Frank Quitely's art

[Maximus Brockman]

Hey. Look at me. Starting my own thread. Hope you guys will support it! :D

Anyway, I did a quick search and didn't see anything about this topic, so i figured i'd ask.

What do you guys (and gals) think of Frank Quitely? Is he a big fav around here? I gotta tell you, I don't see what the big deal is. I find his work kinda boring. Maybe it's my whole negative feeling I've been having lately about realism in comics. But, I just don't get it.

I don't know about anyone else, but if I can't wrap my head around the art, I have a very hard time getting into the story. I'm a big fan of Grant Morrison. And I think the idea of an All Star Superman is cool, but I just can't get beyond Quitely's artwork. I'm probably gonna pass on this book. I know. I know. What a shocker. :eek:

Anyone else feel this way?

Feel free to call me a moron if I'm way off base here.

[Alex Dragon]

Quietly isn't a "pretty" pictures type artist. He's good at storytelling, layouts, and all the other things that go into being a good comicbok artist but he doesn't draw "pretty" people like someone like Bryan Hitch, Jim Lee or whoever. I personally don't like the way he draws faces or bodies. I'm a "pretty" pictures fan. If he's working on a book or with a writer I like his art won't turn me away but I wouldn't buy a book solely for his art.

[Astonishing X-Fan]

I really dislike his art. It's not that his characters aren't pretty, it's that his characters are UGLY. Check out his Emma Frost. YUCK.

But I'll be buying All-Star Superman anyway for Morrison. Writing first, art second IMO.

[Dawg Corleone]

Maximus, it's funny you mentioned that. I'm new to comics so names and what not don't mean alot to me (although i'm catching on quickly, a-lah johns, busiek, etc..), but when I saw the previews for All-Star, I was less than impressed (and coming from a newb, that is saying something). It just looked generic. I was really hoping the actual comic was going to be different, and it may well be, but the comments i've been reading don't give me much hope. Who knows though, maybe it will grow on me.

[Indigo Al]

I can't stand it myself. His every character looks like a pinch faced freak with some kind of bizarre sexual or bodily function fetish.

Still signing up for All Star though!

[Dawg Corleone]

after giving some of his art further review, does it seem like his characters are short and squatty? When i saw the previews in Wizard I thought it was just an awkward angle, but now i'm finding all the work i've seen of his looks that way?

[Aaron King]

I don't think his characters all look that way. Some, like Cyclops and Emma (see the cover of the first part of E is for Extinction) are elongated. His characters are always a bit surreal and I like it, having these energetic spritely sort of characters doing adult things against super-realistic backgrounds.

[Xero Kaiser]

can't say I care much for Quitely's art. there are times when it looks okay, but there are more times when I have to put the book down

[Brian R]

I like Frank's art, quite a bit. I seem to be in the minority on this, but I think he is a very good artist. Also, the fact that Morrison loves working with him is a plus whether you like his style or not, because writers always do better work when they can colaborate with someone they like and respect.

[666MasterOfPuppets]

I saw some samples of his art, and I liked it. I admit the All Star Superman promo wasn't that good, but I still like it. However, I'd need to see more of his art.

[dancj]

I think Frank Quitely is one of the best artists around. For my tastes his pictures are very pretty. Possibly not the people in them, but that's a different thing. The only other artist I can think of who can give Supes the same feeling of power is Tim Sale, and that's pretty good company to keep in my book

[Alex Dragon]

I like Frank's art, quite a bit. I seem to be in the minority on this, but I think he is a very good artist. Also, the fact that Morrison loves working with him is a plus whether you like his style or not, because writers always do better work when they can colaborate with someone they like and respect.

He's a good artist in all the other aspects other than drawing people. He's not even really bad at drawing people but with superhero comics and handling characters we've seen others draw as "pretty", "goodlooking" or "sexy" his art doesn't work for me. In my mind it's been long established that Emma Frost is beautiful and sexy yet Quietly's Emma was fairly ugly. His characters don't have the typical "heroic" proportions and bodies we're used to seeing. That would be fine I suppose if he drew them with "realistic" proprotions but they simply look strange.
When Quietly does non-superhero stuff his style works better for me. When you're doing typical superhero stuff I think there has to be a certain level of "prettiness" you need because the characters are supposed be "idealized" versions of people.

