24.07.14: I figured I had already done a "tip of the hat" to Asterix, Lucky Luke and Spirou/Sprint (twice, actually...) so when I saw this chance to so a chance to do one from le Petite Spirou/Lille Sprint, I could not pass it up. I have to point out though, that this drawing of Ma. Prof. De Calcul/frøken Brøk/Miss. Fraction can only be signed as "after Janry (the original artist)" as this is almost a line for line copy.
In the Kubert school we were given an assignment to emulate or copy an other cartoonists style as closely as we could. It was a way of trying to learn how the other artist was thinking as well as trying to draw differently to our normal style. (Plus if said artist was every hit by a bus or eaten by a bear, we could draw his or her book and nobody would know...) I had the opportunity a few years later to actually show my three pages to the artist whose style had attempted to emulate. I figured it was a complement as this was an artist whose work I really respected. The artist (who shall remain nameless) wanted to get a hold of my art teacher who had given me this assignment as this was the most stupid and waste of time assignment the artist had ever heard of and that nobody would learn anything from such an assignment, and didn't even want to look at the pages.
After getting over the shock of the artist's reaction and looking at art history, I really can't get over how wrong I think the artist was. For centuries this is a tested method of learning to draw. Back in the day, apprenticies learned their trade by copying their masters' already existing paintings and sculptures. And by applying proper drawing technics such motion-lines and construction-drawing (as appose to just trying to copy the lines) you are forcing yourself to try to think like the master you are emulating and you will learn so much from doing this. That is way I still enjoy doing this today and why I enjoyed this sketch and the others I mentioned above.
(As for the artist, I still really enjoy his work but I am in no rush to meet him again...)
