One of the highest achievements in any of the arts is to reduce the idea and execution to its simplest terms. We can all remember that the greatest one-liners in movie and advertising history have consisted of just a few words. That kind of simplicity is on full display in Gahan Wilson's "Here Spot". In this two-panel cartoon story, Wilson does a twist on a popular dog's name. Drawn mostly in black line and set against a white background, we see a man call a dog. " Here Spot" Coincidentally, the dog's visual identity is defined by a single glorious spot. In panel two, the dog stays, but the spot comes flying off to follow the man. The punchline: the man was calling the spot, not the dog. Leave it up to the genius of Gahan Wilson to amuse his viewers with another highly original creation. "Here Spot" should be a Hall of Fame cartoon, defined by its originality, minimalistic simplicity, and quirkiness. Signed lower left. unframed Published: 'Gahan Wilson's Even Weirder', Forge: New York, 1996. Provenance: The Estate of the Artist
