History of Comics (Report)

7/22/2019 History of Comics (Report)

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HISTORY OF COMICSTechnical Report

Ameer Hamza Khan

Hammad Aslam

Hammad Hassan

Zeeshan Nayyar


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1 | H I S T O R Y O F C O M I C S

TABLE OF CONTENTS

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

1. INTRODUCTION...32. ELEMENTS OF COMICS.....43. EMERGENCE AND EVOLUTION...5

3.1. COMIC ART IN EGYPTIAN CIVILIZATION....53.2. COMIC ART IN GREEK CIVILIZATION...63.3. COMIC ART IN OLMEC CIVILIZATION.63.4. COMIC ART IN ROMAN CIVILIZATION73.5. COMIC ART IN THE EARLY EUROPEAN CIVILIZATION..7

4. ADVANCEMENTS84.1. THE PIONEER AGE ...84.2. THE PLATINUM AGE..94.3. THE GOLDEN AGE..104.4. THE ATOM AGE...104.5. THE SILVER AGE..114.6. THE BRONZE AGE...124.7. THE MODERN AGE.13

5. COMICS OTHER THAN COMIC BOOKS..146. COMICS IN PAKISTAN.157. REFERENCES..16


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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Comics have a concrete history and the forms and shapes, it has evolved in;clearly represents how flexible and diverse it is. The initial purpose of comics was

to spread awareness about religious and social issues to those who werent

educated and didnt know how to read and write. Different civilizations had

their distinct styles, interpretation of context, colour palettes, motives and values

which were clearly reflected through their figures.

Later, comics began to be recognized as an entirely different field of art and

new advancements were made in its form and style. These advancements

included a series of different eras which are discussed in this report.

Today, Comics are the biggest ingredient of the advertising industry. Comics are

anxiously looked forward to by millions of people everyday. They are printed in

daily newspapers, magazines, student blogs and forum, Social media

(Facebook, Twitter etc) and even TV. Its importance and vastness can be clearly

highlighted by the fact that the comics are now professionally taught in many

Arts institutions throughout the world.


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1. INTRODUCTIONComics are the visual mediumused to express ideas using images,

often combined with text or other

visual information. Comics

frequently take the form of

contrasted sequences of panels of

images. Often textual devices such

as speech balloons, captions, and

sound effects indicating dialogue,narration, or other information.

Comics are also called the ninth art, in which images are put in line in order to

create a story. Comics are not necessarily funny stories but to all uses of this

medium including those which are far from comic. The word Comics derives

from the Greek word meaning pertaining to comedy.


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2. ELEMENTS OF COMICSThe purpose of comics is definitely

to describe or tell something.Based on the purpose and all

objectives, the comics have two

key elements used to define them

as an art form:

Combination Of Both WordsAnd Images

Placement Of Images InSequential Order

The images that are usually laid out

within borders are known as

panels. Sometimes comics have

only one panel but in most cases

there are more; named as Comic

strips. The panel is the individual

frame; containing one single

drawing that depicts a single

moment. However, comic strips are

generally seen in newspapers; typically consisting of three to four panels.

Every comic has a text to rely on its story. Texts use ambiguity, symbolism and

literary techniques like, style, layout, theme, dialogues etc. The layout and the

style make every comic distinct.

There are different tools, representations or conventions used for representing

speech and thoughts of characters of comics. These

conventions are:

Speech Balloons or Bubbles Thought Balloons or Bubbles Scream Balloons or Bubbles Narrative Box Captions or words Underneath the Image


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3. EMERGENCE AND EVOLUTIONComics in form of Sequential art have existed for many centuries. The creationof a train of images, put one after the other; to create a story has a very vast

history. Comics started thousands of years ago and existed through several eras

and civilizations. They are as followed:

Egyptian Civilization

Greek Civilization

Olmec Civilization

Roman Civilization

Early European Civilization

3.1.Comic art in Egyptian CivilizationEgyptians used hieroglyphs which is a formal writing system that combined

graphic and alphabetic elements. Egyptians used hieroglyphs for religious

literature on papyrus and wood. History recognizes the first art piece of

sequential art (comics) which was the Books of the dead created about 3000

BC in ancient Egypt. Ancient Egyptians wanted their dead upon their leave to

the underworld to carry a book with them, a book with tips and advice on

how to manage their living

down there. They were full

of images that illustrated

the text and which were

mandatory. The images

were so important that

often the text was cut to fit

the space available under

them.


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3.2.Comic art in Greek CivilizationIn the ancient Greek architecture,

temples and public buildings

possessed the Frieze (Wall Painting).

The frieze was a wide section made of

marble on top of the walls (just

underneath the roof). Friezes were

created to both, decorate and

illustrate stories of history. Friezes have

survived in many ancient Greek and

later on Roman buildings; the Frieze on

the Acropolis of Athens being the

most famous. Arch of Galerius and

Rotunda is another example of comic art from Greek civilization. It contains

sculptured sequential arts on Arch. These sequential arts show the stories of

attacks, sacrifices and many more events of military campaign in the Greek era.

