--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The \"essence\" of comics is fundamentally…" description: "\"The \"essence\" of comics is fundamentally the weird process of reading pictures, not just looking at them. I see the black outlines of cartoons as visua..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c51/chris-ware-8123_age_the-essence-of-comics-is-fundamentally-t_2577173.jpg" --- # The "essence" of comics is fundamentally the weird process… ![“The "essence" of comics is fundamentally the weird process of reading pictures, not just looking at them. I see the black outlines of cartoons as visual approximations of the way we remember general ideas, and I try to use naturalistic color underneath them to simultaneously suggest a perceptual…” quote by Chris Ware](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c51/chris-ware-8123_age_the-essence-of-comics-is-fundamentally-t_2577173.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c51/chris-ware-8123_age_the-essence-of-comics-is-fundamentally-t_2577173.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c51/chris-ware-8123_age_the-essence-of-comics-is-fundamentally-t_2577173.jpg) > “The "essence" of comics is fundamentally the weird process of reading pictures, not just looking at them. I see the black outlines of cartoons as visual approximations of the way we remember general ideas, and I try to use naturalistic color underneath them to simultaneously suggest a perceptual experience, which I think is more or less the way we actually experience the world as adults; we don't really "see" anymore after a certain age, we spend our time naming and categorizing and identifying and figuring how everything all fits together.” [Chris Ware](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-ware/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Comics involve interpreting visual symbols, not just viewing images; they convey ideas through stylized drawings and color that mimic adult perception of the world. **In simple terms:** Reading pictures is interpreting symbols, not just seeing. Key Takeaway Use visual storytelling to convey complex ideas. Themes visual storytelling perception adult cognition artistic technique Mood reflective analytical Type explanatory artistic When to use this quote - graphic novel design - advertising visuals - educational infographics Key Concepts semiotics color theory cognitive psychology Questions to Reflect On - How do visual cues shape understanding? - What role does color play in perception? A Different Perspective Visual interpretation can be subjective, leading to miscommunication. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) [Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black/) [Cartoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cartoon/) [Cartoons Visual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cartoons-visual-1746266/) [Comic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comic/) [Comics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comics/) [Comics Fundamentally](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comics-fundamentally-1746265/) [Essence Comics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/essence-comics-1746268/) [Fit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fit/) [Perceptual Experience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perceptual-experience-1746267/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Remember](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remember/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Together](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/together/) [Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [I really think I tried to capture the essence of the comics: what I thought would be the essence of Elektra. 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In certain species it is a mode of observation, so what we call scientific fact is actually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/perceptual-reality-is-different-for-different-species-in-certain/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [I used to build up to sensation, accumulating tension until it released a perceptual experience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridget-riley/i-used-to-build-up-to-sensation-accumulating-tension-until-it/) [Bridget Riley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-riley/) > [“If I wanted to render precisely the perceptual experience, I ought to say that 'one' perceives in me, and not that I perceive.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/if-i-wanted-to-render-precisely-the-perceptual-experience-i-ought-to/) [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) > [I don't read cartoons because I think for the most part the comics don't have an interest for me. 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I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-ware/there-seems-to-be-a-peculiar-kind-of-clamor-for-comics-and-i-m-not/) [Chris Ware](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-ware/) > [Comics are not a genre, but a developing language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-ware/comics-are-not-a-genre-but-a-developing-language/) [Chris Ware](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-ware/) > [Comics, at least in periodical form, exist almost entirely free of any pretense; the critical world of art hardly touches them, and they're 100% personal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-ware/comics-at-least-in-periodical-form-exist-almost-entirely-free-of-any/) [Chris Ware](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-ware/) > [I was always into cartoons and animation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nonito-donaire/i-was-always-into-cartoons-and-animation/) [Nonito Donaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nonito-donaire/) ## More by Chris Ware > [I don't trust art that promises a 24-hour joyride. 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Whenever I'm working on a comic strip I re-read it, probably… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-ware/there-s-a-rhythm-to-the-words-combined-with-the-pictures-in-a-comic/) [Chris Ware](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-ware/) > [There seems to be such a laziness in - and I hate to use this phrase - the modern world. Everything is pumped out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-ware/there-seems-to-be-such-a-laziness-in-and-i-hate-to-use-this-phrase/) [Chris Ware](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-ware/) > [“I guess we all make choices as to how we want to live, right?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-ware/i-guess-we-all-make-choices-as-to-how-we-want-to-live-right/) [Chris Ware](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-ware/) > [Fortunately, I'm able to make a living from comics, so I'm privileged enough to be quite choosy, though most cartoonists can't afford to be.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-ware/fortunately-i-m-able-to-make-a-living-from-comics-so-i-m-privileged/) [Chris Ware](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-ware/) > [“Every city began as a campsite”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-ware/every-city-began-as-a-campsite/) [Chris Ware](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-ware/) > [I think cartooning gets at, and re-creates on the page, some sixth sense ... in a way no other medium can.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-ware/i-think-cartooning-gets-at-and-re-creates-on-the-page-some-sixth/) [Chris Ware](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-ware/) > [“This life we endure - how strange, yet how jolly”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-ware/this-life-we-endure-how-strange-yet-how-jolly/) [Chris Ware](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-ware/) [Explore all 84 Chris Ware quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-ware/) ## More Age quotes > [I need a bath." 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