1947-2022, 75th anniversary
Scrooge McDuck, a Scottish-American anthropomorphic Pekin duck created by Carl Barks for the Disney comic books, first appeared in the story "Christmas on Bear Mountain", published in December of 1947 (Four Color #178).
Living in Duckburg, Calisota, in his own "Money Bin" placed on Killmule Hill, he's Donald Duck's maternal uncle, as well as Huey's, Dewey's, and Louie's grand-uncle.
The richest duck in the world, he was initially characterized as a greedy miser and antihero, but in later appearances, he has often been portrayed as a thrifty hero, adventurer, and explorer.
He's, without a doubt, my favorite Disney character.
My ideal Scrooge McDuck story would be written by Carl Barks and illustrated by one of the Italian Disney artists I love!
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I was in Cernobbio for the Lake Como Comic Art Festival 2022 in May and I was (really) lucky to get one of the very few slots available for a commission by Federico Bertolucci, an outstanding artist trained at the Disney Academy that is currently doing wonders either with Disney (see "Les vacances de Donald") or non-Disney comics (see "Love", "Brindille").
My request was simply a piece showing his vision of Scrooge McDuck.
It was amazing to see Federico creating the piece, channeling the Barks and classic cartoons vibes together with his very own magic, from pencil to inks to color, using gouache and watercolor, and it was particularly enjoyable to have also the chance to talk with him during the creation of the piece, discussing so many topics, most of which Disney-related.
I think Federico marvelously captured Barks' spirit in this piece that shows Scrooge immersed in his money and riches, and also visibly annoyed by the mere presence of a moth.
I do love the concept and how Federico illustrated it... it's as close to Scrooge's perfection as it can be.
Please check some work-in-progress pictures (posted by Bertolucci on his Instagram) in the additional images as well as the
pencil prelim.
Huge thanks to Federico, Antonio, and Sylvain!
Paper size: 21 x 29.7 cm