3.3.Comic art in Olmec CivilizationOlmec Civilization is the first

major Mexican civilization.

Sculptural art was the

specialty of the people of

Olmec era. The Olmec were

very talented artists and

sculptors who are today best

remembered for their

monumental stonework and

cave paintings. Their work had

sequence and story of historic

events. Many sequential

murals, Made by Olmec; have

been discovered in caves and ancient buildings of Mexico.


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3.4.Comic art in Roman CivilizationIn Rome, Trajan's Column is anearly surviving example of a

narratives told through the use

of sequential pictures. It is a

monument column raised in the

honour of the Roman emperor;

Trajan. A continuous frieze winds

up around the column from the

base to the top.

3.5.Comic art in Early European CivilizationRomanesque art refers to the art

of Europe from 11th to 13thcentury. It contains Sculptures,

Handicrafts, murals and small

Paintings etc. All these are mostly

sequential and explain stories,

events of early European history.

These are mostly found on ancient

buildings, churches, monuments

etc.


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4. ADVANCEMENTSAfter the evolution and start of comic art, the World history of comics could bedivides in many ages or eras. In these ages, the name Comic Artor Comics

originated which was earlier;Sequential Art. The comics that described history

and stories of past on walls of monuments and ancient buildings started coming

in form of books. In these books, the stories were different from those in the past.

Comics were being used for entertainment in these ages and they still are.

These ages included:

The Pioneer Age The Platinum Age The Golden Age The Atom Age The Silver Age The Bronze Age The Modern Age

4.1. The Pioneer Age (1500-1890 A.D)The pioneer age is the age in

which major events like wars and

battles were influenced by

widely circulated comic

representations of the players

and situations involved. They

followed a successful

propaganda campaign using

cartoons and comics. Art

collectors, comic fans and

historians were becoming active

and started reading comics

widely.


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4.2.The Platinum Age (1894-1938 A.D) - TheBeginning of Comic Books

It was in the Platinum Age that

modern comics initiated. The comics

started to come in paper and book

form. The stories of fictional or self-

made characters were used in

comics. The comics were being used

for entertainment purposes. The

Yellow Kid (1894)in Hogans Alleywasone of the first fictional characters to

be used repeatedly in the single panel

comic. This gave birth to further ideas

andc as a result; characters like Little

Nemo were created. Storytelling

through drawn characters grew fromsingle-panels into a series, or strip, to

depict more complicated plots.

Characters started to become

popular, motivating the sale of the

publications they appeared in, also

encouraging the creation of more

characters.


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4.3.The Golden Age (1938-1951 A.D) - Superheroesand Word War Comic Books

The classic literature was also told in a comic book format; such as The ThreeMusketeers, Ivanhoe and Robin Hood. They all had colorful costumes and

motive of war against crime

and criminals. These were the

patriotic days of World War II.

They fought separately and

sometimes, also banded

together as The Justice

Society of America, The All-

Winners Squad and The

Seven Soldiers of Victory.At

their height, superhero

comics were selling up to a

million copies per month. It

was a good time to be a

hero. Then the war ended,

and the heroes who had

kept the world safe for democracy found themselves without worthy enemies to

fight. The heroes stumbled doing the best they could, until about 1949, but their

days were clearly numbered.

4.4.The Atom Age (1952-1955 A.D)End of ComicBooks?

Fredric Wertham M.D wrote his book Seduction of Innocent (1954) whichappeared as the one of the darkest moments of the Comic Book History.

Welham wanted to blame all the industry for all forms of misbehaving and

criminal behavior in children. This book led to neighborhood book burning

gatherings which destroyed countless numbers of comic books. However, comic

books survived this period and a censorship authority was established in 1954;


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Comics Code Authority (CCA), a self-policing and censorship code for the

comic book industry. It wasnt a perfect system but it was sufficient for the

survival of comic books. After this entire struggle, the comic industry started to

become stable.

4.5.The Silver Age (1956-1970 A.D) Revival ofComic Industry

Comic Industry realized that

it was the right time to bring

back the superheroes of

yesteryear. This time they

planned not only to bringthem back to also to give

them a modern tint. They

reintroduced The Sultan of

Speed, The Vizier of

Velocity and The Flash.

After three more try-outs in

SHOWCASE, the Flash

graduated to his own

starring book, and the SilverAge of Comics was born.

Hawkman, Green Lantern,

and the Atom: All were

reborn. And then, inevitably,

subscribing to the theory that if one is good, more is better, they all met in the

pages of The Justice League of America, the greatest gathering of heroes. the

world had ever known. All these were assets of DC Comics Company but at their

competition; Marvel line of comics wasnt slow to pick up on this new trend.

