Art

Carving a Masterpiece- a Shi Rensa poem

Ronovan Shi Rensa Haiku , , , , , , , , , , ,

clip these broken wings
to find a new way of flight
put your mind to work

put your mind to work
bringing art from cobwebbed wings
we carve through despair

we carve through despair
to discover a masterpiece
fly beyond limits

fly beyond limits
to create your own meanings
form fierce confidence

Poetry Lost Mind Image

Click HERE to learn about the new style I’ve created called Shi Rensa Haiku and how to write one, maybe even for the challenges.

My poem for my Haiku Poetry Prompt Challenge. https://ronovanwrites.com/2020/09/14/ronovan-writes-weekly-haiku-poetry-prompt-challenge-323-clipwings/.

 © 2020 Ronovan Hester Copyright reserved. The author asserts his moral and legal rights over this work.

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Guess That Art IV. Mrs. Boswell meets Bob Ross.

Ronovan Guess That Art , , , , , , , , , , , ,

This week I present to you a collection I stumbled upon not too long ago by chance and found my new favorite artist. If I could own the painting of just one artist, this would be the one. As for who Mrs. Boswell is, she was my 8th Grade Geometry teacher. Bob Ross? He was the painter of happy clouds and lakes with mirrored images of trees and those happy clouds.

The style might seem familiar to other artists but the truth is, this person’s background fed directly into this style development. One hint, as I do hope you will perhaps cheat this week, this artist is still alive today, but at an age that makes it a true joy and wonder that that age has given to a rediscovery and appreciation of this talent.

Cheating allowed this week in this guessing game and challenge of your cultural level of artistic knowledge.

Comment your opinions about the piece and if you know what, when and who about it then all the better to let everyone know. Look at the details. (Click on the image to see a larger version.)

Write a piece of poetry or even a post. If you create a post, link back to here or even put your link in the comments, just like with the Haiku Challenge. Or you can simply share your poetry in the comments. Good luck ,good viewing, good inspiration, and finally, good creating. Also, if you are artistic and create something inspired by this, share it with us.

Guess that art image 1. Circle with orange and black geometric shapes,

 

Image 2. white packgroun with 3 long thin green triangles.

Image 3, Silver background with multipe shapes with facial features represented.

Untitled 1941 by Jackson Pollock.

Ronovan Guess That Art , , , , , , , , ,

Two weeks ago in Guess That Art I shared the below sketch. Not quite what you would expect from what people think of as the splatter method. Jackson Pollock started out in the basics of artistic techniques, just like the rest of us, but fortunately under the eye of Thomas Hart Benton of the Art Students League of New York.

New York, Early Twenties by Thomas Hart Benton
New York, Early Twenties by Thomas Hart Benton

 

During the late 30s and early 40s Pollock worked for the FDR‘s WPA Federal Art Project, a program that ultimately employed over 200,000 artists and artisans during The Great Depression, to help give financial relief while also building up the country culturally.

Most of you may be more familiar with Pollock’s Drip style in a painting such as Number 5 1948 by Jackson Pollock, considered his most famous work.

Number 5 1948 by Jackson Pollock
Number 5 1948 by Jackson Pollock

 

One of my favorites is The Deep from 1953. A Drip method on white with touches of yellow.

The Deep 1953 by Jackson Pollock
The Deep 1953 by Jackson Pollock

The sketch I shared, Untitled 1941, one of two untitled pieces that year, was a sketch he did during years he was in therapy for his alcoholism with Jungian psychothearpy sessions. His therapist encouraged him to make works to help him during this time to express and deal with his troubles.

Untitled 1941 by Jackson Pollock

 

 

 

Guess That Art III! Alien meets Predator meets Tangled?

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If you don’t know who this one is instantly, then you very likely won’t figure it out. Let’s just say the artist isn’t well known by us lay people for this kind of work. I liked it a lot. The almost sci-fi/alein appearance of it appeals to my teenage years. (Who am I kidding? It appeals to me now.) All that organic like tangled up pieces of what might be carbon life form mixed with plant life and stone is all just kind of creepy to me in a good way. It makes me think the Alien and Predator costume designers might have been fans of this artist.

No cheating allowed in this guessing game and challenge of your cultural level of artistic knowledge.

Comment your opinions about the piece and if you know what, when and who about it then all the better to let everyone know. Look at the details. (Click on the image to see a larger version.

Write a piece of poetry or even a post. If you create a post, link back to here or even put your link in the comments, just like with the Haiku Challenge. Or you can simply share your poetry in the comments. Good luck ,good viewing, good inspiration, and finally, good creating. Also, if you are artistic and create something inspired by this, share it with us.

Guess that art 3

Guernica by Pablo Picasso.

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Last week for Guess That Art 2 I shared Guernica by Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973). Yes, even genius artists have middle names and now you are one of the few outside of the art community that knows it.

The First Communion by PicassoFor once I have a real reason for putting the dates of a persons life. Picasso lived during some of the biggest and most wide ranging events in history. That range is reflected in his art, just as it would be in someone who was as forward searching as Picasso was.

He was classically trained as an artist, beginning with his father. This piece from 1896 of his sister shows just how good he was with realism, something most of us don’t associate the name Picasso with.

As the decades past he with through these different periods, often denoted by colors, his Blue Period, his Rose Period.

He then had his African and primitivism period, which once you see examples of you can see the beginnings of Cubism, created by Picasso and Georges Braque. And Cubism is what people commonly know Picasso for. And that is where Guernica comes in. One of the most important pieces of Protest Art around, and what some have called “the Mona Lisa” of our time.

 

Now onto Guernica. It’s not just a Cubist oil painting by a famous Spanish guy. It’s also a city in the Province of Biscay on the Atlantic in Northern Spain, the center of the Basque community. You see, Spain is made up of different regions, languages, and peoples. Not all of those peoples want to be, as they see it, unfairly. and often in history they have been oppressed or worse. Much worse.

Map of Guernica Spain area

Picasso working on Guernica
Picasso working on Guernica

While Picasso was in France, Spain was in a civil war between the years 1936 and 1939. I’m not going to get in to that. My head hurts just thinking of how it all worked. Just know that a man named and his Nationalist won by 1939, and he stayed in power until his death in 1975, believe it or not.

Franco, in 1937, gave the German Luftwaffe a target to test what it would take to level a city from the air. Most of the men of the town were away fighting in the civil war. The women and children were gathered in the town on market day. The Bombers dropped over 100.000 lbs of bombs and fighter planes shot anyone trying to escape.

