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GUILTY PANCAKE
(
www.bobfingerman.com)
Review by Mike Hunter
Noted alternative comics master Bob Fingerman (his latest major work being
Beg the Question, a finely reworked, highly recommended collection of his great
Minimum Wage comic from Fantagraphics) recently released
Guilty Pancake, a delightful pocket-sized (5" x 7") collection of "preposterously punky pinups."
In stark contrast to the plastic, depersonalized (even if superbly rendered) types that populate the pinups of Vargas, or the pneumatically absurd adolescent fantasy figures that infest the mainstream comics world, Fingerman's lovelies – in varying degrees of tattooing and piercitude, frequently in impressively intimidating footwear – are obviously drawn from life, their physiques unique, individual, and all the more appealing for it. Plus, these are portraits as well. Rather than interchangeable dimples, snub noses, and vacuous expressions, Fingerman's exceptional talent for combining caricature, observation, and a solid understanding of anatomy makes for a gallery of very real, approachable women. (Even if us poor males, faced with such pulchritude, might end up reduced to the condition of the very cartoony and charming demons who accompany each lass: gazing adoringly, supplicating, drooling, or bashfully offering a flower.)
His inking is gloriously lithe, art better-than-ever, poses varied, the perfect-bound little book beautifully produced. Fingerman notes, "...if you order through this website I’ll throw in a free demon sketch along with my signature on the title page! Original art and a book for $12.00 (which covers postage)! You can’t lose..." Indeed! I ordered two copies, each arriving with a niftily rendered lil' devil of its own.
Check out Bob's website for more info on the title, and a review of the book:
http://www.bobfingerman.com/artbooks/guiltypancake.html ...An online gallery with a few of the studies, a taste of the feast, is also available there.
The original pinup art is also available for sale, in assorted, most reasonable prices. I contacted Bob, inquired about the availability of my favorites (some had already been snapped up), picked one, and with ungodly speed, Fed-Ex was delivering a box with a lovely-to-behold indeed work to my office. The assured perfection of his originals makes them even more impressive to display.
As for whether the title contains some arcane symbolism or is simply surreal (a mostly-naked lovely does pose atop a stack of mammoth, mouth-watering flapjacks on the color cover), Fingerman ain't telling...
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