A Glossary of Comic terms

Comics: a series or pictures that follow a narrative sequence

Cartooning: The focusing on key details of a figure, object or setting.

An example of Cartooning from “Scott Mccloud’s Understanding Comics”

Panel: The frame in which comics are drawn.

Panels from Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

Closure: The observation of parts while perceiving the whole of an image or series of images.

The panels in the bottom right corner of this page in Art Spigelman’s Maus come together to form an image of Art’s father riding a bike.

Gutter: The spaces between the panels of a comic.

Action to action: A type of transition in comics that features a single subject in the progression of a single action.

An example of an action to action transition.

Aspect to Aspect: A type of transition in comics that features a bypassing of time and a wandering eye on different aspects of a place, idea or mood.  

An example of an aspect to aspect transition.

Negative space: Space around and between subjects of an image. When considered, it can strengthen the effectiveness of an image.

An amazing use of Negative Space

Spread: A spread is an image or series of panels that span over more than one page. Comics typically use two-page or double-page spreads.

A double-page spread, typically seen in most comics.

Icon: Any image used to represent a person, place, thing or Idea.

Types of icons according to Scott Mccloud

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