A new exhibition opened this weekend in my home town of
Southport, celebrating the works of Eagle artist Frank Hampson, and features previously unseen artwork.
Frank’s son, Peter has co-curated it and will attend the
official opening on Thursday, September 20th.
This week’s local paper, the Southport Visiter interviewed
Peter, whose likeness, incidentally was used for the Space Fleet cadet Flamer
Spry in the Dan Dare strips.
He recounted the Eagle comic’s early start in the Bakery, a
sub- rented building in Churchtown, which actually still exists today. This was
used as a studio for the early issues before Frank and the rest of the team of
artists moved to more suitable premises in Epsom.
Peter continued to say that the Atkinson Art Centre, where
the exhibition is being held have borrowed material and artwork from his family’s
collection.
Some items show art prior to Frank work on Eagle comic, and
there are several helpful description boards dotted about to help guide the viewer through
the exhibition.
Although Frank was born in Audenshaw near Manchester, he
moved to Southport before he was one year old. He studied at King George V
Grammar School, just down the same road I live, actually. After school he
became a full time art student at the Atkinson, which during the thirties
housed the Victoria School of Art.
At the age of nineteen the War interrupted his studies. He survived the evacuation of Dunkirk and the
D-Day landings returning to his studies from active service.
This is a detail from one of Frank’s pencil and gouache drawings
from 1947. It’s from a scene showing the inside of an aircraft cockpit. Notice
the similarities between the pilot and Frank’s later Dan Dare strip.
These drawings from 1947-49 show adverts for Cannell’s, a
shop that was situated in Southport’s elegant Lord Street. These would have been used at the time in the
magazine. Lancashire Life.
Frank’s career really took off when he met Marcus Morris,
Oxford educated and the vicar of St James’ Church in the Birkdale area of
Southport, who was on the lookout for an illustrator for his parish magazine,
The Anvil. The Reverend Morris also had ambitions to create a more wholesome
children’s comic to rival the American crime and horror comics.
Here’s one of three dummy copies of the Eagle that Frank produced
in 1949, and which Marcus used to find a publisher. Originally Dan Dare was named Lex Christian ,
a vicar situated in the tough East End of London. On the dummy, Dan was now a
Chaplin in the Interplanet Patrol. By the time he arrived in the published comic his
overtly Christian identity was dropped.
Some selected panels from the ‘Voyage to Venus’ story showing Frank’s
clean style and attention to detail, even in the backgrounds.
The exhibition also features original studio film footage used
for reference material, as well as other studio material.
This film grab shows ‘Pop’ Hampson, Frank’s father in the
guise of Sir Hubert Guest, Controller of Spacefleet.
Frank’s studio system certainly gave the strip its
incredible detail and continuity, but in 1959 the golden age was to end. Odhams
took over as publishers from Hultons and disbanded Frank’s meticulous but
expensive studio system. Frank stopped
working on Dan Dare, but did, however with the help of studio assistant, Joan
Porter produced his final strip for the Eagle – The Road to Courage, based on
the life of Jesus.
Here’s a panel from one of the many boards on display,
showing (a blond) Jesus throwing the money lenders from the temple. Many considered
this strip shows some of Frank’s finest work.
By 1964, Frank had become disillusioned with the publishers
and once again had become freelance. He was commissioned by Wills and Hepworth,
the publishers of Ladybird books to illustrate eleven of their children’s
books, which he did between 1964 and 1970 Ten were completed; however the eleventh, a life
of Winston Churchill remained unfinished due to the artist’s ill-health. On
display in the exhibition are several original pieces of Ladybird artwork.
In 1975, Frank’s work was recognised at a comic art
convention in Lucca, Italy, and presented with The Yellow Kid award, declaring
him the ‘Prestigioso Maestro’ – the best
comic artist since the Second World War.
In 1976, Frank was given the Ally Soper award by Bob
Monkhouse at that year’s British Comic Convention.
This is just a taster of course, there’s a lot more there to
interest Dan Dare and classic comics fans alike. There are a few items of Eagle
merchandise on display, but by and large the emphasis is on that son of
Southport whose heroic squared-jawed creation continues to influence. Watchman
co-creator Dave Gibbons and X-Men comic scriptwriter acknowledge Hampson’s
influence on their respective works, and even the late Professor Stephen Hawking
cited Dan Dare as one of the reasons he became so interested in cosmology.
Jumpin' Jets! Not bad for a lad raised in Southport
The Man Who Drew Dan Dare Exhibition on show Saturday 15th September 2018 until Saturday March 16th 2019 at the Atkinson Art Gallery, Lord Street, Southport, Lancashire.PR8 1DB
All original artwork and photos copyright to each of their respective owners.
