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Magazine//"Heroes" - The Exhibition Through The Eyes Of The Curators
"Heroes" - The Exhibition Through The Eyes Of The Curators
Dorit Maya-Gur and Yuval Sharon   Bookmark and Share      
 

I love Wolverine and remember the day I first saw him. I think I was thirteen. I had gone with some friends to Kolbo Shalom in Tel Aviv, which was, then, a magical store for me. One of the stands sold magazines from abroad, including comics. It was there where I saw for the first time the cover, Uncanny X Men 212, drawn by one of the great artists of the time – Barry Windsor-Smith. It was love at first sight. I hadn’t planned this scenario and I didn’t know much about the personage but it was clear that I loved Wolverine and he interested me. Years later (in 2001 to be precise), when I established a comics-book business, one of the first orders I received was for the Wolverine Origin series. My emotion was enormous. Finally, Wolverine’s story would be revealed to me – who he was, his real name and where he came from. I was already familiar with the name of the artist who drew the series – Andy Kubert – from X-Men and Captain America – but none of this prepared me for the extraordinary encounter with Wolverine Origin. The way the story was so perfectly depicted by Andy transformed the reading experience into something totally unexpected.
A decade later, in the winter of 2011, in Dover New Jersey, with a blistering cold outside, Dorit and I are scanning material for the exhibition in the warm basement of Joe Kubert’s school. I am holding in my hand an original page from Wolverine Origin; I hold my breath as I gaze at Wolverine pop out his claws for the first time. Ten minutes earlier, we were in Andy’s studio – there I was standing in the studio of this great artist, trying to behave normally. He lets me scan original pages from one of his most important works, explains how one should hold a page and how to breathe next to it, hands us nine brown envelopes whose worth is tantamount to a small ocean island, and tells us for the umpteenth time to take care of them as of our lives, before sending us on our way. We are excited and at the same time anxious. What if something got damaged?  But all these fears vanished as soon as we began to look at this unique material – materials that commands respect, for it is clear that you are holding a work of art. 
Later we met with Adam Kubert, this wonderful artist who succeeds in making you feel that his figures are about to jump out of every page. I look at the pages of one of my favorite series, Ultimate X-Men, then one of the double spread in the first issue causes me to burst out laughing, so much so, that Dorit rushes to film my reaction. A wonderful moment was clinched. I also had the privilege to see Andy and Adam’s sketches and work plans, follow every detail, understand how the details formed the image and the drawing and, in particular, bear witness to the seriousness with which they approach their work. When Adam Kubert drew Superman, he spared no effort, working on the figure again and again and going to great pains to penetrate the character, the people around him and the world he operates in. This is the reason why the character of Superman is so credible and the story Adam created is so marvelous.
During my visit with the Kubert brothers, I was amazed to witness their dedication to their work. When I asked Dorit, how can they work for such long hours in their studio, without speaking or seeing another living creature, she told me that they learnt this from their father, Joe Kubert, and this is the method he teaches.
As a comic books reader, I always ask myself what is most important – the art or the story? Even though I don’t have a clear answer with regard to the Kubert brothers – I can say that art is primary. But equally, the Kuberts always succeed in finding a good story. The world of comics is blessed to have had these two phenomenally talented artists.  

Yuval Sharon.

  
 

 
 

I was asked to summarize the experience of curating this unique exhibition.

After many fits and starts, deletions and revisions, the deadline suddenly arrived and, for the first time in my life, I was still at a loss as to how to summarize in words something so enormous. I even doubt whether it is possible to clearly articulate the feelings I experienced during the process of curating this exhibition and what I feel about comic book legend and mentor – Joe Kubert.

When I began the process of curating the exhibition, I asked myself how would I be able to cover seventy years of a man’s work in one exhibition? It is hard to believe but the story of Joe Kubert reflects the very history of the comic book medium in the United States, from the beginning of the 1940s till today.

Over and above the process of selecting works to be exhibited, it was important for me to communicate my great love of comic books both as a comic book artist and as a comic book reader. I wanted everyone who visited the museum to have the feeling of standing between the pages of a comic book and to experience this wonderful medium in a new way. By projecting wall-size images, I wanted the viewer to feel Tarzan actually leaping from branch to branch and fighting with crocodiles, to feel he is witnessing the aerial bombing by the allies against the Nazi enemy, or to gaze at the barren desert over the shoulders of lonesome rider – Tex Willer. I wanted viewers to discover the same images and experience the same powerful feelings that overcome me every time I sit and read a comic book.

For me, the process of curating is similar to creating comics – in both, you have to tell a story. In this exhibition, I tried to tell the story of one artist – Joe Kubert, a man who began his career at the age of 11 and never stopped; a man who, at the age of 85, is still actively working in this field; a man at whose side anyone would feel small. 

In the process of my work as a comic book artist and, specifically, as the curator of this exhibition, I applied identical principles to those I recently learnt at the Joe Kubert School of Cartoons and Graphic Art.

* You have to work hard and even very hard in order to succeed in this field.

* You have to be determined, persevere and never give up – no matter what those around you say or think – and always stick to your goal!

* Aim to learn something new or different every day – set yourself challenges, identify your weak points and work on them – in this way you will overcome every obstacle!

And the last point – which to my mind is the most important thing I learnt – aim to reach as high as you can and do not be afraid to dream. After working on this exhibition, I can vouch that the combination between hard work and dreams creates a reality and dreams do really come true!

Who would have believed it!

So Joe, Adam and Andy … I applied nearly everything….. and I truly hope you will be pleased…

Dorit Maya Gur
Curator – Joe Kubert Exhibition