Many condolences to the family of artist Darwyn Cooke, who (unexpectedly
to fans) passed away yesterday from cancer. He was 53. Cooke was a superstar
creator with a future-retro style that was all his own--a style I loved.
I met Cooke for the first and only time last year at the
2015 Cincinnati Comic Expo. The only book I had taken for any artist to sign
was Cooke’s DC: New Frontier Absolute Edition, a
story about DC Comics heroes taking place in the 1950s. The above photo is
Cooke signing my copy, including a Green Lantern head sketch that I will
treasure forever.
I told him how much I appreciated his work, and the
illustrations he did for the reissues of Richard Stark’s Parker crime novels. I asked him if he would make his way through
all of Stark’s novels—he said he probably wouldn’t live that long. How unfortunately
prophetic that statement seems in hindsight. Did he know then? Darwyn Cooke is
gone too soon, but the man generated a body of work to be proud of. A true
artist and auteur.
Here are some samples of Cooke's art:
Yep, sad to hear about his passing. Loved his style. There's a lot of photorealism out there today. It has it's place, but that guy could put a lot of meaning in his drawings.
ReplyDeleteHave you seen any of his moody, black & white charcoal work? I'd put his Batman up against anyone's. Great stuff.
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