Picasso read the description of the horror when he read the eye-witness account of journalist George Steer on May 1, 5 days after the bombing. Picasso had been commissioned by Spain to paint a piece for the World’s Fair. He had made sketches of ideas (The Dream and Lie of Franco) when his friend, Spanish poet and essayist, Juan Larrea dropped by and insisted he paint something about Guernica. Now, I believe you can see the symbolism throughout the painting. Picasso stated in an interview that in the painting that certain images were what they were and not symbols. But you can click here to see what some say about that. It’s not the nicest piece of Cubist art to learn how to interpret what you are seeing, but I think through its story the eye and mind grabs the details easier and can apply to other works.

Guernica by Pablo Ruiz Picasso

Guess That Art II! Mr. Potato Head meets Annie Lane. (I mean that in a good way.)

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Warning ahead of time, no cheating is allowed in this guessing game and challenge of your cultural level of artistic knowledge.

I have to say that although this may look rather simplistic it is perhaps one of the most dramatic pieces of art you will ever see. Once you learn the why of this particular masterpiece of emotion you’ll be able to understand each detail, well maybe not, but clarity will come.

Comment your opinions about the piece and if you know what, when and who about it then all the better to let everyone know. Look at the details. (Click on the image to see a larger version.

Write a piece of poetry or even a post. If you create a post, link back to here or even put your link in the comments, just like with the Haiku Challenge. Or you can simply share your poetry in the comments. Good luck ,good viewing, good inspiration, and finally, good creating. Also, if you are artistic and create something inspired by this, share it with us.

Guess That Art 2 image

The Garden of Earthly Delights. At least that’s its name this century.

Ronovan Guess That Art , , , , , , , ,

Last week I began a new, hopefully, weekly bit of a challenge and cultural growth posting called “Guess That Art!” In this challenge you’re not to cheat but to see if you know what it is and comment, comment about what you think of the art, and even write a piece of poetry inspired by the art and share it through a link in the comments.

The at below is called The Garden of Earthly Delights by Dutch artist, Hieronymus Bosch, born 1450 and died 1516. The work is actually known as a triptych because there are three individual panels/paintings. The triptych was painted sometime between 1490 and 1510, so when he was between 40-60. He is well known for his iconography. I believe that is what makes his work so interesting and engaging. Also it gives it a futuristic feel, especially when you consider the pieces is over 500 years old. (The painting has been known by other names throughout history.)

The first panel is a scene of the Garden of Eden and most often interpreted as the moment God introduced Eve to Adam who is just coming awake from his surgical procedure. Click the link to go to an enlarged view of the panel that you can see the details and interpret the symbolism of the artists imagery. The man had a serious opinion about some things it would seem. Click here to see the first panel.

The second or middle panel is similar to the first panel with the continuation of the horizon and terrain. It might even be possible that the second is future of the first when you look deeper. There is an obvious air of sexuality in the middle panel and thoughts have been it is a warning of where the world is heading. You get a feeling of condemnation from it and when you look at many of the individual scenes it becomes apparent what he may have thought. The large pink tower in the upper left corner is one that I was a bit surprised by. Click here to see the middle panel.

The third panel is the result of what Bosch saw as humanity’s wild forays into indiscriminate selfish pleasure. This is either a Hell on Earth or actual Hell. I especially find the pig nun disturbing. Click here to see the middle panel.

What are you thoughts and interpretations? Share in the comments. Friday I will be sharing another work that I came across during some research.

The Garden of Earthly Delights by Bosch

Here is what the work looks like when the panels are closed. If you look closely you will see what is thought to be God in the upper left corner looking down on earth as light is first appearing over Earth.

Creation_Garden of Earthly Delights.

Guess That Art! Did Dr. Seuss and H.G. Wells have an artistic love child?

Ronovan Guess That Art , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Warning ahead of time, no cheating is allowed in this guessing game and challenge of your cultural level of artistic knowledge.

Comment your opinions about the painting and if you know what, when and who about the painting then all the better to let everyone know. Look at the details. For me, it almost gives the impression of some other world you might find in the mind of  a Creative if it were the child of H.G. Wells and Dr. Seuss (Theodor Geisel). Next week sometime I’ll do a post with the details about the painting for your enjoyment. Click to enlarge and take in the mind altering images, but remember to return and comment. In addition, look at the painting fully, closely, take your time with it and see if it inspires you to write. Write a piece of poetry and if you create a post, link back to here or even put your link in the comments, just like with the Haiku Challenge. If you don’t want to create a post then simply share your poetry in the comments. Good luck ,good viewing, good inspiration, and finally, good creating. Also, if you artistic and create something inspired by this, share it with us.

Tea Cups.

Ronovan Haiku , , , , , , , ,

Vast seas of colors

Filling cups of rippled waves,

The mind’s emptied dreams.

Tea Cups by Ronovan Hester.

Ronovan Hester is an author, with a debut historical adventure novel Amber Wake: Gabriel Falling due out in February 14, 2016. He shares his life on his blog RonovanWrites.WordPress.com. His love of writing, authors and community through his online world has led to a growing Weekly Haiku Challenge, Weekly Fiction Prompt Challenge, and the creation of a site dedicated to book reviews, interviews and author resources known as LitWorldInterviews.com.

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@RonovanWrites

 © Copyright-All rights reserved by ronovanwrites.wordpress.com 2016

Spark the Imagination.

Ronovan Haiku , , , , , , , , , , ,

Inspire a child’s mind

To spark imagination,

Read a true classic.

Spark the Imagination Poem by Ronovan Hester

Ronovan Hester is an author, with a debut historical adventure novel Amber Wake: Gabriel Falling due out in February 14, 2016. He shares his life on his blog RonovanWrites.WordPress.com. His love of writing, authors and community through his online world has led to a growing Weekly Haiku Challenge, Weekly Fiction Prompt Challenge, and the creation of a site dedicated to book reviews, interviews and author resources known as LitWorldInterviews.com.

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

@RonovanWrites

 © Copyright-All rights reserved by ronovanwrites.wordpress.com 2015

Lifted by a Crane.

Ronovan Haiku , , , , , ,

I’m a bit late with my Challenge Haiku. It’s been sometime since I did any art work with my Haiku. I used a photo I found online as my ‘model’ for this one, since there is no way I could find these two in my bedroom, nor would they stand still that long.

More Precious Than Gold

Carried Through Loves True Meaning

Lifted By A Crane.

Lifted by A Crane Haiku

Ronovan Hester is an author, with his debut historical adventure novel Amber Wake: Gabriel Falling due out in December of 2015. He shares his life as an amnesiac and Chronic Pain sufferer through his blog RonovanWrites.WordPress.com. His love of poetry, authors and community through his online world has lead to a growing Weekly Haiku Challenge and the creation of a site dedicated to book reviews, interviews and author resources known as LitWorldInterviews.com.

