I am an Adam Hughes' fan.
There I said it.
I know that there are folks out there who find his stuff too cheesecake. But his stuff just pops off the page. I almost always love the composition of his art, the playfulness of his subjects, and ... yes ... the beauty of his work. In particular, I really loved his run of Wonder Woman covers. His Diana was always beautiful, happy, and strong.
So I was pretty excited to hear about 'Cover Run: The DC Art of Adam Hughes; a beautiful hard cover book showcasing his work in the DCU and including preliminary sketches and commentary from Hughes himself.
Of course Hughes did the phenomenal variant cover for Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes #23, one of the best variants I know of and a truly iconic cover for this incarnation of Supergirl.
Like many of his more famous covers, this one gets its own entry with more detailed information.
First off, here is the sketch of the cover.
Sorry for the crummy scan. That is the best I could flatten the page on the scanner.
And here is the commentary by Hughes. It sounds like Hughes likes drawing Supergirl!
I also like the direction that DC gave him. "Make sure she is pretty and you can see her Legion flight ring." ... not much there for guidance. So kudos to Hughes for coming up with this design from thin air.
I figured I would include the Valor cover Hughes is talking about as an inspirational cue.
And I figured I would also include my favorite Hughes Wonder Woman cover. This perfectly captured Hughes. She is beautiful, strong, and sexy.
There was often a playful happy feel to his Diana as well; she isn't always the grim faced warrior. I like seeing that aspect of her as well and Hughes was able to capture it.
The book is $40 and a relative steal if you are a fan of Hughes' work. The book also includes sections on his Catwoman run, his Power Girl issues, and his work designing busts and statues for DC Direct. If you like Hughes, I highly recommend it.
I'm an absolute fan of Mr Hughes too ! I can't find words to tell how much I like his work. And we share the same preference for his Wonder Woman cover, I think it's her best representation ever.
ReplyDeleteWhat I especcially appreciate is the fact he doesn't draw these femal characters like - excuse me - bitches, but with all her feminine essence, and their elegance. He gives her respect and attention, as a man must do with a woman. They are beautiful, and classy, and always peaceful, this is Beauty with a big B.
Hughes is a rare beast for me because he's an artist who does nudes I like. You know the crap that gets around! I love that he always makes them funny as if nobody is taking it all that seriously. There is an interview on Comicvine with him where he says his Supergirl/Batgirl story in S/B is 2 pages long (sadly :() and features Babs Gordon. I love Steph but Babs is Batgirl.
ReplyDeleteI've had this on my Amazon wishlist for a long, long time, I'll have to get it now that you reminded me! When I think of Wonder Woman Hughes' version is what I think is the definitive version. Awesome artist.
ReplyDeleteI love Hughes, he draw gorgeous women, many with winning smiles.
ReplyDeleteI adore his Cat Woman, he makes her look like Audrey Hepburn.
I love that he always makes them funny as if nobody is taking it all that seriously. There is an interview on Comicvine with him where he says his Supergirl/Batgirl story in S/B is 2 pages long (sadly :() and features Babs Gordon. I love Steph but Babs is Batgirl.
ReplyDeleteYeah .. that fun/playful feel is such a good part of his repertoire.
Bummer the SG/BG story is only 2 pages.
I've had this on my Amazon wishlist for a long, long time, I'll have to get it now that you reminded me! When I think of Wonder Woman Hughes' version is what I think is the definitive version. Awesome artist.
ReplyDeleteWell worth the $40. For someone like me, the commentary and prelim sketches were as cool as the actually cover gallery.
I adore his Cat Woman, he makes her look like Audrey Hepburn.
ReplyDeleteThe Hepburn thing works waaayyy more than the Doris Day as Power Girl thing he tried.
And we share the same preference for his Wonder Woman cover, I think it's her best representation ever.
ReplyDeleteAs many have said, Hughes' version of WW is the one that comes into my head when I am thinking of Diana.
I keep hoping we'll eventually get his All-Star Wonder Woman.
I adore his Cat Woman, he makes her look like Audrey Hepburn.
ReplyDeleteThe Hepburn thing works waaayyy more than the Doris Day as Power Girl thing he tried.
Yeah that was not a good choice... he should have gone with Grace Kelly.
Adam's depictions of Wonder Woman, Catwoman, Supergirl, and Power Girl have truly got to be some of the most utterly sexy yet beautiful stuff I've seen!
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