The Ben Holmes Batman

I've been following a new site as of late and it's called "MoviePilot" (You can access it through the link here.)  It's useful beacause I've found it's added to the conversation for the upcoming Batman v Superman  movie.  Although, I have to say, a lot of it's interests do seem to be all over the map.  That being said, I urge you to give it a try.

I'm glad I did for I wouldn't have discovered the art of Ben Holmes.

Holmes is an artist based in the UK and he recently sampled his wares on the MoviePilot site.  He explains his love for pencil drawings and his journey of discovery into watercolors.  He seems to have a bit of an abstract sensibility and he's pursued his passion for film in the form of self stylized movie posters.

Naturally, this being a Batman page, I've decided to critique his work of the Caped Crusader.  

If you go to the Holmes page you'll see he employs a technique where his subjects tend to explode or shatter into pieces.  Seen below in his "Nightcrawler" effort. 

He doesn't use it for all his work but he "artfully" deploys it for dramatic effect in some of them.

The shattered or explosive effect speaks to the nature of his subjects.  Perhaps it is revelatory to the inner demons that haunt his subjects.

To say Batman has inner demons is to state the obvious.

When I first saw the Holmes Batman image I thought of one of Batman's most iconic antagonists, "Two Face."  Two Face wears his persona overtly (albeit not deliberately) while Bruce Wayne's is hidden behind the cowl.  Both have issues with anger management but Batman has managed to separate his bitterness from turning him to the dark side, to be a force for good.  

At least most of the time.

So lets talk about the image itself and how it reflects on Batman.

Immediately you get the sense that Batman's anger is bursting from his psyche.  It is explosive in nature and barely to be contained.   In fact, you could argue it is the repressed nature of Bruce Wayne yearning to be exposed.  Perhaps a better word would be "revealed."

Perhaps the image is a window into the mind of the Batman/Bruce Wayne character.  Perpetually unresolved.  At once at peace with each other and relentlessly at war with the other.

The shattered splinters evoke a wound that never heals and the use of just black and white reveals the bipolar relationship between the two identities.  Batman is often portrayed living in a black and white world.


Good versus evil.


That is a rash generalization.  I think ardent fans know that Batman is a very complex character and his capacity for good often outweighs his darker nature.


I'm sure Ben Holmes is aware of this also but he has chosen to illustrate the face of Batman we are most familiar with.  Torn, angry, and a force of nature whose presence is at once both unstable and frenzied.  Holmes has captured the Dark Knight as Batman has desired to be seen but also disclosed the side Batman he struggles with every day.


Thanks for the work Mr. Holmes.  I hope your sister thought it as "cool" as you intended it.


For more of  the work of Ben Holmes (especially you Spiderman fans) you can follow the link below.


http://www.bjwholmes.com/

p.s. Ben, more Batman please!

Soviet Style Robins? The Iconic Batman Art of the New 52 #9

In this entry of the Iconic Batman we'll examine an image taken from Batman and Robin #12.  It depicts the various Robins as they stand in awe of the heroic actions of their mentor, Batman.  The Caped Crusader has just rocketed off to intercept a missle launched by the evil doer, Terminus.

What I find fascinating is the posture held by all the Robins.  They are all in profile as they gaze off into the sky.  (In the foreground is the current Robin, Damien Wayne; followed by the Tim Drake "Red Robin"; Jason Todd as "Red Hood" and finally by Dick Grayson, the original Robin, as "Nightwing".)  Their profiles betray the inspiration they are getting from Batman's heroic act and they are joined as one as former and current students of the maestro. 

So, how do they all fit in as "Soviet style"?

The use of the profile is a long held device of the Communist propaganda machines.  The subjects eyes aren't fixed on the viewer but off into the unseen distance as if they are looking far into the future of brighter and better world.  The subjects are always standing together because they are of single purpose and share a common belief.

The profile posture is also used to convey inclusiveness.  In the above North Vietnamese wartime poster a smiling "Uncle Ho" looks beneficently down his female charges.  All are equal in the war effort and all have a role to play for the greater good of the party and society.  In the "Robin" panel above all are equal in the eyes of Batman as they share a common bond to defeat evil.  The "Robins" aren't always on the same page and often there are jealousies involved.  But not when they are bonded by a single cause as inspired by Batman.

 

There is often a certain dynamic of motion displayed in these propaganda posters.  In the above World War 2 Soviet era poster the soldiers in the foreground move to the front with grim yet determined purpose.  Their weapons are at the ready as the tanks spew fire.  Hovering above them are the ghosts of their forebears, generations of which march alongside them  The message here is that the Soviet soldier of the day fights for the cause just as their ancestors did.

