Perhaps it's lazy or cheating, but here's the Influence Map I did several months ago. I still feel it holds true.
From top to bottom:
Samurai Jack- I could easily include Dexter's Lab and most anything else Tartakovsky has touched, but Jack always holds a special place in my heart for opening my eyes to a different style of pacing and art. I love quiet moments in my stories, and it's at least partly due to this show. Jack could be walking through a gloomy forest (beautifully painted by Scott Wills), with no sound other than the howling wind, and to me it was the most fascinating thing ever. It's probably also important to note that Tartakovsky's geometric style influenced my art, as well as thousands of other cartoons.
Gustav Klimt- I've been interested in patterns and textures in my pictures, though I backed away from them for a while partly to give my hands a break. I've been looking at more of Klimt's work, and I feel like there's something in it that I want to steal. I love the way he can suggest shapes with random patterns and mix realistic figures with pure style.
Maurice Sendak- I could put down a bunch of other children's authors (Dr. Seuss and Tomie de Paola almost made it on here), but Sendak's work was definitely the most influential on me. I remember reading Where the Wild Things Are over and over again as a youngster. When the movie came out last year, I rushed to the nearest Borders to buy a copy of my own, and I was astounded at how stunningly original and lush the illustrations are. I did tons of hatching in my drawings as a kid, and I'm certain it's because of this book.
FLCL- one of my first anime shows, and boy did it change my life. I'd already been exposed to the likes of Pokemon and Sailor Moon, but the show's valiant absurdity and rockin' soundtrack warped my brain beyond recognition.
Discworld- A fantastic book series written by the snappy Terry Pratchett. I loved how he could tell a million stories in the same world without ever feeling forced. Small Gods changed the way I thought about religion.
Calvin and Hobbes- I grew up with giant collections of this series as a kid, and it always reminds me of the better parts of childhood. Bill Watterson's nature scenes are some of the most inviting I've ever seen in art, and certainly impressed themselves on me at an early age. I feel like I appreciate nature more because of Calvin.
Pokemon- More specifically, the manga. I fell in love with the videogame, but it was the manga that really stole my heart. I was entranced by this vision of another world. I dreamed of one day setting out on my own world-spanning journey, a desire that I hope to recreate in my own comics.
Mark Kistler- This guy's goofy giant books helped me learn how to draw as a kid, and for that I have to put him on my list of influences.
Maus- one of the first 'serious' comics I read as a kid. The book was lying on a shelf in the back of my Hebrew school classroom. The rabbi urged me to borrow and read it for myself. My little third-grader mind was subsequently blown away. You could make a comic about the Holocaust? If you could do that, I realized, you could make a comic about ANYTHING.
One Piece- I have nothing but love and respect for Eiichiro Oda. His art hosts some of the most unique character designs I've ever seen in a comic, and despite the melodramatic comedy and violence, he still makes you care deeply for his cast. The fact that his comic is now one of the longest-running series ever is no small feat, and he deserves every bit of praise for his work.
Disney- I used Aladdin for this, but I could probably put down every single one of their movies. I watched them all obsessively as a kid, learning every single musical number and sometimes memorizing the whole script by heart. It's hard to say exactly how it influenced me, other than to say, "It's frigging Disney."
Mary Blair- Her style was synonymous with Disney back in the day, and it's easy to see why. Her color palettes are brilliant (in every sense of the word), and her stylized shapes were certainly an influence on a generation of artists, myself included.
Hey Arnold!- If I had to pick one Nicktoon, it'd have to be this one. I loved all of the characters on this show, and the slightly over-the-top city seemed like such a fun place to live. Looking back, I'm impressed with how diverse the cast is without delving into what I like to call Captain Planet Syndrome. The fact that Arnold lived in a boarding house allowed for the creators to have immigrants from all around the world, but more to the point, the characters were more than their nationality. They had individual, genuine personalities, which made them feel more 'real' than any other cartoon show I've seen.
Insert really edgy and unique title here
Sirloin Steak vs. Buffy Blueberry
@ 4:24 AM Mar 29th