A revolutionary of visual culture, Seymour Chwast is one of the most influential illustrators of the last half century. In his version of "Dante's Divine Comedy", Dante and his guide Virgil don fedoras and wander through noirish realms of Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise in this classic satire of human foibles. Humorous, ironic, political, and utterly unique, this "Divine Comedy" is a comics masterpiece.
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The "left-handed designer," Seymour Chwast has been putting his unparalleled take—and influence—on the world of illustration and design for the last half century. In his version of Dante's Divine Comedy, Chwast's first graphic novel, Dante and his guide Virgil don fedoras and wander through noir-ish realms of Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise, finding both the wicked and the wondrous on their way.
The "left-handed designer," Seymour Chwast has been putting his unparalleled take—and influence—on the world of illustration and design for the last half century. In his version of Dante's Divine Comedy, Chwast's first graphic novel, Dante and his guide Virgil don fedoras and wander through noir-ish realms of Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise, finding both the wicked and the wondrous on their way.
Dante Alighieri wrote his epic poem The Divine Comedy from 1308 to 1321 while in exile from his native Florence. In the work's three parts (Inferno, Purgatory, and Paradise), Dante chronicles his travels through the afterlife, cataloging a multitude of sinners and saints—many of them real people to whom Dante tellingly assigned either horrible punishment or indescribable pleasure—and eventually meeting both God and Lucifer face-to-face.
In his adaptation of this skewering satire, Chwast creates a visual fantasia that fascinates on every page: From the multifarious torments of the Inferno to the host of delights in Paradise, his inventive illustrations capture the delirious complexity of this classic of the Western canon.
A Look Inside Dante's Divine Comedy: A Graphic Adaptation
(Click on Images to Enlarge)
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| Second circle of Hell | Sins of the flesh |
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| The three furies | Sixth circle of Hell |
From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. Famed artist and graphic designer Chwast has turned his talents to the graphic novel form for the first time, and we can all be happy about it. In a highly compressed version of Dante's Divine Comedy, Chwast takes us on a whirlwind tour of hell, purgatory, and heaven. With his signature mix of humor, artistry, and high-level design, he conveys a breathtaking amount of information in clear black and white line drawings. One graph illustrates "reasons for different levels of punishment," with sins ranging from "no self-control" (deemed "not so bad") to "insane brutality" (which is "terrible"). In another, the levels and regions of purgatory are laid out in an ascending birthday cake format. Much of the book is beautiful, with page design showing naked sinners tossed in a wind of words, a two-page spread of men and snakes wrapped in writhing battle, or a large flower made of angels as they fly from God. Dante himself is portrayed as a pipe-smoking detective type in sunglasses and a trench coat, while his guide, Virgil, wears a porkpie hat and wire-rimmed spectacles with his suit. It all works seamlessly as Chwast does a stunning job of telling Dante's story in his own brilliant style.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
23 of 26 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
As a collection of drawings by an iconic illustrator, this is a great book. Granted, Chwast isn't for everyone, but fans will eat this up. As an adaptation of the Divine Comedy, well, it's OK but slight. Chwast's simple, straightforward black and white line drawings provide visual interpretations of the sights described by Dante, but much of the literary value of the work is lost. References to historical characters and their fates are brief at best. It's more like a simple travelogue. I was hoping for much more detail -- this is basically a quick synopsis. So while I didn't get much of the substance of the Divine Comedy from this, I did enjoy it as an art book.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
Chwast's version of Dante's Divine Comedy is certainly not going to be for everyone. This graphic novel version is, naturally, more about the illustrations than the text, and this is a very not-too-wordy take. What we get is the poet Dante's journey through the afterlife with his spirit guides, the basic story intact, but only the most simplistic dialogue and narration. Still, this manages to be confusing at times in part by Chwast's choice to dress the characters as though they are from the 20th Century. In my opinion, the medieval man's point of view of a journey through Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise is bizarre enough, even when the dialogue is thoroughly dumbed down, without the need for making it more confusing by illustrating a flashback to the crusades with Sherman tanks and WWII soldiers. Well, that's just my opinion. It's still easy to follow and probably easier to understand than the original work, and though it's 127 pages (black and white), it's a VERY quick read. My biggest disappointment is with the art, and I shudder to go into this, being a much less successful cartoonist/illustrator myself. The art here is consistent, which is tricky no matter what your style, but the style itself, I don't know how to put it except to say it looks like a kid drew the whole thing. I look back on the first graphic novel I illustrated, and as much as I hate to see that crude example of my early work (and as harsh as I am on my current work), one thing I can say about the art here is that it really makes me feel good about my poorest creations and gives me hope for the future, when it doesn't flat out make me mad that I so rarely land a paying gig while this stuff sells.
