Introducing Mikael Bergkvist: A Prolific Champion

Not so very long ago, I had never heard of Mikael Bergkvist. Yet, he is quickly becoming one of my personal favorite artists.

Why??

Not because I think that he's the best artist around, nor even because I admire any particular piece of his artwork.

Rather, what I really love about Mikael Bergkvist, as an artist, is that he is prolific at creating art - particularly art of the superhero or near-superhero variety.

While other artists are piddling around, or moving with the personified essence of sloth, Mikael Bergkvist is busy churning new pieces out, one right after the other in rapid succession. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways, as Elizabeth Barrett Browning might say. The grandeur of Mikael Bergkvist's art can only be fully comprehended and truly appreciated, I believe, by trying to take in the sum totality of what he is producing, art-wise.

I don't care if his characters are imperfect, as they invariably are, at times. I don't care if his scenes are incomplete, with white space left untouched by his artistic hands. I don't even care if he's drawing the characters that I most want to see depicted or not.

No!

What I care about, and care about very much, in fact, is that Mikael Bergkvist doesn't know when to stop.

He's tackled a range of characters in a range of different poses. That's all fine and dandy, of course. It's even preferable, mind you. But, it all comes back to that engine of prolific power that runs non-stop inside of him.

He doesn't spend forever and a day on any given piece of art that he sets his mind to producing. And, maybe for our sanity's sake, that's for the best. Because, if his short time-limited stints produce what he's producing, and at the steady pace that he's producing it, then that approach just might be saving us all from some Mikael Bergkvist-induced stupor of wonderment at what a time-absorbed epic grand masterpiece might actually result in for art viewers like me.

One of the bad things about being a fan of comic book artists is waiting for the next piece of art to come out. Artists are like the goose that laid the golden egg. It's not quite as simple as killing the artist, so that you can get all of the juicy and delicious art out of them, all at one time.

Alas, no. It's just like it is with that accursed goose. Artists craft each art piece, one at a time, and all that the poor, hapless fans can do is to wait until the next one comes to fruition.

So, if there's anything that Mikael Bergkvist can teach other artists, especially ones of the up and coming variety, is the value that inheres in being prolific.

The perfect piece of art, you see, doesn't exist. It has never exist, nor will it ever exist. For inherent to the core nature of art is the desire to see more, to see bigger and better and more intricate things. Art has a certain degree of self-perpetuation built into it by our esteemed Creator. When it comes to being prolific as an artist, Mikael Bergkvist is definitely a speedster.

I first encountered his artistic handiwork over at the Digital Webbing forum, which, in turn, led me to Mikael Bergkvist's Facebook page, on which he has a multitude of his art pieces posted.

It's just one of those scrumptious finds, kind of like finding King Solomon's mines - full of visual treasures of various shapes and sorts. A king's ransom in artistic pleasures, for sure, if you're a fan of comic book superhero art.

I don't know Mikael Bergkvist, personally. I've never met him. In all probability, I'll likely never meet him.

Yet, just the same, I have become a fan of his. Something inside of me tells me that I am addicted to his prolific nature. Damn you, Mikael Bergkvist! Your value as an artist is more than you'll likely ever live to fully realize, much less appreciate in totality. Mikael wears the mantle of artist well.

If you get a chance, be sure to trek on over to Michael's Facebook page, the one where his art is on glorious display, and get a bigger whiff of his artistic excellence.

I'm warning you, though - don't blame me if you become addicted to his prolific nature, too! There's quite a bit to see there, and even after you spend lengthy swaths of time just browsing his collection, it will only leave you all the more hungry for more.

You've heard of Swedish meatballs? Well, Mikael Bergkvist is certainly no meatball of an artist, though he is a Swede. And for me, while Sweden may be a long way from where I call home, home is where the heart is, and finding Mikael Bergkvist's art collection is a lot like finding one's way home.

This vast tome makes me wonder why so many other artists take such a sloth march to generating art. I know, I know. Every artist is different. But, there is much to be said for artists who encapsulate an appreciation for the prolific beast within their overall repertoire of artistic weaponry. To conquer the throngs of fandom, to be prolific is one of the most powerful of artistic weaponcraft to include in one's arsenal of artistic talent.

Mikael Bergkvist's Facebook page for his art, titled Art of Amikael, is well worth dropping by. I heartily recommend the journey.

 A bit more about Mikael can be found here, over on the Lambiek website, Europe's first antiquarian comic shop.

Superheroes usually aren't gifted with the luxury of having all of the time in the world to get the job done. Whether it's the city that needs saving, or the planet, or even the entire universe, superheroes act with a sense of urgency to get the job done.

It's such a pity that so many artists don't incorporate this very same sense of urgency in either their approach to crafting art, or in their approach to gaining fans.

Typically, I don't wear a hat - but, if I did, then it would be off to Mikael Bergkvist. When it comes to being prolific at creating art worth looking at and worthy of being appreciated, Mikael is a true champion!