While there is practically no motion in the Robin panel, aside from the urgency of the fist wrapped in the cape of Damien Wayne in the foreground, we still get a sense of generations fighting for the same cause.  Dick Grayson as Nightwing stands tallest amongst the Robins and they follow in size and experience in descending order before him.

Batman is an inspirational figure and the Robins stand at rapt attention.  I would find it hard to believe that Batman or his alter ego, Bruce Wayne, would embrace any aspect of the Communist ideal or the Soviet system.  But he knows heroism when he sees it and it is reflected in the eyes of the young men he often leads into battle.  As for Dick, Jason, Tim and Damien they not only gaze upon the man that is their inspiration but the father figure that has lifted them up to behold a brighter future.

Art of the New 52: The Iconic Batman #8

In this ongoing series I've attempted to look at the story behind the pictures.  Not just the narrative itself but the symbolism behind the imagery.  What does the art suggest?  Is it metaphorical or analogous to something? How does it make, we, the readers, feel?

For this particular post I'll be looking at the artwork of David Finch from the book, "Batman- The Dark Knight #12."   The story of this issue was written by Greg Hurwitz with colors provided by Sonia Oback.

The first panel I would like to discuss is one where Batman is being held captive by the Scarecrow.  As always, the Scarecrow seeks not to physically harm Batman but to mentally torture him instead.  In the scene above, the Scarecrow has already sprayed Batman with one of his hallucinogenic toxins.  For some context I can tell you this particular story exposes not only the guilt of Batman's past over the loss of his parents but sheds light on the childhood of the Scarecrow aka, Dr. Jonathan Crane.

What's fascinating about the above image is, now that Batman is under the thrall of the toxin he can see the shadows of his deceased parents cast by the Scarecrow.  This is a very clever device by Finch.  Batman's psyche goes immediately to the death of his parents and the person who induced this memory casts the forlorn shadows just prior to their murder.  Note the residue of the toxin that hit the floor now doubles as the blood they spilled and it chillingly outlines their fallen forms.  One could also say this bears a resemblance to a crime scene outline.

Sadder still the shadows hold each other hand in hand just like they did the night the young Bruce Wayne last saw them alive.  No doubt it was the last happy memory of the both of them and his mother still wears the pearls she did that evening in this ghostly silhouette.

The loss of Batman's parents is one memory that will haunt him forever.  It also serves as the basis of his crime fighting career.  Dr. Crane seeks to use this terrible memory against Batman and as the form that casts the shadows he becomes the embodiment of that crime as if he owns the crime and can use this power to crush the Batman.

In our next image we see a reflection of a different sort.  Instead of a shadow casting a pall over the psyche of Batman, we see an actual mirror into the mind of the young Bruce Wayne.  Here, Bruce is humbled in his sadness and is brought to his knees by the pain of it all.  He looks quite alone and fragile and even though as he looks into the over sized mirror he sees not his true reflection but that of the horrid night his parents left him utterly alone.  The glass doesn't lie.  Young Bruce sees who he really is and it is the anguished orphan that will forever define him.

Finch sets this scene in a corner also.  It suggests there is no escape from this memory.  As I said, the mirror is over-sized as if everything that defines Bruce is larger than he is and the fact that it sits on the floor and not on the wall suggests a certain chaos has enveloped his home.  Loving parents would naturally put everything in it's place.

In our last frame we see the boy Bruce Wayne attending his parents funeral mass.  What's impressive about this tableau is the scale it provides.  We don't often get to see Batman's childhood memories and certainly not the ones of the immediate aftermath of his parents death.  I think what Finch is trying to tell us here is that Bruce is so small compared to the enormity of his loss.  The walls of the cathedral tower over him and the mourners that populate the pews are set apart and distant from young Bruce.  Even the coffins that are set before him are on a higher plane and separate from him. In this frame Bruce has been rendered diminutive, inadequate and inconsequential.

It's a heavy burden to lose one's parents.  The images afforded us here by David Finch shows how paltry we can become when faced by the grand scale of loss.  Not only for the next day but for all the days to come.  As readers of Batman I think we all know how the story turns out.  Batman will survive this loss and instead of turning inward he strikes outward to avenge his parents and in turn brings justice to all.  A bitter lesson to be sure but, as our hero, his strength and courage gives us the conviction and determination to go on.



Next up, Soviet style Robins?