Masterful Jack of One Trade

Last month, I was delighted to showcase work done by my favorite caricaturist, Mort Drucker.

This month, I thought I'd elevate my second favorite caricaturist to showcase status, as well.

That would be Jack Davis, whose work -- also featured prominently throughout the years in Mad Magazine, like Drucker's --  has probably been more ubiquitous than the latter. That's because there's a good chance you've seen Davis's creations on magazine covers such as Time, and for movie posters.

 

 

Welcome to the July issue of Not Your Usual Caricature Artist from Caricatures by Joel.

Jack Davis harkens back to Mad's nascent years in the 1950's and to comic books of that era -- all those Tales from the Crypt-type mags that your parents probably weren't allowed to read by their parents.

 

From the Jack Davis Foundation website (the Foundation was established to facilitate the study and appreciation of Jack Davis’s contribution to 20th-century art through development of databases, archives, education and exhibitions) comes this intro:

Over the past half century Jack has established himself as one of the most prominent illustrators in our culture. Beginning with his masterful pen and ink work for various comic and horror publications, Jack Davis made a mark as a master of caricature, composition and crowd scenes. No artist has had more success packing more people in less space than Jack Davis.

 

Jack Davis is perhaps best known for his early work with EC Comics and MAD magazine; a stepping off point for an illustration career that included most notably TIME, Newsweek, TV Guide, Playboy and Esquire magazines, hundreds of album covers, dozens of movie posters as well as groundbreaking work for the advertising field.

 



 

 

Jack Davis is 90 and lives in St. Simons, Ga., God bless him.

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The closest I can presume to coming anywhere near Jack Davis is via my name which would have been Jack -- according to an agreement my Dad made with his sister, my aunt -- had I been born before my male cousin. Alas, he came first...got "Jack"...and I got "Joel."

You get a few of my drawings.

Let's keep it on the subject of TIME magazine, with a few ersatz covers I created for clients. This first one, of actor/comedian Kevin Pollock, was sent to his then-wife (an old friend) to give to him as a birthday gift.

 This next batch were all done for local Charlotte clients, also as gifts for the "subjects."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

See you the first Tuesday of next month for another artful look at Not Your Usual Caricature Artist.