Eronen, Matti :: Don Rosa / The Quest for Kalevala -story

The Quest for Kalevala page 5

Artists: Don Rosa (All) , Jussi Karjalainen (Letterer)

2 Comments - 1,927 Views - 3 Likes

Additional Images:

p5 English edition

P5 jubilee ed without original lettering

P5 original first Finnish ed

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Artwork Details

Title:	The Quest for Kalevala page 5
Artist:	Don Rosa (All)
Artist:	Jussi Karjalainen (Letterer)
Media Type:	Pen and Ink
Art Type:	Interior Page
For Sale Status:	NFS
Views:	1,927
Likes on CAF:	3 4
Comments:	2
Added to Site:	6/24/2018
Comic Art Archive:

Description

This artwork should have went into some museum, as the complete story, when originals came for sale in an auction 2015. But things happened so that this most important Rosa's story, at least for Finnish readers, "broke down" around the globe, just like the original Sampo in Kalevala. Maybe it is the best in this way, so the artwork will bring joy for many comic art collectors. However, in a museum it would have been delighted more folks. I am feeling very happy to "rescue" few originals from the story.
To give perspective, when Finnish National Gallery (Ateneum) organised a small "Duckburg" exhibition, it attracted 245.000+ visitors just in 5 months! In this exhibition was only 12 works, mostly computer colorised drawings. Yes, read that again: National gallery presenting computer colorised pictures! This is what I call pop art ;-) Then just think and place into context this Rosa's original artwork for the story "The Quest for Kalevala".

The story has been published already in Brazil, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Island, Indonesia, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Sweden and US; in some countries several times. You can check details from here: https://inducks.org/story.php?c=D+99078
In Finnish this story has been printed in several editions, as "Sammon salaisuus". First time in the book: "Sammon salaisuus ja muita Don Rosan parhaita" (https://inducks.org/issue.php?c=fi/DR+1999#p007).
This Finnish first edition was awesome sales hit, and so far 12 editions has been done and over 100.000++ copies made since 1999. Remembering to scale into population of 5.5M inhabitants.

But when the Jubilee edition was done in 2017, for some reason original lettering was not there! I don't understand why it was replaced by some standard computer font, which is not even looking that nice like the original lettering. The same happened in Finnish edition of Don Rosa Library.
And even the new lettering is not correct!
In this page 1st panel opened with Donald's saying "Kalevalaisia kalavaleita!" but in the new print it was replaced by "Hah hah! Oikea kalavale!", which is not at all rimming that nicely like the original one. If Donald is laughing in the panel, is it needed to repeat as "hah hah"?
And it continues, later in the page in the original Finnish version Scrooge is speaking about the "remaining" page, and in the jubilee print about "the other half" page. In the Fantagraphics' English edition it was "the other piece". In the Finnish jubilee print also the director says "agreed! Follow me!" (in English version "Say no more! Follow me!"), in the original first edition the happening was so self evident that he only says "Follow me".

About framing the artwork. I wanted to use there Jugend-style frames once it was the golden era in Finnish illustrative arts, and Kalevala had big impact for that. So, I renovated and placed 15+ layers shellac (so called French polishing) into 100+ year old Jugend-style frames, having museum glass there (it is like air, no reflections). Made "floating" hanging (by archival tape) to present the whole artwork, not hiding anything behind a passepartout, but showing how it left from Rosa's desk. There is still a small golden rim list, adding 5mm "safety margin", I mean air between the glass and the art, so the art will never touch the glass.

#DonRosa

Social/Sharing

About the Owner

	Matti Eronen
Joined:	March 2017
Last Login:	September 2025
Website:	http://Illusi0n.com
Country:	FINLAND
On CAF:	Artworks Commented On Liked Art Site Activity on CAF

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Comments on this Artwork

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Alex P. McDuck
Member Since 2015

Posted on 6/24/2018

fantastic D.U.C.K. art from the great Kalevala story, congrats Matti :-)

Monty B
Member Since 2006

Posted on 6/24/2018

Stunning art & framework!!!

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