EXTRACTS: Illustrators issue 17 © 2016 The Book Palace (96 PAGES in Full edition)

1 Cover Image: Mort Künstler Illustrators The Book Palace Jubilee House Bedwardine Road Crystal Palace London SE19 3AP Email: IQ@bookpalace.com Web: www.bookpalace.com Contact GW: gw@bookpalace.com Tel: 020 8768 0022 (From overseas +44 20 8768 0022) Publisher: Geoff West Editor & Art Director: Peter Richardson Deputy Editor: Diego Cordoba Layouts for all features (except Zac Retz) by Diego Cordoba Consultant Editor: David Ashford Featured Writers: Diego Cordoba Website: Paul Tanner Subscriptions & Distribution: David Howarth Advertising: IQ@bookpalace.com ISSUE SEVENTEEN EDITORIAL The opinions expressed in illustrators are those of the writers, and are not necessarily those of the editor and publishers. The accuracy of the authentication of all images is the responsibility of the contributors. CONTENTS 2 One of the most iconic US artists; his career is explored in depth by Diego Cordoba. 94 36 The Filipino artist, whose comic art fuelled the movie industry half a century before DC and Marvel. Francisco Coching Mort Künstler 84 Zac Retz There was more to Doré's art than being the most influential illustrator of his day as Diego Cordoba reveals. 62 Gustave Doré The Bookshelf Enter the engaging world of one of the hottest young talents making waves across a variety of media. You cannot have grown up in the fifties and sixties, without seeing Mort Künstler's art in the men's magazines, and in the seventies not seeing the many movie posters he did for some of the most popular films of the era. His paintings were the stuff of intrigue, action and downright terror as they reached out at you from spinner racks and news vendor's shelves, betokening worlds of sweat-soaked sex and violence. His move from being the doyen of men's pulp-fiction to a lauded and highly respected painter of America's post-colonial history, is brought vividly to life in Diego Cordoba's engaging narrative. Viewing Francisco Coching's art is akin to witnessing the best of the golden age of US comics synthesised through the hand of a master draughtsman and designer. The irony is that although Francisco Coching was a giant on the Filipino comics scene, unlike many of the artists that followed in his footsteps, he concentrated his output entirely on his domestic market and never worked beyond the shores of his beloved homeland. We have examined the work of Gustave Doré in an earlier feature, but an in- depth appraisal of this extraordinary visionary was long overdue. Diego Cordoba adds flesh to the story of this prodigious talent and reveals that, although Doré was an undisputed master of his craft, he still had to overcome a degree of professional jealousy from his peers and contemporaries when he turned his attention to the world of salon painting. The art of Zac Retz is charming and entrancing. The warmth of his characters is neatly offset by his ability to imbue his environments with a real sense of scale and menace. He is very typical of a new breed of illustrator: artists that don't just work for hire, but use social media to sell their own ideas and create a market for those ideas. With Zac's art, there is never any shortage of ideas. Do check out our book reviews page—as all the books we are looking at in this issue will probably be out of stock within a short space of time. And lastly, don't forget to let us know what you think about illustrators and which artists you would like to see us feature. We love hearing from you! illustrators ISBN 978-1-907081-39-2 ISSN 2052-6520 Issue Number 17 Published Winter 2016 Copyright © 2016 by The Book Palace Ltd. All text and artwork copyright is vested with the respective creators and publishers. None of the material within these pages may be reproduced without the written consent of illustrators or the aforementioned copyright holders. The images reproduced within these pages are for research purposes and all efforts have been made to ensure their historical accuracy. Illustrators is published quarterly Back issues £20 each plus postage 4 issue subscriptions UK £55 POST FREE includes 4 free digital issues EU/USA £70 POST FREE includes 4 free digital issues ROW £75 POST FREE includes 4 free digital issues Available in the USA from budplant.com Trade Orders : IQ@bookpalace.com Printed in China by Prolong Press Ltd High art—low print runs—buy now!