Morrison probably likes his art moreso for his storytelling abilities than the way he actually draws people. Because Morrison teams up with him so often on big projects Quietly probably has become more popular than he'd be on his own.

[Glaucon]

Some of Quitely's art from The Authority and We3 has been indelibly burned into my mind. And thats a good thing!

[aelio]

I was previously lukewarm to Quietly...until I bought Endless Nights. His eight pages of Destiny are out of this world.

[west3man]

I like Quitely's work, but only on certain characters/stories or certain KINDS of characters/stories.

I usually prefer that he leave Superman alone, but his Earth 2 work was ... It was just cool as hell. If it weren't for that, I'd have been pretty displeased to hear he would be drawing Supes. It's nice to be wrong sometimes.

I didn't care for most of his X-work, but I've gotten kinda used to it since his style worked for the Millar-Authority issues. I don't think it would've been right for Ellis's issues or for Stormwatch, though. Weird.

It has to do with my attachment to the characters, how I first saw them (I saw Quitely's Authority well before I saw Hitch's or any of the Stormwatch stuff Ellis wrote), if they're colorful characters or "realistic," blah blah blah.

He can really do some impressive work sometimes, but I prefer him on books with a somewhat perverted tone, since his characters look like they naughty.

Bah. Enough rambling. Damned Benadryl.

[Ned Leeds]

He is hit or miss for me. I love his We3 and Authority stuff. JLA Earth:2 was pretty good. But his New X-Men run sucked dead goat butt. I don't know how the same artist could be so good and bad from series to series.

[Keith_Martineau]

First time I saw Quitely's art I didn't like it. But it's REALLY grown on me since.

The argument that "all his people look the same" doesn't work, because you can say that about every artist out there. Quitely's people don't look the same.

Indeed, he does his best to taylor how he draws even a single character to the situation. Look at his sketches for Superman in the latest Wizard. He's going to draw actual posture shifts from Clark Kent to Superman. It's really quite thoughtful and detailed and I'm really looking forward to it.

[Kid Seven]

Quitely is really what they call "an artist's artist". Things like the posture shift you mention above, his mind-blowing panel experimentation in We3. Many issues of New X-men didn't work with Kordey because they were written specifically for Quitely, with shots and ideas that Morrioson knew few people besides him could execute. I love Quitely's art. One of the best in the business right now.

[Maximus Brockman]

i forgot all about we3. probably because the story concentrated mostly on the animals. i'll give you his work wasn't too bad on that.

for my tastes, though, his work is too gritty. unless this is what DC is after with their the All Star title. i just don't think it works with Superman.

have you seen any of Quitely's prelim sketches for Clark? i'm pretty sure that they have these pics in the latest ish of Wizard. granted, it might not be what he ends up looking like, but...still. Clark looks like a big slob! what's that all about?

as for my comment about art driving the story...it's kinda weird. to me, story is everthing. whether it's movies, books or newspaper articles. but for whatever reason, when it comes to comics, art comes first. if i don't enjoy the art, the story suffers. just my opinion :rolleyes:

[Grant]

Put me in the yay column for Quietely. I love his stuff. We3 is probably his best work.

[Dave Cote]

I like him as well I thought WE3 was awesome and his covers for Bite Club are what first attracted me to the series especialy issue #1 :D

[The Shadow]

I'm a fence sitter actually... if he's on a book OK... if he leaves... that's OK too.

I don't hate his stuff... I enjoyed some of his X-Men issues and We3... but his Superman looks bland and uninteresting... meh.

[Cash Lone]

He's one of my favorite artist. His style is real distinctive - no ones work looks like his (though some of the haters are prolly saying "thank god for that" :D ).

[BlueOrange25]

Quitely is one of my favourite artists along with Hitch. True, Quitely doesn't draw pretty pictures or people, but I like his style. I think the detail he puts in looks good, and I'm looking forward to seeing more of his work.

[Adam Crocker]

for my tastes, though, his work is too gritty.

Gritty? I know Quietly often seems to be a "love-or-hate" artist, but this is the first time I've ever heard his work described as gritty, so I'm genuinely curious about how. Personally, I've found his work to be very clean, if surreal in many ways. (I'll try and post fuller thoughts later.)

