Tag: culture

Categories
Graphic novels and comics

Tintin and the black island (2 of 2)

Acrylic painting in progression of Tintin and the Black Island.
Acrylic painting in progression of Tintin and the Black Island.

Welcome to the second and last part of Tintin and the Black Island. The photo above shows the clouds almost completed. The yellow sky was a problem, because once on the canvas, the color became too dark as it dried. I had to find a recipe for a lighter yellow than the one on the original cover so that as it dried the color would get darker and match the color of the album.

Details of the castle of Tintin and the black island.
Details of the castle of Tintin and the black island.

The photo above shows the progression of the castle and the island, but this time with the birds as a bonus. Hergé drew a lot of black birds around the castle, which adds to the sinister look of the place. But he also thought of drawing two larger birds in the foreground, of which one seems to be heading towards Tintin.

Painting in progress of Tintin and the Black Island.
Painting in progress of Tintin and the Black Island.

The painting is progressing rapidly. I have already worked on it for about a hundred hours to get to this point. The sea has received all its touches of black paint to form the appearance of waves.

Scale copy of Tintin and the Black Island.
Scale copy of Tintin and the Black Island.

The picture above gives an idea of the size of the painting. The painting must often be placed on a table to paint the elements that require great precision.

In the background of the photo, a journalist from the Canadian news channel RDI is seen on television. He is commenting on the street blockage situation in Ottawa by truckers during the Covid-19 pandemic. The protesters fight for their rights, but do not respect the rights of the citizens of Ottawa who, for weeks, are trapped in their neighborhoods. The Canadian government finally put an end to the situation by invoking the Emergency Measures Act with the added bonus of a $306 million lawsuit brought by residents against the protesters.

24x36 picture of Tintin and the Black Island completed.
24×36 picture of Tintin and the Black Island completed.

Above is the completed painting. You will notice that the white tones of the boat differ on the back and side. There is white combined with black and a touch of yellow for the side of the boat, rather than the pure white required for the back. It took some experimenting with colors to finally realize the need for yellow.

The waves flattened by the boat are now just rounded bubbles behind the boat. However, on the sides, the appearance differs because the movement of the boat breaks the waves: Hergé therefore ensures a different treatment of the foam. He thought of everything, as usual!

It is now time to move on to another project. I am not sure yet, but I am thinking of “Blake and Mortimer” these heroes of Edgar P. Jacobs, a great master of the clear line style who initially worked with Hergé.

Glénat just published a book titled “Edgar P. Jacobs le rêveur d’apocalypses”, if you want to learn more on the subject…

Categories
Graphic novels and comics

Tintin and the black island (1 of 2).

Figurines of Tintin and Doctor Müller.
Figurines of Tintin and Doctor Müller.

In the photo above, you may have recognized Tintin dressed as a Scotsman as he faces the evil Dr. Müller. These two characters are from the comic book Tintin and the Black Island. A majority of French speakers probably read this album in their youth. And, even as adults, some of us (myself included) have revisited this work by Hergé to get a fresher look at the album.

The restrictions and confinement of the Covid-19 pandemic allowed me to devote more time to drawing and painting. I decided to copy the cover of the Tintin album “The Black Island” using acrylic. 

The scale drawing of a Tintin album is close to a 2:3 ratio and so the 24″ by 36″ format was almost a perfect fit. Below, you can compare the difference in scale between the original book and the drawing in the making.

Pencil and scale drawing of Tintin.
Pencil and scale drawing of Tintin.

A 2H graphite pencil for drawing on canvas will require less dedication when it comes to erasing the most obvious strokes and laying down the paint. The one I used (HB) was too dark and required more work than expected.

Reproducing a Tintin album leads us to progressively notice the genius of Hergé, this Belgian creator. We linger on his editorial choices, the composition, the angles. Drawing the rocks of the Black Island and their shadows is, in this respect, very revealing.

24x36 drawing of Tintin and the black island
24×36 drawing of Tintin and the black island

In the photo above, Tintin is heading towards the Black Island. We can feel him anxious, hence his slightly forward-leaning posture. He scans the island straight ahead. Hergé could have drawn him straight on his boat, confident. He chose to position him as an observer of a problematic situation. Similarly, Snowy looks at us with a worried expression and we have to repeat his expression exactly so as not to change the atmosphere of the scene.

