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I always considered myself a techie kind of guy in that I enjoy a good gadget as much as anyone.  When it came to art supplies nothing was more of a gadget than an airbrush to a high school kid back in 1979. I was proud of my dual action Badger and 15 psi compressor and the unique effects I could get while illustrating an image.

Illustrating with an airbrush was much more messy than generating images with Photoshop or Illustrator. A good airbrush was not much more than a sophisticated can of spray paint.  A pen shaped sprayer with a cup of paint attached, connected by a long hose to a small compressor pumping out air. Sure, you could control the flow of air and paint to make lines as fine as a pencil or as broad as you wanted but spraying paint required a lot of planning  and preparation. Mistakes could not easily be deleted as they can be while working with today’s sophisticated computer programs.

Illustrating with an airbrush usually required a lot of masking tape, frisket and a spray booth to prevent overspray from ruining everything else in the room. Getting sprayed paint on yourself was a no-brainer and the plan was usually to dress down and prepare to get dirty.

When I was a freshman at the Philadelphia College of Art (Now UArts) my 2D Design instructor Ron Dorfman told the most amazing airbrush story. I could never embellish it as well as he did but I’m sure going to try.

During a class on airbrushing Mr. Dorfman was explaining how we needed to be careful about breathing in the atomized overspray from the airbrush. He suggested that we invest in a respirator or at least a filter mask to prevent inhalation of potentially dangerous pigments and fumes.

He said one time, after working on a project, he blew his nose and panicked when he appeared to be hemorrhaging blood from his nose. The blood turned out to be red pigment that he had been spraying and inhaled. The experience sent him searching for something to protect himself.

He came across the type of face mask that doctors use and realized that doctor’s scrubs would make a great coverall to wear over his good clothes to protect them while he worked with his airbrush. On tight deadlines he could just take off the coverall and zip over to his client without having to waste time getting changed to look presentable. It was a great system that worked wonderfully.

Now the story turns into a script out of Desperate Housewives. Mr. Dorfman, as a freelance illustrator had the luxury of working out of his home, and being one of the only men in his neighborhood to be home during the day, it was common knowledge that he was available to be called on for assistance should his help be needed.

One day while finishing a job, his scrubs  covered once again with red spatter from his airbrush and his mask firmly in place on his face, Mr. Dorfman hears the doorbell ring and moves to answer it with airbrush in hand. At the door is a startled neighborhood woman whose garage door was stuck. She apologetically declines his assistance however because she realizes that the scrub clad man covered apparently with blood and holding some sort of vacuum tube in front of her  has a much more pressing priority and quickly flees his doorstep, leaving Mr. Dorfman perplexed  as he returns to his illustration.

Days later, Mr. Dorfman is out at the local grocery store where he has the unusual feeling that people are staring at him. The tension continues to mount when a familiar lady from town confronts him and asks if it’s true that he performs ABORTIONS out of his house!

Floored by his new reputation Mr. Dorfman could only proceed to the check out  preoccupied with thoughts of damage control. Can you imagine if that would have been Rick Santorum campaigning at his door that day, OMG!

There always seemed to be something adventurous about an old school studio, messy tools, thick chemical odors, a visual texture and an air of mastery that was individual to each creator wether they made comics, illustrations, fine paintings or sculptures. The digital age of art has sterilized many a studio and though the output may be equally or even more amazing it is never the same experience for a creator who has cut their teeth by rolling up their sleeves and getting dirty.

Thanks for the memories Ron Dorfman and thanks for letting me share yours.

Celebrating Thirty Years of Comics History!

Gerry Giovinco