[Lurker]

http://forums.comicbookresources.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=13319

[Maximus Brockman]

Gritty? I know Quietly often seems to be a "love-or-hate" artist, but this is the first time I've ever heard his work described as gritty, so I'm genuinely curious about how. Personally, I've found his work to be very clean, if surreal in many ways. (I'll try and post fuller thoughts later.)

perhaps i'm using the wrong term with "gritty". maybe i should say too realistic? extreme realism? i don't mean dark, per se. although, his x-men stuff came across that way. what ever it is, to me, it doesn't translate well to Superman.

i was railing against the whole "pretty" pictures comments made. but, maybe that's what it is. that's probably where i'm getting the whole gritty thing from. i guess i enjoy the "pretty" pics vs the "not so pretty" pics. wow. what an epiphany!

there's a pic in Wizard that Quitely did of Sman, Bats and WW. again, this is only my opinion. however, they looks so...squashed. unheroic...unpretty.

[HartyPotter]

I'm not crazy about the way he draws people, but I'll check the series out regardless.

[Master Darque]

I'm in weirder boat than any of you ....I agree that quite a few of his characters can be very ugly looking ....yet strangely enough , I like his work . Emma was ugly yet sexy at the same time . I like his Superman pencils I've seen so far .... they look better than when he did Earth 2 graphic novel . Before I couldn't stand his art , but hell , Hitch had just left the Authority and Quitely was such an abrupt about face turn I was like wtF ?? But it's grown on me .....

[Taskmaster]

Personally i'd rather have Rob Liefield on the book, but that may just be me. His people are not appealing or particularly well drawn in my opinion, he makes all his characters look like escaped mental patients, especially his recent drawings of Clark Kent look horrible, he looks handicapped, not at all what I think of as Clark Kent

[Maximus Brockman]

Personally i'd rather have Rob Liefield on the book, but that may just be me.

Now that's funny! I was going to write the same thing in my earlier post, but since I'm new round here, I didn't want to ruffle any feathers.

[Brian R]

Personally i'd rather have Rob Liefield on the book, but that may just be me. His people are not appealing or particularly well drawn in my opinion, he makes all his characters look like escaped mental patients, especially his recent drawings of Clark Kent look horrible, he looks handicapped, not at all what I think of as Clark Kent

I know everyone has their own opinion, but well, yours is WRONG. ;)

[Tommy X]

I hate Quitely's art and often considered dropping New X-Men title because of it and if it had continued much longer than it did then I probably would've dropped it simply b/c I don't like the way he draws people, they look so bloated.

[OldSchoolfan]

I am not a big fan of Quietly's art. But I won't let the fact that he is drawing the book stop me from trying it out....I just don't seek out what he does.

His storytelling ability is above average...so if the writer has given him something to work with he gets the story told...and that is a big plus.

While a lot of people fault him for his character designs...I don't like them much either....I also don't care for his sense of design. The props the characters hold in his books....look like props and not the actual items to me. And while it can be good to strive for realism, I don't really care for all of the natural wrinkles in the costumes....Alex Ross can do this and the characters still look real...but when Quietly does it I feel as if I am looking at actors portraying this characters and not the real deal.

For example, the gun that Superman is holding on the cover of All Star #12 doesn't really look like a gun to me...but a toy. When Carmine Infantino drew stuff that looked like that in the sixties, I thought it looked cool, and it still looks cool now to me, but I think thats because it was consistent with the style that Infantino employed. In my view, Quietly's stuff seems to be a contradiction, the backgrounds and props look cartoony but the characters look real, to the point of having wrinkles in their costumes.

Just one view.

[argyle8410]

Hey. Look at me. Starting my own thread. Hope you guys will support it! :D

Anyway, I did a quick search and didn't see anything about this topic, so i figured i'd ask.

What do you guys (and gals) think of Frank Quitely? Is he a big fav around here? I gotta tell you, I don't see what the big deal is. I find his work kinda boring. Maybe it's my whole negative feeling I've been having lately about realism in comics. But, I just don't get it.

I don't know about anyone else, but if I can't wrap my head around the art, I have a very hard time getting into the story. I'm a big fan of Grant Morrison. And I think the idea of an All Star Superman is cool, but I just can't get beyond Quitely's artwork. I'm probably gonna pass on this book. I know. I know. What a shocker. :eek:

Anyone else feel this way?

