Reviews:
This comic is
filled with some weird art. There are some nice patterns in the
paintings. The art though is not for everyone. Some would not see any
value in it. This is a collection of paintings for an art exhibition.
The art is abstract. It is very abstract. So it is definitely not for
everyone.
~ Richard Vasseur, Jazma Online
Silber Media has
this amazing line of comics called Silber minis. They are comics that
are literally a little bit bigger than a match book and range anywhere
from 20-40 pages. A few of us here at ComicAttack were sent these
little gems, and I absolutely think they are some of the coolest things
out there. However, many of these miniature books of joy are not
totally kosher for kids, so I can’t cover the vast array here in my
column (however, Josh on our team here is working up a really nice
article that you can read all about, so stay tuned to our site), but
there is a line of them that is everyone-friendly and that is the Small
Art Series.
The Small Art Series are several small 10 or more page
books in all color which show off an array of art, all in a theme.
Poems or themes connect a series of paintings in these pages, many of
which are interesting to look at. The books “American,” “Climb,”
“Awake,” and “Why Birds Sing” all have this fantastic freedom of modern
art feel to them, with colors woven over a canvas to our delight,
giving us reflections on the poems that set each book up.
“Miscellaneous” gives us several poems and paintings, each one unique
and wonderful in their own way. This reviewer’s favorite, and the final
title in this collection we received to review, was “Professor Horton,”
which is a direct homage to classic Marvel character Dr. Horton, who
created the original Human Torch (now referred to in the Marvel
universe as the Torch). The interesting thing in “Professor Horton” is
that, although we do get a hint of the Torch, we really get paintings
trying to convey the emotions behind such a creation and what it means,
and not just some homage-paintings.
These are different, I’ll give
you that. The Small Art Series is literally that, though, folks – an
art series. If you love art, paintings, and museums like I do, then
this is your bag right here. For those who prefer a more narrative
story telling, this won’t be for you, although I enjoyed them so I
encourage you to give it a try.
~ Drew McCabe, Comic Attack
This
review addresses a trio of interesting mini-comics entitled SMALL ART
SERIES: AMERICAN, SMALL ART SERIES: AWAKE, and SMALL ART SERIES: CLIMB.
There were no credits to speak of, but I’m assuming they might be the
work of Brian John Mitchell, who writes most of the Silber Media
offerings. I happened to read the books in the order I just listed, but
I actually think they’d be best consumed by going from AMERICAN to
CLIMB, and then to AWAKE. The compelling trio in the SMALL ART SERIES
have just a single page of text followed by 9 full page images. The
pictures look more like shrunken versions of Fine Art works that you’d
find in a museum or gallery setting vs. sequential art. The sequence of
the 3 books follows a basic 3 act structure, which is why I think
they’re best consumed as a full set. By doing so, you get a cleaner
line of introduction, conflict, and resolution from the work. AMERICAN
seems concerned by how much our family history and lineage affects who
we are and questions what happens to our psyche if that information is
deliberately distorted. CLIMB (and heaven help me, I couldn’t get that
damn Miley Cyrus pop song out of my head!) seems to be about resolve
and perseverance in the face of adversity. AWAKE is about emerging from
this process in a kind of spiritual rebirth that clarifies our higher
purpose in service of humanity. I’m not sure the SMALL ART SERIES is
something that you could consume in larger quantities and not grow
weary of, but for a short burst of unique entertainment, I can’t say
I’ve seen anything like it before. It held my attention and pulled more
consideration out of me than I expected it to. Grade A.
~ Justin Giampaoli, Poopsheet Foundation