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

@RonovanWrites

© Copyright-All rights reserved by ronovanwrites.wordpress.com 2015

Blooms Animated Sculpture

Ronovan Videos/Music , , , , , ,

A nice something to start your day with. Nice, peaceful music to go with it as well. Enjoy. (Warning, the pieces spin under a strobe light to give the animated effects. Might cause dizziness or a bit of a headache if you are prone to those kinds of things.)
https://vimeo.com/116582567

RonovanWrites #Weekly #Haiku #Poetry #Prompt #Challenge #Review 60.

Ronovan Haiku Prompt Challenge , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Hello Everyone,

This week the suggested focus was to make two complete sentences out of the three lines of Haiku with the second line being the end of the first sentence and the beginning of the second sentence. It wasn’t a must, just a suggestion for those interested in moving toward or testing their ability at the traditional form of Haiku.

The closing Haiku.

The man’s bridges fell

Out of his dark lusting maw

Ron’s tongue wagged, the dog.

To be read as:
The man’s bridges fell out of his dark lusting maw.
Out of his dark lusting maw, Ron’s tongue wagged, the dog.

Now on to the Poets all of you need to begin to Follow, appearing below in the order they submitted their links. Well except the New Members appear first. I know I haven’t done that for a few weeks because of the laptop being dead and time but here I am back to it again.

NEW! Cathy Lynn Brooks (Author): Cathy is working on a work of love, a book about…well click here to find out what it’s about. As for the Haiku… A Move to Understanding | Cathy Lynn Brooks. The page about her book and the Haiku explain its meaning.

NEW! Gerard Young also known as dun dun dun SilverBulletHead!!!: A student in Ireland, gamer and writer. The Haiku will tell you that first part, sort of. Ah, the hopes of the higher educated (you get that from his About page, yes I read those.). I remember those days. Oh wait…no I don’t. I have amnesia. (No seriously, I do…I think.) Bored Genius | This Is CruserBladezz. I am wondering with a handle such as Silver Bullet Head if he would be great to have along in case of werewolves? Totally ignore everything I say from this point on. I took double medications and am really far out there at the moment. No werewolves were harmed in the making of this Haiku Review.

NEW! Steven O. Young Jr.: River Rouge | Rambings of a Drabbling Mind 100 Words at a time. Hoping this guy stays around. Some experimental poetry here and I like it. As for the Haiku, wow, another one of a them you will find running through the Review here. Man, this one is insane. And if you are into basketball, check out his other blog Above the Cylinder by clicking here.

NEW! Ruby Manchanda.: Bridges unite | Whispering Thoughts. We have an artistic one joining us with a good message. Definitely go and visit as this was our last entry of the week and thus not many have seen it yet. So go, like, share, praise. You know, do the be you thing y’all do so well.

NEW! Kat Myrman: Love Gots To Do It | like mercury colliding. Well if love has to do it then you know what it has to do, right?  About Kat: This place is an indulgence.  A place to ruminate and simmer thoughts, reflections and perceptions while also sharing an occasional fabulous recipe to die for, peppered with a bit of photo art…my new found artistic passion.

First in this week:

Juliette: A Year in Haiku | Battered Wife seeking Better Life. One year doing our Haiku Challenge, and the only person to do every single one of them, as far as I can tell. Dedication or OCD, I’m not certain but I say thank you for that continued participation. Here the woman I finally settled on calling Juliette explains how she came to be involved in the challenge. She gives not only this weeks Haiku offering but each weeks as well, with a total of 64 Haiku. If you want to see how someone has grown or regressed in their life over a time span, Haiku can be a great way to do that. Juliette has gone from being the mystery woman of the group to a mainstay veteran who I can always count on being involved. And more often than not when I see a like in the comments next to someone’s link on the Challenge post, she’s the one who has liked it. A true full on participate. @BWseekingBL

Annette Rochelle Aben (Author & Radio Host): The Mackinac | Annette Rochelle Aben. Annette chose to stay with her Michigan theme and give us a bit more history of her home state. The picture below is the subject of her Haiku. That doesn’t mean I am giving away what she says though. Remember to check her out on Amazon for her best selling offerings by clicking Author above. @YouAreTheExpert Click the picture below for the wikipedia site for the Mackinac Bridge.

"Mackinac Bridge Sunset" by Dehk - Own work. Licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mackinac_Bridge_Sunset.jpg#/media/File:Mackinac_Bridge_Sunset.jpg

Judy/Edwina: Working for it | Edwina’s Episodes. First of all, call her Judy or Edwina, both are her names, but Judy seems to be the one commonly used in her comment section by those who chat with her, although she notes that she kind of has become fond of being called Edwina. That image she used sets off everything nicely. You may need to click the image to get a good read of the Haiku. For me that makes it even better though. 

Sue Vincent (Author): Bridge | Daily Echo. Very nature oriented Haiku. Like it. Love the contrasting colors in the photo used. Sue is one of our authors with several books available. Visit the Author link above to go to her Amazon Author Page.

TJ Paris: Star Crossed Lovers | La vie est trop courte pour boire du mauvais vin. A Western Australia with a French Fetish. Very nicely done with the two sentences and opposing meanings. A touch of romance. But with a blog focused on France, especially Paris, how could he not?

Mira: overwrought | They, You And Me. Feeling anguish here, longing. Two sentence structure as was suggested to focus on. I always get that sense of wanting to give Mira a big hug when I read her Haiku. fears | To Wear A Rainbow. I would swear she can read minds at times.

Melissa Barker-Simpson (Author): Brothers in Arms | M Barker-Simpson. Call her Mel. At least that’s what she signs everything as. Not only does she have a blog but an author site as well. She’s everywhere. Now to the Haiku. I had named this one The Journey until I noticed the name in the link. I liked her explaining how she arrives at her Haiku and it makes you begin to anticipate what she’s working on. Sneaky, right? A lot of feeling here. I like it. No Twitter as far as I have found. Shame as I would like to share there. Click the Author link above to visit her on Amazon.

Me: I don’t normally put myself in here but seeing as I actually did one outside of the example this week, and I linked to the challenge, here I am. No Bridge Too Far | Ronovan Writes. You might think I would have been the first entry, but I thought that a bit unfair of an advantage. The Haiku can mean positive and negative things but moving toward the same end. I chose the positive with this offering. You can also find me at LitWorldInterviews a site I founded where I do author interviews, book reviews, and feature articles. It’s a team effort now with authors, lawyers, professors and your lover of literature giving their time to help authors. The link will take you to my specific offerings. @RonovanWrites

Al: Key to Moving | Al The Author’s Blog. Two offerings from Al this week. Got the structure in both. That first one I really like for a peaceful moment. The second? Well…That’s Al for you. @AlistairLane

Ritu: Oh those gaps. | But I Smile Anyway. Obviously a nice message. The image used is interesting and something I would like to try. Takes a lot of skill and patience.