Feel free to call me a moron if I'm way off base here.

You are not alone my friend! The main reason I dislike his art is because it is really disturbing to look at. If it wasn't for Morrison's awesome story telling, I would have dropped B&R by issue #3.

Quietly's art also rubs me the wrong way like you say and I cannot really put my finger on it.

[T.O.M.]

Even though I love his style I'll admit he doesn't always draw women that well.
His Emma Frost from the Morrison X-men run looked like she was wearing a large diaper, instead of a sexy tight provocative outfit.
And while I just love A,S,Superman, I thought he cheated a little with the vast wide open, nothingness of Metropolis.
Just a large empty looking city sometimes.
It's like you can see him drawing all his art, v-e-r-y s-l-o-w-l-y. By the waverier nature of his linework.
Love his work, but it's kind of a acquired taste, being so non-traditional.

[Tar22]

I think Quietly is the best comic-book artist working today, hands down.

I can somewhat understand people not liking the way he draws faces, but his storytelling ability and page layouts are rivaled by very few artists. He's also able to capture motion better than anyone I think I've ever seen, and his art is detailed but never bogged down by it.

I think he's brilliant.

[bongoes]

He knows how to tell a story. His fight scenes are amazing. He draws characters not as perfect specimens of the human form, but like real people. The posture is amazing. Like someone said before he's an "artist's artist." Most people don't notice all the incredible things he does, minor things like incorporating sound effects into the art in Batman and Robin, or the change in posture between Clark Kent and Superman. He's not the prettiest, but his work feels real. If you want pretty, read something by Jim Lee. (Who, by the way, I don't think is anywhere near the storyteller Quitely is.)

Oh and his name is spelled Quitely. It's a pun on "quite frankly". (It's a pseudonym.)

[Xiroteus]

His skills in any other area cannot make up for his unappealing art style. (to me of course) Been years and he art has not grown at me at all. I used to dislike JRJR's work and then for some reason I started to like it and even prefer him to always be part of a Spider-man title.

[T-Bolt]

Love his art for being different than most of the garbage out there, wish he could do a monthly, tho.

[Mayowa]

I am not a big fan of Quietly's art. But I won't let the fact that he is drawing the book stop me from trying it out....I just don't seek out what he does.

His storytelling ability is above average...so if the writer has given him something to work with he gets the story told...and that is a big plus.

While a lot of people fault him for his character designs...I don't like them much either....I also don't care for his sense of design. The props the characters hold in his books....look like props and not the actual items to me. And while it can be good to strive for realism, I don't really care for all of the natural wrinkles in the costumes....Alex Ross can do this and the characters still look real...but when Quietly does it I feel as if I am looking at actors portraying this characters and not the real deal.

For example, the gun that Superman is holding on the cover of All Star #12 doesn't really look like a gun to me...but a toy. When Carmine Infantino drew stuff that looked like that in the sixties, I thought it looked cool, and it still looks cool now to me, but I think thats because it was consistent with the style that Infantino employed. In my view, Quietly's stuff seems to be a contradiction, the backgrounds and props look cartoony but the characters look real, to the point of having wrinkles in their costumes.

Just one view.

Wow. Now, I just want to preface this by saying I'm usually not one of those who has to respond to someone saying something because he/she happens not to like something that I do, or says something I disagree with. That's silly, and I harp on too many things myself to go about that.

But really!

Just looking at All-Star Superman and 1-3 of B&R, now...are you implying that Carmine Infantino drew more cartoony looking people than Frank Quitely? Quitely, to me, draws easily some the most cartoonish looking characters and figures of any comic book artist working today that I have seen, and his characters don't look real at all, not in terms of proportion or facial features. Even his clothing detail is more stylistic than real. I mean, I can to an extent see what you're getting at, because the level of detail lends his characters far more naturalism than most comic artists can hope to achieve, but on the other had, it seems to me like saying Andy in Toy Story 3 is realistically rendered or Link in Twilight Princess is "photorealistic," which they're really not.

About the gun. I've never been so diametrically opposed to a comment in my life! The gravity gun is amazing looking. You're right, it doesn't look like any non-science fiction gun. But I'd say you're wrong to suggest it should.

