Batman (Vol. 1) 273 Original Cover Art

Batman (Vol. 1) #273 Cover Original Art (DC, March 1976). Ernie Chan (also attributed as Ernie Chua, his real name) had quite the run on both Detective and Batman in the 70's, penciling and inking a number of covers and interiors. This cover is for the Batman story "The Bank-Shot That Baffled Batman" and features the Underworld Olympics Crew holding Batman captive in front of a cannon (which was assembled in a bank in the story). Chan had a knack for capturing Batman in bad situations against terrible odds, and this cover is no exception. The cover itself is pretty simple in its approach, with really no background to speak of. This allows focus on the characters themselves, as well as the cannon, which all have an incredible amount of detail. Admittedly this is not my favorite Chan cover, but it is still a great example of how he creates characters, and the Batman is definitely unmistakably his style. Created in ink over graphite on standard Bristol board, with an image size of 11" X 17". Signed next to the cannon wheel as "Ernie Chua". All logos and word balloons are original stats except for "Now" and the tail on the "Europe" balloon.