Becky: Nature’s Bridge | Becky G? Oh, That’s Me! Can you guess what the Haiku is about from the title? When I chose it I thought it easy, but then I kept coming up with different things it could mean. I think I think Haiku to much. 🙂

Clarence: Lovers Schemes | Prairie Chat. Uh oh. Clarence is keeping with the romance here. Tapping into the Romeo side…and the people are liking it. You go Man!

R. Todd: The Bridge | A Flash of Fiction. Ah, nice one. Had not thought of this idea yet. Cool. 

Pat B.: Arches over Oregon | A season and a time. Seems a couple of people had similar ideas this week. And I must say I do love the subjects, they are fascinating pieces of art to me when done properly. This can read as one sentence or as two.

Maylian: Sensory | Personal Self Perfection. Maylian returns for a second week!!! YAY!!! Two Haiku this week from Maylian. Very much nature with some humanness thrown in. (Is it just me or does humanness “funny? Okay, and no wisecracks about how funny humans look.) Definitely go visit the blog. I love the look of it; the layout and color scheme. Very nice.

Sandra or “Daffy” as one reader called her. Whichever, the WILD ONE IS BACK! Peace | Wild Daffodil the joy of creativity. This is a MUST SEE post. So  much included in this one and for very good reasons. Definitely stop by and like it.

JK: Move Silently | The Secret Keeper. Whoa. Seriously serious thoughts there. And an appropriate image for said or suggested serious thought.  

Olga: Wait | Stuff and what if… Like the message and the image is kind of spooky in a way but also leaves a mystery to it. Nice.

Janice: Bridge | Ontheland. Two meanings for the Haiku, as Janice explains in her post. And it is a post of encouragement and inspiration. Well here we are again, well so I am anyway. This is actually much later in the order of entries and the second for Janice. Bridge of Change. This just goes to show how the Haiku challenge sticks with you no matter what you try to do. 🙂  

Denis: Survivor | Haiku Hound. Carrying on a theme, yes, I know the Haiku has a prompt and thus a theme or sorts…but hang with me here for a moment. Denis gives us a lesson about a little place just outside of Hobart Tasmania Australia. Like I’ve said before, love these types of pieces. The Haiku says a lot about the subject.

The Elusive One: Bolero | Elusive Trope. Yes, the Elusive one’s name is in the blog, but I’ll stick with Elusive for now. All I can say is I believe there was some freaking out at the prompt words, and I swear I had no idea.

Elizabeth: Madness | Tea&Paper. Ah yes, this one actually struck a chord with me when I read it earlier in the week. I’ve had to think about this often.

Meredith & Martha: Four From the Angels | Meredith’s Musings. No, that’s not really a title, but they do two apiece each week. The Bridge & Beloved Pet by Martha, and then Family Feud & Progress from Meredith. Great images. I really love them AND Beach Babes with Nick!!! Also, these ladies are facebook friends of mine and I will tell you Meredith is looking great. Visit her twitter and see either a very strange looking Beach Babe baked potato or seaweed loved coconut, I’m not sure which. @MeredithLBL

vronlacroix: Fragile | Simply Snapshots. She’s back for a second week in a row! Love it when new people come back for more AND when I see the comments on their Haiku. Awesome! Fragile is a deep one. I mean philosophically deep. Some said powerful.

Stu06Bloc9: Paired | Pitter Patter Poetry. Whoa. So there are two Haiku. Take your time and read them through. I’m still rereading as…well not AS I type this, but you know what I mean.

Marjorie Mallon (Why did I put the whole name this week? Cause it just sounds cool saying! Well…at least how I say it.): A Sweet Bridge Too Far & We’re Finished Lover |Kyrosmagica. She’s back in her groove people! I tell you this was an entertaining read from beginning to end. And if you are into Scotland and all, go check out her Edinburgh posts while she visited the Book Festival. AMAZING photos!!!  

Prakash: Move on Big River | Its PH. Yes, that’s my name for the Haiku, and if you have been reading all of this review this is just after I did the NEW! entry of Gerard, so you know I am a bit insane at the moment. But this one is both deep and funny at the same time depending on how you take it. I’m of two minds about it. Muahahahaha. Stop that Ron! What? Huh? (I just had a conversation with myself. O,o)  

Jane Dougherty (Author): Three from Lady Jane | Jane Dougherty Writes. I couldn’t really come up with one suitable name that encompassed the three, but then it struck me what better name than the name above? You all know that Jane writes beautiful poetry, and won’t enter until it’s just right. She took her time this week, for certain, and I love the painting. Always a class act. A great part of our Haiku family. And I’m not saying that because I reviewed one of her books, or because I interviewed her on my book review/interview site. Click the Author link for numerous books by her on Amazon.

Alka: Games of Chance | Magnanimous Words. She just blew my mind!!! I was not expecting this at all. The idea of using the prompts this way absolutely did not come to mind. Now that I have hyped it up so much, please go and peruse for your own enjoyment and laugh at my excitement.  

Colleen: A Hushed Moment | Silver Threading. You know, I’ve seen her blog so many times and I know the meaning but with her being part of my team on LWI, it occurred to me it could mean Silverth Reading. 🙂 Now the Haiku was amazing. Romance! @SilverThreading

Vashti Quiroz-Vega (Author): Star Trek | The Writer Next Door. Okay, another one that took me by surprise, but I have no idea why considering it’s from Vashti. Nothing should surprise me from her. Check out Vashti on Amazon at the Author link above and you can see her interview by clicking here. @VashtiQV

Florence: My Lullaby | Meanings and Musings. Peaceful, serene, and just right. I may not have any idea what it means, but it works for me. 🙂 As well as being a blogger, college professor, lawyer, and therapist she is also part of the LWI team. By the way, LWI stands for LitWorldInterviews, the book and author site I founded and take credit for the work of others. @FTThum

Steven S. Walsky (Author): Life is a Road | Simplicity Lane. A Tanka, meaning three normal lines of Haiku plus two additional lines of 7 syllables each using the third line as the link. A very thoughtful Tanka. I always expect humor when I vent Steven and have ended up with thought provoking of late. Click the Author link above to go to Steven’s blog where you will find all the available places for each book. He’s varied. 🙂

Swatiu: To Great a Distance | imgrowing. Romantic, and sad at the same time. Nice. (You ever wonder why a guy that deals with depression all the time holds a poetry challenge every week? Glutton perhaps?)

