Richard Corben — In The Swamp
Swamp Thing #20, December 2005
I discovered Richard Corben’s art at about the not quite ripe age of 12. I can’t remember if I saw it in the Warren magazines or in the underground comics first, but doesn’t matter. I was hooked.
(Undergrounds at age 12 or 13? A longer story, for another day.)
The late Harlan Ellison, award-winning author — and often-vocal critic — had this to say about Corben:
“It was obvious to anyone with the sensitivity of a doorknob that Corben was a rara avis, that right from the git-go he was first-rank, with a technique and an artistic sensibility wholly original, a technique and sensibility that created their own genre; and if there were to be imitators as there have been ⏤they were doomed forever to live in the shadow of the originator. It was as if Rich was born to illustrate my stories about the world of the hoverpaks and downunders.”
Many art fans feel the same way about Corben’s work, and original pieces are rarely offered for sale, so I consider myself fortunate to have this great splash page from Corben’s brief visit with Swamp Thing.
Richard Corben turned 80 years old earlier this month. How in the heck is that even possible?