Still missing are the black birds around the island, one of which seems to be heading straight for Tintin. You will see them in the next article: they are numerous, black and do not seem very friendly.

The sky, meanwhile, is not covered with pretty cumulus clouds but rather with streaky, tapered clouds invading the horizon, many of them dagger-like. Placed obliquely across the cover for added dynamism, Hergé also gave them a slightly circular shape.

The sky is painted first on Tintin's picture.
The sky is painted first on Tintin’s picture.

When painting the letters, one realizes the editorial choices of Hergé. Several of these features require attention, including the letter “O” which is not round but oval and leaning to the side. Also, Hergé aligns the two words of the title to the right and this has an impact when calculating the spaces between the letters.

In trying to reproduce a color exactly, one must make several attempts to discover the recipe. Often, three or four colors are combined to achieve a satisfactory result. And when we are satisfied with the tone, a surprise awaits us: once placed on the canvas, the acrylic paint changes color and becomes much darker as it dries. Trying to predict the result after drying is therefore a must.

(to be continued…)

Categories
Human behavior Updates

The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity

The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity
The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity

Looking at the title, we imagine that this book is either cynical or humorous. Anticipating the reader’s reaction, the author quickly announces where he stands: “These pages are actually the result of a constructive effort to detect, understand and perhaps neutralize one of the most powerful dark forces that impede welfare and happiness of mankind.”

Written by Carlo M. Cipolla and originally published in English in 1976, this little book became an international bestseller when published in 1988 in Italian, his native language, and integrated into a bigger publication called Allegro ma non troppo.

The book contains five basic laws of human stupidity. Each is outlined and explained. In order to take the analysis one step further, the author explains the method he uses to qualify a person’s actions. It is obvious that all may not agree with the author. The same thing happens with subjects like religion or politic. These are sensitive issues.

Distribution of stupidity

I will mention only the first law that sets the tone of the book :[My translation]: “Everyone inevitably always underestimates the number of stupid persons existing in the world.“

All men are not equal: some are stupid and others are not. Culture, race, social class, education, wealth or where you live has nothing to do with the case. Nature randomly decides. Stupidity is shared equally between men and women and uniformly distributed in a constant proportion.

The four major categories

The author divides humanity into four broad categories: idiots, intelligent people, bandits and stupid people. He considers that the most dangerous category is the one that relates to stupidity. These persons show a consistency to inflict losses to others while making no gain themselves through their own actions. In fact, most of the time, they suffer losses.

Impact on society

The degree of danger of the stupid person is function of the genetic combination (the dose of stupidity received at birth!) and the power he holds in society: [My tranlation]:” Stupid people cause losses to others without personal gain consideration. Society as a whole is impoverished.” There is more damage inflicted to society if the stupid actions are the result of a high ranking individual.

In a desire to protect the reader against associating with a stupid person, the author writes: [My translation]: ” You always hope to manipulate stupid people, and it is often achieved, to a certain extent. But because of the erratic side of their behavior, we cannot predict all the actions and reactions of stupid people and we find ourselves very quickly pulverized by the unpredictable decisions of the stupid associate.“

Composition of the population of a country on a downward slope

The final microanalysis attempt to present the composition of individuals in a country that is on a downward slope. The author believes that the percentage of stupid persons is always equal to the proportion found in countries that are on the rise. The difference is instead found in the increasing number of people being found in 1) the category of bandits with a stupid trend (those who get a minor gain while inflicting major losses to others) and 2) a similar increase in the number of idiots in this country (those who cause losses to themselves by constantly generating gains for others).

One positive effect to read and understand this book

This book is likely to reconcile yourself with the past by allowing you to put a final qualifier on the actions of one or more individuals who may have caused you problems while making no serious gain and, eventually, who suffered significant setbacks due to their inappropriate actions and behaviour toward you.

Bonus

Four blank grids are provided at the end of the book to allow the reader to put a qualifier on the actions of persons of his choice.

Original title: The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity
©1988 Società editrice Il Mulino, Bologna
©2012 Presses Universitaires de France
ISBN 978-2-13-060701-4