Shailzaa: Comfort Zone | Fewunsaidwords. Okay, first of all, I just realized what the blog name says. o,O I plead the concussion excuse. Wow. I am so red. Wait, I always red, well pink actually. I may have actually understood it bfore but don’t remember. 🙂 Gotta use my out when I can. Anyway. I named the Haiku Comfort Zone from my take on the meaning of the message written. A very thinky piece, as I like to call them. It makes you sit and ponder a few moments or dozen before the pain begins between the eyes at how you can’t write like that yourself. O,o

Khor Hui Min: Utopia | Project Prose. A very topical message pulled from today’s headlines all over the world. @MinKhor

Greg: The Bridge | Potholes in the Road of Life. Got the message, both of them. The first was the Greg must have goofed his link back to the Challenge I missed it, and the second is the message of the Haiku. But then I goofed by not catching a mainstay of the Challenge not being present.

If you aren’t appearing here and did participate, please let me know. I went hunting for a few usual suspects but didn’t see a Haiku on those sites.

Also, if you have a Twitter handle that does not appear above, let me know.

Much Respect-Much Love

Ronovan

Ron_LWIRonovan is an author, and blogger who shares his life as an amnesiac and Chronic Pain sufferer though his blog RonovanWrites.WordPress.com. His love of poetry, authors and community through his online world has lead to a growing Weekly Haiku Challenge and the creation of a site dedicated to book reviews, interviews and author resources known as LitWorldInterviews.WordPress.com.

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Osamu Tezuka – Manga God.

Ronovan A to Z Challenge-Comic Creators Around the World , , , ,

Visit and support My Guest Post on Comparative Geeks. It shows, in part, the progression of art style by Osamu Tezuka from his earliest to later days. Also I tried to show and speak of lesser known works of his.

Comparative Geeks

Mild mannered desk jockey.

drawing-tezuka-desk-Ronovan

Glasses.

drawing-tezuka-glasses-ronovan

Possessed abilities no one else had. Saved lives in ways we may never know. When people saw his name there was a strange symbol indicating something was different about him. He could be found in comics, on TV, and on the big screen. He was the hero of his nation. He was a god.

Who was this hero in disguise–this very gifted man?

View original post 2,230 more words

Sands of Our Lives

Ronovan Poetry , , , , , , , , ,

 

poem-sands-of-our-lives

 

Think to yourself, do you know what I’m asking
Do I give you your dreams, through your rose colored eyes
Clearing your mind, with each breath that you’re taking
Can you break with a smile, through the sands of our lives

 
Hearts are breaking, in distant worlds of wonder
Why does it have to be, though for years it has been
Shaking the hold, with a moment of thunder
Can you see the days, know you always will win

 
Temporary moments of silence and solo
Does it matter if quiet rules over the day
What does it matter as long as we both know
We’re going together in the same along way

 
I want the minutes to pass like lightning
With seconds non-existent in time of the realm
Reality breaks me into pieces somewhat frightening
But I pull myself up nothing to me overwhelm

 
You may miss the every second of every moment
When I fall down and cannot get up to stand
But don’t worry about me breaking I’m only gently bent
I’m fine as long as there is a glimmer, a hint, a strand

 
Hope is the future of a wasted past’s happenings
Future is the hope of a today’s receding sands of the shore
Never give up on me as I ramble in blatherings
I’ll be here and there through the music of our hearts’ beat score

 

Much Love, Much Respect

Ronovan

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X is the loneliest letter. Bad Girl.

Ronovan A to Z Challenge-Comic Creators Around the World , , , , , , , ,

Three days left of the A to Z Blogging Challenge and my theme of Comic Book Creators around the World has been fun, and at times frustrating. Each time I find a way to pull something out of the hat. Then we come to the letter X. Now, if you don’t know about the A to Z Challenge, the idea is during the month of April to write, in order, a post about something beginning with a letter of the alphabet. You get Sunday’s off.

I’ve used countries, and provinces. Then I come to the letter X. Do you know how many places of any kind in the world begin with the letter X?

Meet Song Yang from the Province of Xinjiang in China, born in 1981. Magic Box was his first big hit and he was only 17 at the time. He is hugely popular in China. Often called the most popular artist going these days. He’s into fashion, music, everything. How did he get to be so big? One site notes how China attempts to keep Japanese manga out as much as possible and promotes Song Yang at the same time. This gives him a major push. True or not, he’s a big gun in China.

Below are examples of his character, manhua art as well as his gallery pieces. I like the varying styles he displays, and I was fortunate he was the one I stumbled upon.

His series and illustrated pieces include Bad Girl and Wild Animals. And yes, I did share the less bad girl of the Bad Girl. Yang is like a rock star it seems.

song-yang

bg-beetles

sy

another-sy

wild_animal_01wild-animals

And that is it for today. Short and to the point. Several people went through some X places, but not a lot I could find were born in those places.

Two days left. Not a lot of Y and Z places either. Wish me luck searching. And next time, suggest I just go with the letter being like included in the theme somehow.

Much Respect

Ronovan

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Apartheid and Publishers: The bane of South African Comic Creators.

Ronovan A to Z Challenge-Comic Creators Around the World , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Researching South African Graphic Literature history has been an interesting adventure. A big think I discovered is a great deal of the comics were photo comics early on. Actors would be in the positions of what Americans and Europeans would normally see as drawn panels. Text balloons would then be inserted.

There are rare examples of illustrated comics, and I’ll mention those as I discover them. Yes, I write as I discover as opposed to research then writing. You get to ride along with me as I get excited or disappointed, depending on what I find.

For instance, here is the first illustrated book I found.

mm1Mighty Man. This was Soweto’s version of Superman. Sounds like a good idea, right? The book was about a black policeman who is shot, then healed by some beings from beneath the earth and given powers. All good so far. But the point of the book was to have the blacks during apartheid basically subliminally, from an early age, given the thoughts that going against the rules of the white government was wrong, they should stay in their place, there should be no guns owned by blacks, and it just keeps going.

Back up stories were about local folklore and sports figures. Any efforts by the Americans involved in the creation were slapped down. They worked for the company and did the book. Even when not agreeing with what the books overall message was.1In truth the book was more a propaganda and advertising scheme.

fairest-tb-2I also found a great writer in Lauren Beukes.2 A writer of novels and and TV scripts. Her selection to write Fairest3 for Vertigo4, and imprint of DC Comics says a lot. Fairest is a spinoff of Fables, a highly acclaimed series. Fairest is about the women of fairy tales set in different situations and with actual lives. These aren’t fairy tales.

Beukes arc in the series, The Hidden Kingdom, deals with Rapunzel traveling to Tokyo to take care of a mystery from her past.

