Notebook 36: Cerebus – 294 - 296

MARGARET LISS:

A few years ago I scanned all of Dave Sim's notebooks. He had filled 36 notebooks during the years he created the monthly Cerebus series, covering issues #20 to 300, plus the other side items -- like the Epic stories, posters and prints, convention speeches etc. A total of 3,281 notebook pages detailing his creative process. I never really got the time to study the notebooks when I had them. Just did a quick look, scanned them in and sent them back to Dave as soon as possible. So this regular column is a chance for me to look through those scans and highlight some of the more interesting pages.

So we went from pages of walls of text as I like to call them to three blank pages last week. Well, not completely blank, they had the issue number box in the top left corner. We’re looking at Dave Sim’s last Cerebus notebook which covers Cerebus #265 through 300. The notebook only had 58 pages scanned – as I didn’t bother scanning in all of the blank pages – and we’ve seen almost all of them. Only a couple of weeks left. Use the Notebook 36 tag to get caught up with all the fun.

And if you thought, well, it is probably more blank pages again. You’d be right. Nothing but blank pages for Cerebus #294, 295, and 296:

Notebook #36, page 85

Notebook #36, page 88

Notebook #36, page 91

Yes, Dave would leave three pages per issue for any notes he might have. Which, as you can see, were none for these issues.

So what about some more of those tracing paper preliminary drawings? Which were more likely used in the production of the original art. Dave can explain it better than I can, from his notes on the tracing paper drawings for Cerebus #300:

During one of these phases, I also began to use tracing paper as a means of correcting imbalances and inaccuracies in the drawings. This technique involved getting a close approximation of how I intended the finished drawing to look and then flipping the tracing paper over and either drawing a finished version of the figure directly on the other side of the sheet or putting another sheet of tracing paper over the first one and doing the finished version on that separate sheet. When a final version of a figure was achieved (in reverse), the finished drawing was then turned face down on the artboard and by tracing over the image in pencil a light pencil impression of the finished drawing was transferred to the artboard which could then be tightened up in pencil and inked.

The tracing paper this week shows us four panels for Cerebus #98. Three of those panels are for page 6 of that same issue (aka Church & State II page 942:

Cerebus #98 page 6: tracing paper and actual issue

Yes, you can zoom in to see the regular pencil over the blue pencil. Dave even penciled in the word balloon for Posey. Okay, okay, here is a more zoomed in picture of just that final panel for page 6:

Close up of Cerebus #98 page 6: tracing paper and actual issue

Here is the other side of the tracing paper:

Flip side of the tracing paper for Cerebus #98 page 6

Yes, there is a four panel on the tracing paper. It looks like the panel of Bishop Powers for the next page – the first insert panel. Now I’m wondering where the tracing paper for the first two insert panels on page 6 is located. Hopefully not a garbage bin. . .