[Ben D]

All-Star Superman wouldn't deserve the All-Star in the name if Frank Quitely didn't draw it.

[Action Ace]

All-Star Superman wouldn't deserve the All-Star in the name if Frank Quitely didn't draw it.

I could list a hundred comic book artists from over the years that I'd prefer to redraw All-Star Superman.

For me he's like Mike Sekowsky. I like the page and panel layouts, but the actual pictures themselves range from meh to wince inducing.

[Ben D]

I could list a hundred comic book artists from over the years that I'd prefer to redraw All-Star Superman.

For me he's like Mike Sekowsky. I like the page and panel layouts, but the actual pictures themselves range from meh to wince inducing.

I disagree. If Morrison and Quitely worked on a bible adaption for comics I might actually believe it.

[NickFury90]

I disagree. If Morrison and Quitely worked on a bible adaption for comics I might actually believe it.

I thought All-Star Superman WAS a biblical adaption!

[Ben D]

I thought All-Star Superman WAS a biblical adaption!

True. Very True.

[Action Ace]

I thought All-Star Superman WAS a biblical adaption!

It was only the New Testament.

Alan Moore and Curt Swan took care of the Old Testament.

[dancj]

Quitely, to me, draws easily some the most cartoonish looking characters and figures of any comic book artist working today that I have seen, and his characters don't look real at all, not in terms of proportion or facial features.
Quitely is far from photo-realistic, but I wouldn't call him cartoonish in the slightest.

[clownprince01]

Frank Quitely has a style you either like or dislike. There's really not much in between.

Based solely off of his work on All-Star Superman, I think Quitely's compositions are good and his images tell the story very well; but he has a bazaar off-kilter art style I just don't like. There's nothing that immediately stands out, but as a whole, his pictures just don't look right to me. I know many others like this style, but it just adds to a list of criticisms I have about All-Star.

And then there are small touches that I personally loathe such as the short cape he gives Superman or the oddly cartoonish looking objects such as the guns Superman and Lois both use in the 2nd and last issue.

[Kilgore Trout]

I think Quietly is the best comic-book artist working today, hands down.

I can somewhat understand people not liking the way he draws faces, but his storytelling ability and page layouts are rivaled by very few artists. He's also able to capture motion better than anyone I think I've ever seen, and his art is detailed but never bogged down by it.

I think he's brilliant.

Major agreement here... His page layouts and ability to portray what's on the written page astound me. Like Morrison, it looks simple, but is really the opposite. It’s why All Star was so brilliant. For my dollar, I can't remember a time when the art work AND the writing were so joyously united...

As for ugly faces... Look around the real world sometime… Check out that chick in the next cubicle, the dude in the elevator, the couple eating at the restaurant... Yeah, see what I mean?

Fact Check: I rarely see Jim Lee style women walking around, or people with scratchy lines on their faces and clothes.

[Ben D]

I thought All-Star Superman WAS a biblical adaption!


It was only the New Testament.

Alan Moore and Curt Swan took care of the Old Testament.

So I'm a Christian then? :tongue:

[jesse_custer]

All-Star Superman's storytelling would suffer without Quitely. I don't care if someone thinks he draws retarded people. Maybe he does, and I have to say that's pretty damn interesting. But the point is the storytelling.

I think this is the fairest statement in the thread:


Quietly isn't a "pretty" pictures type artist. He's good at storytelling, layouts, and all the other things that go into being a good comicbok artist but he doesn't draw "pretty" people like someone like Bryan Hitch, Jim Lee or whoever.

[OldSchoolfan]

Wow. Now, I just want to preface this by saying I'm usually not one of those who has to respond to someone saying something because he/she happens not to like something that I do, or says something I disagree with. That's silly, and I harp on too many things myself to go about that.

But really!

I don't have a problem with you responding to what I said one way or another, I actually kind of like it. The tone of what you are saying suggests to me that you believe this is a simple exchange of points of view. So, keep in mind I am sharing to clarify what I think....not to prove anything or change any ones mind.