Next I stumbled upon a piece by Nobhongo Gxolo who speaks with a couple of South African creators.5 First there was Moray Rhoda, illustrator, designer, and writer. One piece comic fans may have heard of is Velocity, a Graphic Novel anthology with contributing creators. He shares a frustration with another up and coming creator, Loyiso Mkize, illustrator and writer of Kwezi, about a 19 year old cocky guy who suddenly has powers and how he handles it.

velocitykwezi

The frustration they have is distribution. Local publishers don’t want to invest, not seeing the potential local home grown comics have. Most books are Indie Books in South Africa with any mass published being from the US or Europe. Local creators have more interest from places like US who get what is being done and see the talent of the artists.

“The artwork is definitely international level, but the storytelling is not there”~Rhoda

The artwork gains attention across the ocean, much like many other countries, but the writing is the problem.

“There’s also the fact that as I got older I learned to appreciate the role of superheroes in young people’s minds: positive, encouraging and inspiring.”~Mkize

Comic strips, humorous and adventure were ongoing from the early 20th Century onward. I don’t mention the names here because I honestly am not certain how appropriate some might be considering the way the government segregated society so harshly.

When I begin a more comprehensive series I will include all that I find, but for now enjoy what we have here today. Talent. A lot of it, but with no local publisher support.

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References

Return To Mighty Man
1 http://southafricancomicbooks.blogspot.com/2011/10/sowetos-super-man-mighty-man-and-mid.html

Return To Lauren Beukes
2 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lauren_Beukes
3 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairest_%28comics%29
4 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vertigo_%28DC_Comics%29

Return To Rhoda and Mkize
5 http://mg.co.za/article/2015-02-27-return-of-the-african-superhero
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The Saint to the Honeymooners to Northguard. Quebec gives birth to creators.

Ronovan A to Z Challenge-Comic Creators Around the World , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Qatar is not the place to really go looking from Graphic Literature in the vein in which I am interested in at this time. I therefore headed to Quebec. I thought about provinces in China, but I thought a little closer to home would be easier. Have I ever told you how foolish my ideas can be?

Did I tell you I tried creators from Queens, New York? Not so easy either.

Canada went through some interesting things during WWII much like other parts of the world. Oddly US books were banned from being imported for economic reasons, but could be reprinted. This allowed for a  Golden Age of comic books in Canada. Canada also went through the 1950s censorship issues much as the rest of the various Western Hemisphere.

Golden Roy

I want to start today with a man named Joseph Michel Roy (1921-1996), better known as Mike Roy or Michael Roy. Researching about artists born in Quebec had been tough until the wee hours and I found this man. And did I find a creator or what?

Born in Quebec he headed south where he ended up in New York at the School of Industrial Art, also known as the High School of Art and Design. For those outside of the United States, think ages 14 or 15 up to around 18. The school produced several comic artists from this time period. During Roy’s particular time he was the first to get the break.1

In 1940, while still in school, Roy writes, pencils (draws), and inks the short story Tigerman2 in the comic book Daring Mystery Comics3.  Daring Mystery Comics was produced by Timely Comics, the predecessor to Marvel Comics.4

tigerman
The only image of Tigerman I could find. May or may not be Mike Roy’s.
daring6
Daring Mystery Comics #6

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

According to a high school friend of Roy’s, another Timely Comics artist Allen Bellman, he recalls Roy working on a Sub Mariner comic will still in high school, although it is not mentioned in a list of his works. The incident sticks in Bellman’s mind because Roy was then a big shot and hero because he had actually done what they all wanted to do.5 One thing to keep in mind is, Roy went to work for Bill Everett as his assistant and that may be why we don’t see Roy’s name on work for that particular issue. Or it could be that issue has slipped through the cracks.6

cap60

Roy did a lot of Timely books, Captain America #60 being of course being of interest to me where he had the lead story. But there were later books I found insanely amazing to find he worked on. Jackie Gleason and the Honeymooners from the 1950s. The Twilight Zone from the 1960s.  Buck Rogers and the 25th Century in 1980.

gleasonAll of these are interesting and great but then we have a few things where Roy stands out.

Mike Roy’s Comic Strips

Roy has a tie to one of the most famous detectives in literary fiction, Mike Hammer. No, you won’t see Roy given credit for Mickey Spillane’s Mike Hammer, but you will find his name with the comic Mike Danger in 1947, the first go round of Mike Hammer. It failed and Spillane, in three weeks, turned out I, the Jury.7

mikedanger
Crime Busters story.

 

We then find Roy on The Saint comic strip which began it’s run on Septemeber 27, 1948, written by Leslie Charteris. Yes, The Saint as in Simon Templar with George Sanders in the old movies and Roger Moore in the TV series.8

Saint Comic-Strip 1948[6]

Then we see him once again, in the detective genre with the Nero Wolfe comic strip from 1956 to 1958.9

Nero Wolfe 19570415-17

Mike Roy’s Native American Interests


Mike Roy was very interested in Native American culture. His strip Akwas from the 1960s showed this. It was set historically pre Columbus. He attempted to keep the strip in print by giving her super powers toward the end but it didn’t save it.10

akwas

Screaming Eagle, a graphic novel was Roy’s final work, published in 1998 after his passing.

“SCREAMING EAGLE tells a mythical version of Native history—from the early pioneering days to the end of the Indian wars. Not coincidentally, that period coincides with the life of the story’s fictional hero.

At the onset, white trappers shoot a bald eagle, then the boy Screaming Eagle. The eagle’s and boy’s spirits merge and Screaming Eagle comes back to life. He now has the power to turn into his namesake guardian spirit.

Screaming Eagle becomes the focal point for this simplified version of events. He’s there to counsel people in war and peace. He’s the embodiment of all the great Indian leaders, from Tecumseh to Geronimo.”~Robert Schmidt.11

screamingeagle

Mike Roy also co-founded a museum of Native American and Eskimo art.

Today

To end I will mention a creative duo specifically for Canadian Graphic Literature. writer Mark Shainblum and artist Gabriel Morrissette.  They are at least close to today but their work on specifically and obviously Canadian superheros is why I want to mention them.

The two created Northguard, an almost accidental hero in the fact he was really just doing his job and ended up being a costumed hero. The book was a serious effort during the 1980s to have home grown superhero comics with heroes having Canadian identity throughout, not just in name only. He also had a partner called Fleur de Lys from the emblem on the Quebec flag. The two appeared on Canadian postage stamps.12

ng1fleur

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There are successful Canadian comics but rare. With the amount of American comics and with a population that cannot support so many comics it’s difficult to create and maintain a publishing system. There are efforts and I may talk about them another time. But that’ all for today.
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Click the link below to learn about comics in the Philippines. Did WWII help or hinder their comic book culture? How about the rule of Marcos?

