Mladen Novaković Collection
My name is Mladen Novaković and I invite you to browse my online gallery of original comic artwork. The transfer of comics into the gallery context opens the space for a new evaluation, one that goes beyond the treatment of comics only at the narrative level. On original plates and strips new aesthetic aspects of the work are emphasized, which get lost in the printing process (because of the thickening of lines and increased contrasts). Instead of black and white works with sharp lines, a wide range of gray hues made by various drawing tools to achieve various effects is shown. We are confronted with examples of drawing mastery, which is often absent or veiled in the printed works.
This also changes our attitude towards the displayed work. Because stories are fragmented (only excerpts from a larger whole are displayed) the viewer’s attention is diverted from the narrative elements of comics to their visual features. Nevertheless, the aesthetic qualities of original comic panels are only a part of their charm. Originals show various corrections, editorial alterations, adaptations made because of the need to adapt the format of comic panels to new standards, and other interventions that reveal the usually unseen side of comics production. These modifications testify to the history of a specific work and at the same time offer a glimpse into the development of comics as a medium.