Speaking of the ancient world, I would like to show two pictures, one of which looks a little like the other. The first is "Pericles' Funeral Oration" by German artist Philipp Von Foltz (1805-1877). The second is Frank Frazetta's wraparound cover illustration for Child of the Sun by Kyle Onstott and Lance Horner (Fawcett, 1972). This could be an example of two artists arriving at the same solution to a similar compositional, dramatic, and narrative problem. On the other hand, there could be a little swiping involved. I'll let you decide for yourself. By the way, the Roman speaker in Frazetta's painting looks like a self-portrait.
Text copyright 2025 Terence E. Hanley
While not an out-and-out "swipe", I'd say at the very least, this looks like he could have used this as a reference. He did swipe a few images, though. For example, he drew a couple of pen and ink drawings of nudist and pinup model Diane Weber photos that appeared in men's magazines.
ReplyDeleteHi, John,
DeleteI don't think it's a swipe, either. There are similarities, but it could be that Frazetta never saw the image by Von Foltz. There's no doubt that Frazetta swiped from other artists and photographers, but that was basically standard practice among comic book artists and illustrators for decades.
Thanks for writing.
TH