Just looking at All-Star Superman and 1-3 of B&R, now...are you implying that Carmine Infantino drew more cartoony looking people than Frank Quitely? Quitely, to me, draws easily some the most cartoonish looking characters and figures of any comic book artist working today that I have seen, and his characters don't look real at all, not in terms of proportion or facial features. Even his clothing detail is more stylistic than real. I mean, I can to an extent see what you're getting at, because the level of detail lends his characters far more naturalism than most comic artists can hope to achieve, but on the other had, it seems to me like saying Andy in Toy Story 3 is realistically rendered or Link in Twilight Princess is "photorealistic," which they're really not.

What I am getting at with the example of Carmine Infantino is that the look of his stuff is consistent with in the world he is illustrating. Infantino's people look like they belong on the "canvas" of the world he created. I could have used other artists as an example but he was the one that came to mind first. Quitely's stuff, to me at least, looks like the characters are actors and the world is a set of props. The realism in the characters comes from the fact that he will draw folds in the costumes that the characters wear and that makes them look like actors wearing costumes and not the real deal.


About the gun. I've never been so diametrically opposed to a comment in my life! The gravity gun is amazing looking. You're right, it doesn't look like any non-science fiction gun. But I'd say you're wrong to suggest it should.

I am glad you like the gun. You realize that this is a matter of taste and visual interpretation? To me that gun looks like something I would buy a kid for a water fight.....

[dancj]

I think this is the fairest statement in the thread:
It's not unfair, but personally I'd say Quitely's art is very pretty. The guy is an incredible storyteller, but almost any of his panels is beautiful in its own right too.

[dancj]

So I'm a Christian then? :tongue:
I guess that would make me a Jew

[42n8s1]

FQ puts out beautiful stuff.
He never disappoints IMHO.

[Mr. Holmes]

FQ is certainly IMO the definitive artist to Morrison's writing. It's perfect.

[Alex Dragon]

It's not unfair, but personally I'd say Quitely's art is very pretty. The guy is an incredible storyteller, but almost any of his panels is beautiful in its own right too.

His art is great in all other regards other than drawing what some would consider "pretty" people. And there are times he actually draws pretty people too. There are some drawing of Lois in ALL STAR SUPERMAN that Lois looks very pretty in. But it's not always consistant and his male characters often look strange compared to what we're used to seeing in superhero comics. With Superhero comics we're used to seeing handsome/pretty people with defined curves/muscles and Quietly doesn't do that.

There are other great comicbook artists that fall into that same catagory. I'd say Frank Miller, Joe Kubert, John Romita Jr and Mike Mignola are similar in that they are great storytellers, layout, pacing, body language guys who draw in a style that don't do much for me. I think all these guys are great comicbook artists but I think their art works better on non-superhero books.

[dancj]

His art is great in all other regards other than drawing what some would consider "pretty" people.
I don't even get the "ugly people" argument. He's not a photo-realistic artist - and like all artists who aren't photo-realistic if you translate their art into the real world literally the people would look like freaks. It would be no better with Jim Lee's art for the same reason - yet loads of people who complain about Quitely's "ugly peopl" seem to love Jim Lee.

[Alex Dragon]

I don't even get the "ugly people" argument. He's not a photo-realistic artist - and like all artists who aren't photo-realistic if you translate their art into the real world literally the people would look like freaks. It would be no better with Jim Lee's art for the same reason - yet loads of people who complain about Quitely's "ugly peopl" seem to love Jim Lee.

There are instances where I think Quietly draws attractive people. Like I mentioned before I think some of his drawings of Lois in ALL STAR were pretty. What Quietly tends to do is draw "doughy" people. Many other artists tend to draw very chiselled features and very defined muscles. He also doesn't always draw typical superhero anatomy. He puts lots of extra lines in the face that sometimes age the character and makes them look kinda "blubbery". The way he draws lips on his men always looks a bit off to me. He often draws costumes with a "droopy" look to them as opposed to being skin tight like many other artists do. Lastly, many of his women look skinny without the curves we're used to seeing in superhero comics.

In spite of that, i still think he's a great artist. I just don't think he has a style that works well with superheroes the way fans have come to expect to see them. His art for better or warse doesn't conform to that mold. I've always liked his art better on non-superhero stuff. I feel he's better at drawing "regular" people than drawing "pretty/handsome" superheroes.

[Mr. Holmes]

I was going to say that myself. Quietly draws an uber-cute Lois.