Sometimes I get some interesting ideas while shaving. Maybe it’s because early in the morning the cares of the day haven’t yet pummelled my brain into submission. But, this morning I realized the graphic novel sensibility, or at least the drawings-as-imagery-deeply-integrated-with-text sensibility - drawings that go beyond basic plans that is - I was talking about in yesterday’s post has been around for a long time, and was most prevalent in the pre-1970s world. The thing is, it wasn’t all packaged in a way that shouts, ‘graphical non-fiction here’. It was spread around and inserted here-and-there as needed. No doubt it was used more frequently then than today because photos were likely more expensive to publish than drawings, so drawings to the rescue.
Look at those drawings by Earl Smallshaw in his Tenement article that appeared in the Nov '61 issue of Railroad Model Craftsman. This particular article I had included in the reading list, but removed it in favour of his Perkins Produce project. That was before I read that Mr. Smallshaw was one of Rod Stewart’s influences. I’d guess it was some of Mr. Smallshaw’s work from the Fifties that were influential, and not Perkins from the Seventies. Maybe Tenement was the one. Sometimes it’s just one article that flips a switch in someone.
Hmmmm, I think Tenement doesn't go quite as far as I'm thinking graphics-wise. I recall some others that I need to dig up and scan.
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