Since their opponents had successful comic book, Marvel also needed one as

Superheroes of DC comics were powerful and without weaknesses. Marvel

introduced Superheroes with weaknesses and launched The Fantastic Four. The

Fantastic Four was a family. They fought along with each other and had no

secret identity. The Fantastic Four were a smash. Before long, Marvel introduced

such icons as Spider-Man, Thor, the Hulk, Iron Man, and the X-Men. Comics


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became trendy with the college crowd, and, by about 1964, comic collecting

became an increasingly organized hobby. The Silver Age was in full swing.

Batmania, a brief but intense national obsession ignited in 1966 with the

premiere of the Batman TV show. It helped to kick the Silver Age into high

gear. Superman starred in his own Broadway musical, and superhero cartoonsrocked the airwaves on Saturday mornings. It was a good time to be a comic

character, as publishers, licensors and merchandisers were finding out. Its not as

easy to precisely define the end of the Silver Age. For many, however, the Silver

Age ended in 1973, when Gwen Stacy, Spider-Mans girlfriend and long-time

love interest, was killed. Not a hoax, not a dream, not an imaginary story. For the

first time, death was real in comics. For the first time, no one was safe. Happily

ever after was no longer a guarantee. It was the end of innocence. It was the

end of the Silver Age.

4.6.The Bronze Age (1970-1985 A.D) Development of Comic Industry

The end of Silver Age didnt mean that

comics came to a crashing halt. The Bronze

Age retained many of the conventions of the

Silver Age, with traditional superhero titles

remaining the mainstay of the industry.However, a return of darker plot elements

and more socially relevant storylines (similar

to those found in the Golden Age of Comic

Books) featuring real-world issues, such as

drug use, alcoholism, and environmental

pollution, began to flourish during the period.

Green Lantern, Green Arrow, Captain

America, Thor and Batman; Dark Knight is

some of the renowned comics of Bronze

Age. The end of the Bronze Age is debated,

and some do not believe it ended at all. Like

the beginning, the exact date is uncertain, and not every single comic book

may be said to have exited the Bronze Age at exactly the same date. But one

commonly used ending point for the Bronze Age is the 1985-1986 time frames.


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4.7.The Modern Age (1986-Present)In this period, comic book

characters generally became

darker and more psychologically

complex, creators became better-

known and active in changing the

industry, independent comics

flourished, and larger publishing

houses became more

commercialized. An alternate

name for this period is the Dark Age

of Comic Books, due to the

popularity and artistic influence of

grim titles, such as Batman: The Dark

Knight Returns and Watchmen.

Fantasy, horror, and "sophisticated suspense is promoted through comics of the

modern age. Today, the comics industry is as diverse as its ever been. Readers

and collectors can find comics to fit any taste, including crime, horror, western,

romance and even superheroes. Major bookstores carry comic books now, and

their offshoots, the graphic novel. Even more importantly, comics and comic

characters are entering peoples everyday lives through the medium of big-budget movies, which are increasingly drawing inspiration and subject matter

from the four color page. In just the last few years, weve seen multi-million dollar

films focusing on the titles of such superstars as Spider-Man, The X-Men, Batman,

the Hulk, Daredevil and Elektra, Superman and Wonder Woman. In addition,

films such as The Road to Perdition, League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, V for

Vendettaand From Hellare all based on comics and graphic novels. It wasnt

that long ago that any adult or middle aged person couldnt be seen reading a

comic book in public. Anyone seen was looked on as stupid and slow. Public

mockery was the price one often paid for indulging in these four-color fantasies.

Now, with film, TV, and the popular media making comics trendy, its cool to

be a geek. Comics have finally emerged in a new way and the fans of comics

are happier than ever before.


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5.COMICS OTHER THAN COMICBOOKS

Comics other than comic books nowadays are available in newspaper,monthly and weekly digests, magazines, social media etc. These comics have

objectives of raising political, social, motivational and educational issues. These

comics also have the motive of entertainment mostly. Nowadays, comics on

Facebook (a social media site) are very famous. These are known by the name

of Facebook memes.Comics can be molded in any way according the time

and it certainly has no boundaries of creativity and experimentation. This proves

that comics have progressed at the same pace as the world.


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6. COMICS IN PAKISTANThe scope of comics in Pakistanhas always been limited to the

political ones. But since the early

2000s, comics have been redefined

and many other forms have taken

birth in Pakistan. These forms raise

social, societal and many other

issues. Famous comics of Pakistan

include:

Commander safeguard Burkha Avenger Ool Jalool

Facebook Memes are also very famous in Pakistan.


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REFERENCES

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_comics http://www.randomhistory.com/1-50/033comic.html http://inventors.about.com/od/cstartinventions/a/comics.htm http://www.comic-art.com/history/history1.htm http://www.thecomicbooks.com/old/Platinum.html http://www.infoplease.com/spot/comicstimeline.html http://www.mania.com/history-comic-book-

superheroes_article_116423.html

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History of Comics (Report)