Can a part of Filipino culture come back to life?

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References

Return to Golden Roy
1 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Roy_%28comics%29
2 http://comicbookdb.com/issue.php?ID=106465
3 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daring_Mystery_Comics
4 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timely_Comics

Return to Timely Comics
5 http://www.comicartville.com/bellmanpg2.htm
6 http://beachbumcomics.blogspot.com/2014/07/comic-strip-artist-mike-roy-mark-on.html

Return to Comic Strips
7 http://cgcforum.gpanalysis.com/cgcforum_thread.asp?pagenumber=55&ThreadID=690754&threadName=A+Month+in+the+Life+of+the+Comics
8 The Roger Moore Handbook-Everything you need to know about Roger Moore. By Emily Smith Page 418. Tebbo Publishing Feb. 28th 2013
9 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nero_Wolfe

Return to Roy’s Native American Interest
10 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akwas
11 http://www.bluecorncomics.com/scrmeagl.htm

Return to Today
12 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northguard

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L is for Lithuania. From Painters to Peanuts.

Ronovan A to Z Challenge-Comic Creators Around the World , , , , , , , ,

I find it interesting how world events, and politics can shape the creativity of a society.

I am reminded somewhat of the old Martin & Lewis movie Artists and aandmModels1 every time I do one of these articles when there is a long history of graphic artist interpretations of literature. In the movie these types of books are seen as a detriment to society through their influence on the young. Personally, I learned how to be a great reader through the form.

Graphic interpretation of writing goes back a ways in Lithuania, and there was even satire leading up to WWII. Something we might find surprising with our thoughts colored by the Cold War and Soviet Block since then.


The Early Years.

e8098214e018A man named Jonas Martinaitis was one of those early satire painters and writers.  He also did work for publications where he would use satire in the text of his work and often in rhyme.2 This sounds much like types of things we do here in a Haiku Challenge I host each week.

During the research for this series, I found comics in the form we know them today isn’t how they’ve always appeared. Early on, the text appeared in spaces beneath the images. In a way that makes sense in that you get to see a full piece of art. And understand, these were and can be works of art. Try to draw or paint some of what you see. Many people don’t realize that many comics are painted. But back then, those text balloons get in the way. These days the art is laid out in such a way as to account for the balloons.

Following WWII things were a bit more strict, much like what happened here in the US in the 1950s, with the publications being somewhat dictated to and any artistic images and wit were spun toward propaganda, not like here in the US in the 1950s. Fortunate or not, Martinaitis didn’t have to suffer this creative death. He passed away in 1947.

Creativity Grows Cold.

Imagine if for decades I were to tell you when creating  Haiku here on my site, the only place you could write Haiku and that was the only way you had to make money, that your words and images had to support something or be against something, regardless of what you believed. If you fought against me I would make sure you didn’t work anywhere else, because I had control there as well or possibly I could have you thrown into prison.

For Lithuania it was like that. Artists were subject to their work needing to meet the guidelines of Socialist realism as regulated by the government.3

It wasn’t until 1990 that Lithuania became the first Soviet republic to declare its independence after being occupied in WWII by the Soviets and the Nazis.4 I am trying to imagine the kind of things I would create under that atmosphere.

The Yoke Loosens.

In the 1960s the loosening feel, the I am free to be  me feel, that seemed to be in the air must have stretched to Lithuania in some way. Artistry and creativity in literary aspects changed slightly.

KONICA MINOLTA DIGITAL CAMERAA painter named Aleksandras Vitulskis created what would be called the greatest of all Lithuanian comics 10037951.jpg.330x330_q85work  in 1968 and 1969.5 The work was compared to that of Alex Raymond6, creator of Flash Gordon7 in 1934. Considering the impact Raymond’s Flash Gordon had on US society in graphic interpretation and cinema I can only imagine what Vitulskis did for Lithuania. Here are samples of his work, not his comics work. I was unable to find any of that at this time. But will update this article when I do.pilenai2

A Touch of Humor and a Touch of Simplicity.

But not all Lithuanian creators were painters and detailed artists. Some went with simplicity and touching the pulse of a society. Enter Fridrikas Jonas Samukas and Miko Ridiko.Samukas focused using his wit and showing human flaws, something everyone could associate with.8 His art was simple and to the point, uncluttered so as to give a quick lithuania-comics-miko-ridikoimpression. For me, if I were looking at the painting above by Vitulskis, I might spend more time looking at each part rather than taking in the message. You need to look at your balance to achieve your goal. If you click on the image to the left you will see there are no words needed to relay the message. That message is universal in every society.

Samukas did that, and did it very well. Mikko Ridiko has been published since 1968 if that tells you how successful his method worked. It still goes on today although under other artists since his death in 2003.

Artists of Today.

First there is Andrius Zaksauskas. I love the images he comes up with. Some are a bit to the point. All very well done, very painter like with one I picked today that gives me a Charlie Brown feel, not so much in the style but in the feel of the words and yes, even in perhaps the style a bit with the size of the heads of the children. But the words spoken by the character in front reminds me a bit of Charlie Brown. I translates I can.

andriusForces you did not seek to be more than a person then you will be less than a human.

That is how Google Translate does it. I get the meaning but am having difficulties expressing it here. Can you put it into words that make better sense for me? Leave a comment below. Seriously.

The next is Herta Matulionytė-Burbienė. I love this one. I so wish these herta1were in English, but if you are a blogger or someone who Tweets or FBs things, you will get this image meaning easily. That’s the talent of this creator.

 

herta2

Cats Anonymous Slave Society

Prisipazjstu, that I am powerless over my cat, and humbly To be completed by all his wishes.

That’s it for today. I enjoyed researching for the article. Loving history and comics and art and writing, this series has been a lot of fun for me. I hope you enjoyed it. Tomorrow is some place beginning with M. I have no idea yet. I best get on that.
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References
Return Artists and Models
1 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artists_and_Models

Return to The to Early Years
2 http://www.ljudmila.org/stripcore/burek/lithuan.htm

Return to Creativity Grows Cold
3 http://vddb.laba.lt/fedora/get/LT-eLABa-0001:E.02~2011~D_20110615_101047-35146/DS.005.0.02.ETD
4 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithuania

Return to Aleksandras Vitulskis
5 http://www.ljudmila.org/stripcore/burek/lithuan.htm
6 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alex_Raymond
7 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flash_Gordon

Return to Fridrikas Jonas Samukas
8 http://www.respublika.lt/lt/naujienos/pramogos/zvaigzdes_ir_zmones/kaip_fsamukas_atrado_legendini_mika_ridika/
Return to Artists of Today

#Japan #Manga from #AstroBoy to #FullMetalAlchemist Awesome! #AtoZChallenge

Ronovan A to Z Challenge-Comic Creators Around the World , , , , , , , , , , , ,

 

JThere was no way I could do a series about comics and not head to Japan. For some Japan is comic books in a true art form and engrained in culture unlike anywhere else in the world. Where many and most societies look at the art form as a child’s funny book, in Japan the books are graphic art presentations of literary art forms for all ages with the books being anything from childlike humor to corporate room cutthroat business. If it happens in society it can happen in comics, but kicked up to a sensational level, just as you would find in the best novels on the market.

atoz-map-flags-j

Many of you have heard of the word Manga, but do you know what it means?

