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Cliff Chiang And Lee Weeks – Stalking The Page At Heroes Con 2014

By Trent Pitts

With a lengthy line of attendees forming to get onto the show floor, Lee Weeks and Cliff Chiang sat down in an intimate panel room to discuss their lengthy careers in the comics industry. These lengthy careers have earned them the titles of "modern masters" and they shared insight into those careers for the early risers on Saturday morning.

The two artists began at their true roots, their parents. Chiang and Weeks similarly had at least one artistic parent. Weeks's father made hand crafted furniture and Chiang's mother had been a music teacher and an opera singer. These parents still needed some explanation of their sons' chosen careers.

Weeks explained to his father about transitioning from photorealistic portraits to comics by saying, "Dad that's boring this is challenging."

Chiang said about his parents, "They couldn't really envision it until it became a reality where I was working in comics as an editor. "

The parental similarity led into discussions on their vastly different schooling. Asked about attending the Kubert School Weeks said, "For a year. School and I weren't a good marriage."

Weeks did offer high praise of a class taught at the school. When asked what the most important class to his storytelling was, Weeks answered without hesitation, "I had a class with Joe Kubert my first semester."

Weeks described the class by saying, "It was the atmosphere of doing and discussing"

Weeks also studied at a fine arts school. Of the dual nature of his education he said, "I feel really blessed that I got this meaty construction approach that's applicable to everything whether it's a photographer, cartoonist, painter or whatever. What makes a picture dynamic."

Chiang attended school at Harvard and said, "I started off as an English major because I liked to read and it was the kind of thing I could take and go to law school."

On the decision to be a lawyer Chiang said, "It's easier to get on a path like that. It's like a treadmill"

While at Harvard, Chiang began dabbling back into drawing and dual majoring and said, "My approach to all these classes was about storytelling"

Chiang asked Weeks if he remembered the first comic that made him feel drawn to the strange alchemy of words and pictures.

Weeks didn't but instead said, "I remember shots. "

He continued, "There are panels from John Buscema's first run on Fantastic Four that I can't get out of my head."

Weeks continued on Buscema, "Just such a great combination of illustrator, but never stops being a cartoonist."

"If it were to possible to have a time machine and Michelangelo, Rembrandt, Reubens, Da Dinci were in a room watching Buscema draw, I think they'd be blown away."

On the power and movement evident in Buscema's work Chiang commented to Weeks, " I see that in your work."

Chiang said, "Now that I think about it one of the first issues that got me into reading comics was that issue of X-Men. The Paul Smith Wolverine fighting Silver Samurai."

"I was amazed at how it moved on the page and yet it didn't."

Expounding on his admiration of Paul Smith's work Chiang said, "The economy of line and how it's stylized."

"It was like animation but better."

The artists fielded questions from the audience.

Asked about the difference in an extended run and shorter runs on arcs or mini-series, the artists replied similarly to preferring shorter runs.

Weeks said, "I'd like to pour myself into something for 5 or 6 issues and then go on tour."

Chiang did point out about a long run like his current Wonder Woman run, "Allows you to get a deeper understanding of the the project."

Chiang said, "After Wonder Woman, I'm going to try and do something creator owned."

On the process of working from writing to drawing, both artists agreed that it took multiple readings to as Chiang put it, " to internalize it."

Doing his second read through with a pencil Weeks said, "If something comes to mind, I do a thumbnail."

Weeks also said, "A first instinct is often the best."

Chiang agreed and said, "There's a certain level of spontaneity I want to keep."

Asked if they ever have to leave a drawing and come back to it, Weeks laughed and said, "Oh my gosh, I have a term for it: 'Stalk the page'."

The two departed on a question about what artists should be referenced for storytelling.

Weeks answered, "Toth, Kubert, Mazzucchelli, Miller, plenty of others. There's so many different approaches"

These two artists may have different approaches as well but the quality of their final products are undeniably masterful.

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