Searching for Michael Zulli

 Back in the '80's comic books shops were thriving. They were a haven for a collective of like minded individuals to gather, discuss and even argue passionately about their interests. Storylines were dissected and prophesized. Characters were deconstructed and analyzed. The art was either heralded or criticized. 

Shelves were littered with action figures and sculptures. Rare and limited resin model kits were sought after and imported Japanese kits consumed a lot of paychecks. There was also another phenomenon, underground and independent comics gained attention.

To be fair, underground comics were around since the 60's with the advent of Robert Crumb, Fritz the Cat, the Freak Brothers and more. Most of them dealt with adult content and the marijuana movement. But in the '80's independent comics began to break away from the mainstream industry and gave birth to a creativity that wasn't restrained by the industry. Titles littered the racks like Dave Sim's Cerebus, The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the very X rated Faust by David Quinn and Tim Virgil (which was banned in England and Canada), James O'Barr's The Crow and a lesser known title written by Stephen Murphy and drawn by an unknown artist, Michael Zulli called Puma Blues.

One of the covers of Puma Blues

Puma Blues was set in the not too distant future and dealt with ecological themes. It was not light reading. The artwork was unique. When I first picked it up and thumbed an issue I thought Zulli was channeling Barry Windsor Smith who was gaining popularity from his work on Marvel's Conan. But on more examination, Zulli was uniquely developing his own style, a style that distinguished him and set him apart. His detailed drawings and delicate inks impressed me and I wanted more. Unfortunately issues were hard to find and I believed they even switched publishers. I was never able to complete the 23 issue run until decades later when Dover Comics & Graphic Novels republished the collection with a 40 page conclusion. 

Excerpt from Puma Blues

When Sandman came out in 1989 Sam Keith was the beginning artist on the series. I was already obsessed with the storyline. The title went through a variety of artists and I was extremely pleased that Michael Zulli made an appearance here and there in its run. I was ecstatic that Zulli concluded the series beautifully with The Wake. 

Michael Zulli is my favorite Sandman artist. It was also not the last time Neil Gaiman and Michael Zulli would work together. Later would come The Last Temptation, featuring Alice Cooper and Creatures of the Night which featured Neil Gaiman's The Price. 

The Facts in the Case of the Departure of Miss Finch.
Illustrated by Zulli, written by Gaiman

Michael Zulli has also done prints of Neal's Sandman, aka Morpheus. 

Silver point drawing of Morpheus

Painting of Morpheus

In 2011 Michael Zulli released The Fracture of the Universal Boy. A beautiful hard bound edition of surreal and at times nightmarish journey of the artist's self revelation. 

Excerpt from the Fracture of the Universal Boy

Then he dropped off the radar. 

Michael Zulli

Curious of Zulli's absence and selfishly craving more of his work, I once messaged Neil Gaiman who responded that Michael was one of his favorite people. He heard that Michael had recently married but what project or work he was involved with he didn't know. 

Like Barry Windsor Smith who disappeared from the  scene decades ago only to re-emerge with a recently released volume that is almost 400 pages, Monsters, I began to think maybe that The Fracture of the Universal Boy may have been Michael's opus. Or maybe, with hope, he is like Windsor Smith, working in seclusion on another project...so the search still goes on. 

Artist for the Month of April, Frazetta a Master of More Than Oils

 

If you mention the name of Frank Frazetta the images that come to mind are a multitude of brilliant oils depicting warriors, sensuous females, monsters, demons and gritty battle scenes. Yet, people seldom refer to his pen and ink work. A medium that Frazetta was a master of as well, and naturally so since his roots took place in the comic industry.

Before the public came knocking down his door for Frazetta to paint a cover for either their book, magazine or even movie poster, Frazetta had already established himself in the world of black and white comics. For instance in his beginnings Frazetta was the ghost artist for Al Cap on the widely circulated Lil’ Abner. He also did several western and fantasy comics during that era before gaining wide recognition for his Warren Magazine covers for Creepy, Eerie and Vampirella. Later came the Lancer Conan Paperback covers and soon Frazetta was the Norman Rockwell of the fantasy and horror industry.

I first became acquainted with Frazetta’s line work when the Science Fiction Book club decided to reprint the Edgar Rice Burroughs’ line and they hired Frazetta to not only do the covers, but do illustrations. Since color printing was expensive back then, the interior art was in black and white and I was amazed on how Frazetta was able to master the medium.

He never lost his iconic style of anatomy nor the sense of action that he was able to emulate in oils when he was working with pen and ink. His line work was always deliberate in creating a sense of motion and also retaining the ability to render texture.

The illustration on the right is from the John Carter of Mars series that was published by the Science Fiction Book Club. 

Below in his piece “Sheba” (below) look at the level of detail and line work and none of it takes away from the reclining figure, but accentuates it.

It’s no mystery on how Frazetta not only influenced the genre but also inspired many artists. He has a rich legacy that has stood the test of time. I followed his career since I was a boy and his popularity never waned. I remember as he grew older, as if to re-establish himself, or to show us he still “had it”, he released the “Death Dealer.” 

In his final days Frazetta suffered a heart attack that caused his right hand to become too shaky to paint with, he learned to paint with his left.

Frazetta’s status is not only well earned, but well deserved.