RIP TATJANA WOOD
Tatjana Wood died the other day, at the age of 99. Born to a Jewish father in Germany in 1926, she emigrated to New York City in 1947, where she met and married Wally Wood and began working in the comics industry. They'd divorce before he killed himself. She became a prolific colorist for DC Comics, perhaps now most associated with Alan Moore's run on Swamp Thing. Due to how comic book production works, much of the coloring credited to her in the trade paperback collections do not match her original contributions, composed for the printing and paper of the day, and not preserved on film the way the lineart was. Scans of the original issues capture her artistry. Here are some examples, all written by Alan Moore and lettered by John Costanza:
From the DC Comics Presents issue presenting a team-up between Superman and Swamp Thing, "The Jungle Line." Pencils by Rick Veitch, inked by Al Williamson.
From Swamp Thing 44, penciled by Steve Bissette and inked by John Totleben.
From Swamp Thing 53, penciled and inked by John Totleben.
From Swamp Thing 63, penciled by Rick Veitch and inked by Alfredo Alcala. These later issues were printed in DC's "New Format," rather than on newsprint, and the colors are more vibrant. Another book Tatjana colored for DC printed in the New Format around this time was The Question, written by Denny O'Neil and penciled by Denys Cowan, lettered by Willie Schubert. Later in the run it was inked by Malcolm Jones III. Here is a two-page sequence showing Tatjana's coloring on that series:
In the nineties, comics color changed its production process further. This page from the series Brainbanx shows Tatjana Wood working with the computer color separation house Heroic Age:
Brainbanx was written by Elaine Lee, drawn by Temujin, and has lettering by Richard Starkings and Comicraft. I would say it is the use of digital fonts which makes it seem less appealing and dated. But it is worth noting, in selecting these pages for particular moments of striking power, that Swamp Thing, in particular, is filled with beautiful impactful and iconic moments, and The Question is well-regarded for its consistency and approach to action and character. If Brainbanx is forgotten, that is likely not nearly the fault of the creators involved as it is owed to a corporate culture that, while it would print creator-owned work, would not necessarily see it as a viable money-maker when making decisions about keeping it in print or marketing it long-term. But that's an argument for another day! Really I just wanted to include a later-period Tatjana Wood piece, and that series was what I had on hand.
