show and helped them to color one of her works, and that's something she's looking forward to to see evolution as more and more people come
(these pieces) knowing that the others would color them, "she said. "For me, even if it does not turn out to be spectacular, all I want is for people to do it and get involved, even if they are not artists, I want that they are trying .. My daughter is 5 years old and can hardly color the lines, and she was there to color and have fun. "
Although coloring in the lines is a guideline to participate in Big canvases, Young said that there are also activities for the youngest including coloring pages and a youth gallery.
"In the past, comics have never really been considered art, or anything you could hang in a museum," Young said. "Comics were exactly what these kids were doing and it was not common, I hope it will help bridge the gap and show that comics are not just a way of telling stories, but also a form of art. "
Phillip Sevy
As mentioned above, Phillip Sevy spent much of his career Lara Croft, Tomb Raider, so when Hardin approached him for Artemis design for the exhibition, his contribution was normal.
"I like to draw strong female characters, so Artemis was a perfect fit for me," he said. According to Sevy, he has known Hardin for years and sees him not only as a friend, but also as an unofficial mentor.
"He contacted me at the beginning of the year and asked if I would be interested in contributing to the show," Sevy said. "He has done a lot for me over the years and I was more than happy to help him here … I was excited to be part of the show and I thought that the idea of focusing on the mythological characters and their superhero counterparts was very interesting. "Sevy said," I really like the interactive look and feel of it. " 39 – exhibition – that people are allowed and encouraged to color the pieces.which hangs up.I think we all need more art and creative outlets in our lives.Whether you are an artist or not, be able to to be part of the creation of something is very satisfying and therapeutic. "
This also gave Sevy the opportunity to get closer to the local art community.
book artist, my job is seen by the people who buy the books, but they do not reach many people who would not buy a the comics, "he said. "Being involved in a public gallery and exhibiting like that allows me to reach out and meet more people in Utah County."
Mel Milton
As an artist and former animator of video games for Disney Interactive, Mel Milton He was walking in a gallery, and when he was contacted by Hardin to participate in the exhibition " Heroes and villains, "he plunged into a series of works centered on the character of Athena.
"It's just a fun project," he said. "It was not money, it was not about" I have to put that in front of the people ", but the ability to create something for pleasure is the reason why I wanted to be an artist in the first place. This can cause you to look at something in a different way. Art has made my life very magical. "
Milton made the decision to make more art for fun and as a hobby after the birth of his daughter so as to be able to focus on his father. After this decision he won a rather decent sequel, yet he said it was a humiliating experience when Hardin approached to be in the Woodbury show.
"It was a difficult call to be an artist and then to be a father because the art always calls me," he said. "There is always that part of the artist who wants to go to work, and who wants to make money. "
This exhibition, however, is the one he's just said to have fun – bridging the gap between the desire to make money. art and be the best father possible.
"As long as I'm happy, it's the best experience I could give her, and for me, I want her to see it" , did you he says, "I can not wait to take my daughter to the museum and have her color on it."
Milton said that he met Hardin while teaching, a fact that showed him that you can do all you want to do, as long as you
"You are conditioning yourself to say," I do not do art, "he says, mentioning how he also says to himself" I do not have any art ", he says. not teach, "before he's caught. "If you love something, you will grow (by doing it) .I have grown as a human being doing my art."
Guy Francis
Illustrator Guy Francis He also taught at Utah Valley University when he met Hardin and became good friends with him.
"He asked me if I could as I wanted to participate (in the Woodbury show) and it sounded like an explosion, so I said," said Francis, who said: Is attacked to mythological monsters, including Medusa and a giant harpy.
"I think it's great he's already involved," he said about photos taken since the gallery opened last week. "I think more can being interactive, plus it's fun. "
Francis has been illustrating children's books for 25 years and offers a unique perspective to the show since he's not a traditional comic artist. [19659002] "I do not think I really played a role in it, but I hope that visitors will really see how comic artists put pleasure into their work," he said. said Francis. "That they can participate and have fun and, hopefully, come out with a better appreciation for the work that goes into the art of comics. … I'm excited to go see it myself – I've been looking forward to seeing what other artists have put on it, and it should be a lot of fun.
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