Understanding Comics Reflection

As someone who has always loved cartoons, and in turn learned and chosen to draw in a much more stylized way, I really enjoyed this reading of Understanding Comics, as it put words and explanations to many things I have sort of subconciously recognize, but never been able to pinpoint.

In chapter two when they talk about the icon, this really grabbed my attention. I found it really interesting how they discussed that the reason that icons or cartoons are so universally accepted and liked is becuase the simplicity of it allows for a person vieweing such things to put themselves, or pieces of themselves into the character. In my own drawing, I have never had the desire to draw one hundred percent realistic, but instead love to stylize my work, putting my own spin on it, and I think my desire to do this has a lot to do with the things Understanding Comics talks about. I have never wanted to draw extremely realistic because in my own work I don’t see the point of recreating a real object just as it is, but instead want to express other things that you may not see from just looking at a photocopy of an object. I use drawing as a way to express something, and even if I am drawign a picture of something I am looking at, I want to express certain things and so I use stylization and a more “cartoony” approach to accomplish that.

In chapter 5 where they discuss how lines can portray emotions and capture that senses, I think this further put explanation and meaning to what chapter 2 talked about. While in chapter 2 it is more about the form of the icon, it is important to look at an talk about the way that icon is drawn. While the picture itself might be universal for representing something, the lines you use to draw the symbol and what’s aroung it can convey many things. This chapter really spoke to my perfectionist nature when it comes to drawing. I am a stickler for line work, and because of this I go over almost all my work in pen, getting the lines absolutely perfect. While I’ve always done this, and before I thought I just did this because it looked better to me, I think all along I was doing this because subconciously I understood how much power line work can hold, and how the way something is drawn can convey something very specific. In my work if I see a flaw, like a line that is jagged, ore the edges of the line aren’t smooth, I immediately have to fix it because when I look at it I see something conveyed that is different from what I want conveyed.

Looking at this reading showed me that there is a lot of importance in even small things we typically don’t think about. I think it is very important to consider things like this as it can help you to improve in all areas of work, not just in the specific area that is being discussed, like in this case cartoons. Drawings and pictures can be very powerful, and convey a number of thigns, but only if you understand what sorts of things convey what feeling and emotions through the senses.