MetaMaus (6)

For this week’s assignment I decided to read MetaMaus by Art Spiegelman. One thing that really stood out to me starting this was “Write what you know.” Right away, I could tell that this was going to get really personal and emotional. Throughout this book we clearly see how Spiegelman almost absorbs his parents' trauma. When Spiegelman was growing up, in some way shape or form, he was always reminded about the holocaust. On page 201 we see how depressed Spiegelman really is in the comic strip. Frame by frame he talks about the death total during the Holocaust, his mother’s suicide, time flies, he rejects film offers and etc. Along with the dark illustrations the viewer can clearly see how depressed he is and how he's being haunted by the past. As I was reading this book, I was really moved by his rough sketches and ideas. When I was looking at his sketches, I could see the pain and anger within every illustration. One thing I found interesting was the way he utilized the red drafting pencil, along with the black ink. When he is inking over the red sketch, you can see he intentionally keeps some of the red exposed and untouched. Almost as If he’s treating it like an accent color. When comparing the sketches to the finals, the sketches are more emotional with the red drafting pencil. For most of the sad and emotional parts he referenced his family, you can see a shift in the line weight, the straight lines become unsteady, and the value changes. I was both shocked and amazed when I learned he got his inspiration for Tom and Jerry. It really shows how your childhood and memories inspire you. After reading this amazing book, I’ve come to the conclusion I admired Spiegelman. He was brave enough to share a topic that was really personal and emotional for him. Especially creating this comic during a challenging time for comic book artists! (The push for  “mainstream characters”)

I really enjoyed reading MetaMaus! I thought it was absolutely brilliant because you can clearly see how one's struggles, and also one’s trauma can affect their creative process. As said before, I really admired Spiegelman! Before reading this I didn’t really know anything about him or his comics. I thought the format of this book made his story even more emotional. 

After reading Meta Maus,  I kept thinking about the brief introduction to this week's assignment. Throughout art history we see numerous art movements, along with new unique styles being utilized. But as time continues some of those come and go and we start seeing like the introduction of “mainstream” art. I feel like this introduction really snaps things into perspective and how difficult the “art market” can be for artists and creators. Today, I feel like the art being produced is almost identical. We don't see that alternative art anymore or anything of that nature. That’s what I find kind of disappointing because everything that falls under “alternative,” like underground comics, is nothing but refreshing!  It's creative, different, and it’s simply original! I truly feel bad for artists and creators that have difficulty keeping up with the new. Especially knowing how difficult the process is to create a comic book!