Chris Ware: Sequential imagery

I have been so wrapped up in Chris Wares work lately. I love the compositions of his sequential imagery. Although Chris uses text within his narratives it always seem like a secondary source in the reading of the story. His use of soft expression and gentle suggestive images lead the reader from page to page in a softly flowing way.
However, as easy as they are to read visually, I find myself constantly intrigued, wanting to revisit the pages over and over.
At times Chris uses overlapping sequences, for example in the picture attached of the mother in a panic, she is shown with four arms. This simple addition is essential in expressing the sheer panic in the mother, heightening the intensity of the moment.
On the same page an image of the mother in shock is repeated, the only change being the speech bubbles surrounding it. This allows the feeling of shock/horror/panic to be prolonged and followed through from one stage of a sequence to another.

Chris Ware uses flat and simplified shapes and forms to construct his characters and environments. Colours are kept matt, reflect the basic construction of the characters.

Ware, C (2010) Lint, Canada, Drawn & Quarterly

Overlapping Portraits/Imagery

I’ve been looking at overlapping imagery and it’s place within sequential imagery. This image is an experiment with colour and the possibilities of composition with overlapping images.

Shaun Tan: cloud formations

The cloud formations in Shaun Tans book The Arrival are possibly one of my favourite of the illustrations from this wordless picture book. They allow the reader a few moments to pause. To contemplate the beauty a natural creation. Yet it reminds us that these forms which we take for granted, are never the same, are continuously changing shape and consistency. I think these images are stunning and a beautiful piece of illustration in a silent visual narrative.

Jan 2014
Although I have changed direction from researching sequential art into biographical, documentary and portrait illustrations, I still feel that Shaun Tan’s work is highly influential. With this art piece, I realized that there is a beauty in the calm of a moment, how some details which may not seem so obvious can form an essential transition between one moment and another. These “calm moments” within a collection of illustrations on the one subject allow a viewer to contemplate and absorb the information which is being portrayed visually. The delicateness of the soft changes in form is a theme which seemed to stay with me throughout my research and so I still consider this post to be of relevance in the beginning of my research.

Tan, S (2007) The Arrival, Australia, Hodder Childrens Books