Katsushika Hokusai1

Hokusai was an artist during late 18th and early 19th century Japan with the use of would block carvings to use for printing, coined the term during one of his many name changes. He changed his name as he changed his style. In 1811 he began what would be known as the Hokusai Manga, with manga meaning “playful sketches” to describe his humorous images. The forms were created with simple lines and made for increased production. This new form brought him even more fame and a great many students.

The most famous of his Manga work would be his 36 Views of Mt. Fuji. As you look at the art below, think of how this was first cut into a wood book in order to be used to make prints.

The_Apparition_of_Mt_Fuji_on_the_5th_year_of_Korei.

This was not the first instance of what might be  called comic books for Japan. In the  mid 18th Century you would find what were called Kibyoshi or yellow books. These were satirizing of politicians and society in general. They were eventually banned and the edge taken off of the wit.


Following Hokusai the West came to Japan with Commodore Perry in 1853. With him came Western art forms and influences that found their way into Japan’s own art culture.2

By the 20th Century a new art form was beginning to take shape.

Rakuten Kitazawa

Yasuji (1876-1955, maybe), his real first name, is considered by many as one of, if not the father of modern Manga due to his influence on those who came later.3  His early career was influenced by Australia artist and cartoonist, Frank Arthur Nankivell4, who would leave Japan for the US and fame in his own right working for the first successful American humor magazine, Puck5.

Kitazawa created the satirical magazine Tokyo Puck. You can see the influence Nankivell had in the name. The artwork here, especially in the panel on the right is beautiful. I might at some point devote an article per creator some day.

tokyo-puck-art

Following Kitazawa we have another “father” of Manga. One that may be closer to what the West knows of as Manga.

Osamu Tezuka

Osamu Tezuka (1928-1989) was a cartoonist, animator and more. When you think of Tezuka, think Japan’s Walt Disney6. That literally is what people have called him, and rightfully so. All I really need to say is Astro Boy.

newtreasureisland-cover.s600x600In 1944, at the age of 16, still in high school, Tezuka was drafted into WWII and work in a military factory where he would spend as much time as possible drawing, often on toilet paper. He witnessed first hand the results of the Osaka fire bombing. This would stay with him for the remainder of his life.7

Inspite of the military, he graduated and went on to medical school, but didn’t give up Manga. His first published work was The Diary of Ma-chan (1946). But then it happened. 1947 and we see New Treasure Island8 sell over 600,000 copies. Think about that. Just after WWII, devastated, and along comes something to give the people excitement. Tezuka introduces a cinematicastroboy-cover story telling style of Manga that is what we know of today.

Then it really happened. 1952 and a minor character in his Ambassador Atom series was given his own series due to young fans love of him. Astro Boy9 ran from 1952-1968. It’s doubtful many people realize what the book is about. I mean as far as those in the west. Prejudice. The rights of robots, now a sentient class, and how they are treated.

pk-shojoclubAlthough Astro Boy may be his most famous work, one work I was very interested in was Princess Knight10 (1953-1956) and its various sequels. Why? The book is recognized as perhaps the first fully realized Manga for girls, as in theme and starring, although not the actual first one. But it was the first to really make an impact on society. Truthfully, I would love to get my hands on these stories. Even more than I would the original Astro Boy.

Eventually, Tezuka turned to animation and developed the first weekly animated show in Japan, Astro Boy. All financed by him in a studio builttezuka-blackjack next to his home.

Tezuka lost his animation studio and his rights to Astro Boy. Those with the company didn’t like scraping by and thought others could do better. Years later the company closed. After it did, oddly offers came to Tezuka. And a rebirth began for him. in Blackjack11.

Now you may understand why some call Tezuka the father of, the god of Manga as well as the godfather of anime.

Now to someone working these days and thus a little shorter in biography.

Hiromu Arakawa12

Hiromu Arakawa is a manga artist responsible for what has now become a classic, Fullmetal123Fullmetal Alchemist. As the daughter of a dairy and potato farmer, Arakawa dreamt of life other than cows. But she agreed upon graduation from high school to stay and help with the farm for seven years.

Seven years later, Tokyo. She eventually became the assistant of HiroyukSilver_spoon_mangai Etō of Mahōjin Guru Guru13. Her first paid solo professional work was the award winning Stray Dog in 1999. She’s had several hits, but Fullmetal Alchemist14 is the one most noted for and the last I could find she is working on is a non-fantasy manga called Silver Spoon15. Manga is usually in the vein of fantasy, at least these days I suppose, so there was so hesitant acceptance of Silver Spoon but now it’s another hit. And that is why she’s included today. That stepping out, taking a chance, and changing the expectations of what manga can be.

 

Go back to Ireland by clicking the letter below or the link.

Ireland from Paddy to Ennis, this country has it all.

I

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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References

Return to Hokusai 1
1 http://www.katsushikahokusai.org/biography.html
 
Return to Hokusai 2
2 http://manga.about.com/od/historyofmanga/a/mangahistory1.htm
 
Return to Kitazawa
3 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rakuten_Kitazawa
4 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Arthur_Nankivell
5 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puck_%28magazine%29
 
Return to Tezuka 6-8
6 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osamu_Tezuka
7 http://tezukainenglish.com/wp/about-tezuka/about-tezukas-life/tezukas-life-1928-1957/
8 http://tezukainenglish.com/wp/osamu-tezuka-manga/manga-m-s/new-treasure-island-manga/
 
Return to Tezuka 9-11
9 http://tezukainenglish.com/wp/osamu-tezuka-manga/manga-a-h/astro-boy-manga/
10 http://tezukainenglish.com/wp/osamu-tezuka-manga/manga-m-s/princess-knight-shojo-club-manga/
11 http://tezukainenglish.com/wp/osamu-tezuka-manga/manga-a-h/black-jack-manga/
 
Return to Hirimu Arakawa
12  http://fma.wikia.com/wiki/Hiromu_Arakawa
13 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mah%C5%8Djin_Guru_Guru
14 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fullmetal_Alchemist
15 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silver_Spoon_%28manga%29

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