At any rate, if you are in the market for a simple version of Dante's Divine Comedy, this is... an option. I can't say it's the best option. It may well be, but I don't know what else is out there for that. Look into what his, and keep this one in mind since it may be the simplest version out there, but don't be surprised at the underwhelming feeling you get when you receive your copy and open it up.
At any rate, if you are in the market for a simple version of Dante's Divine Comedy, this is... an option. I can't say it's the best option. It may well be, but I don't know what else is out there for that. Look into what his, and keep this one in mind since it may be the simplest version out there, but don't be surprised at the underwhelming feeling you get when you receive your copy and open it up.
14 of 18 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
It took me less than an hour to "read" Seymour Chwast's 127 page graphic novel based on The Divine Comedy. The text would fit easily into ten pages or less.
Perhaps the reader of this review would say, "So much the better. This is a graphic novel, not a traditional book." I agree. However, the graphics had better be good if the book is to succeed; they are not. I just took a moment to look at Gustave Dore's wonderful illustrations for The Divine Comedy and then Sandow Birk's illustrations for The Inferno section of Dante's great poem. Some readers will be familiar with Dore and Birk and be much disappointed in Chwast's amateurish efforts.
The Divine Comedy is a difficult read for the modern reader not familiar with Florentine history and a cast of characters known to historians and academics, but not the general reading public. Chwast does a fairly good job making some of the people Dante mentions and their back story understandable; but few, I think, will take much interest in Chwast's truncated version of Dante's great poem.
Chwast fails both to tell a good story and illustrate it with creative and exciting art. This book has not yet been published; it should stay that way.
Perhaps the reader of this review would say, "So much the better. This is a graphic novel, not a traditional book." I agree. However, the graphics had better be good if the book is to succeed; they are not. I just took a moment to look at Gustave Dore's wonderful illustrations for The Divine Comedy and then Sandow Birk's illustrations for The Inferno section of Dante's great poem. Some readers will be familiar with Dore and Birk and be much disappointed in Chwast's amateurish efforts.
The Divine Comedy is a difficult read for the modern reader not familiar with Florentine history and a cast of characters known to historians and academics, but not the general reading public. Chwast does a fairly good job making some of the people Dante mentions and their back story understandable; but few, I think, will take much interest in Chwast's truncated version of Dante's great poem.
Chwast fails both to tell a good story and illustrate it with creative and exciting art. This book has not yet been published; it should stay that way.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
For fans of Chwast
I think that when discussing this book a disclaimer should be made - this is a graphical adaption of Dante's Inferno as seen by Seymour Chwast. This is not like Cliff Notes. Read more
Published 8 days ago by H. Lee
4.0 out of 5 stars
Dante simplified but made strongly visual
THE DIVINE COMEDY is already half-way to being a catalog -- a long listing of sins and sinners (with a much shorter list of virtues and the virtuous) matched to their punishments,... Read more
Published 8 months ago by Andrew C Wheeler
1.0 out of 5 stars
A Dante-less Abomination
I simply see no reason for a book such as this to exist. The illustrations were good, but I wasn't looking for a book with just pictures; I was looking for a graphic novel that... Read more
Published 15 months ago by David Milliern
5.0 out of 5 stars
Such a great book!
I've bought this book for both kids and adults and everyone has loved it! Great illustrations make it a fun way to read this wonderful story.
Published 16 months ago by Lyn
3.0 out of 5 stars
Uninspiring Adaptation
Dante is one of those major forces in literature that you can't go around. Pretty much everything from traditional beliefs in Hell to imaginative ways to dispatch your enemies to... Read more
Published 24 months ago by Tim Lieder
4.0 out of 5 stars
Abandon all hope.
This is the first graphic novel by the celebrated graphic designer, Seymour Chwast. It is an adaptation of Dante's epic poem, The Divine Comedy. Read more
Published on April 16, 2011 by Johnny Heering
3.0 out of 5 stars
Fun More than Anything Else
I had fun reading this. It's certainly no substitute for reading The Divine Comedy itself -- in particular, for me, Chwast's artwork didn't capture the sense of a journey that the... Read more
Published on March 7, 2011 by Doctor Moss
3.0 out of 5 stars
A clever way to present a classic
Though not the real thing, this is a clever way to introduce a classic work to people who may be intimidated by the real "Diving Comedy".
Published on February 25, 2011 by W. E. Phillips
3.0 out of 5 stars
Review of Chwast's 'Dante'
This work is weighed down by the artists own personal intervention in style. Chwast reorganizes all of the imagery to match an anachronistic vision of Dante, and this makes the... Read more
Published on February 21, 2011 by Ryan S. Mease
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great Intro to Dante
As soon as my 3rd grader saw this book, he demanded to read it. He is totally fascinated! In a couple of years, we will take our first run at the real Divine Comedy, and I'm hoping... Read more
Published on December 26, 2010 by hotbiscuitsandsweetmarie
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