THE TRIGGERS

From time to time Barks set out to paint some of his artworks using a large number of the well known Disney characters. Examples are 137-89 Holiday in Duckburg and 140-92 Mardi Gras before the Thaw. And in 3-76 July Fourth in Duckburg he even incorporated some of his friends and associates!
Now, when Donald Duck's official 50th birthday was approaching in 1984, Barks decided to make yet another 'mass spectacle' this time concentrating on some of the former Disney stars mixed in with current ones.

Initially, Barks opted for as many current characters from both the Mouse and the Duck universes that could be squeezed into the scene, but his general manager Bruce Hamilton was more apprehensive, because he was under the impression that the painting concession with Disney only allowed the use of the ducks and Pluto, thus he foresaw some lifted eyebrows in the Disney corporation and consequently suggested less well known characters.
Barks complied up to a point (see more later) but ended up making the artwork according to his own wishes.

The painting motif is somewhat remindful of Barks' story in U$34 Chugwagon Derby from 1961, in which Donald Duck and Scrooge McDuck participate in a race for old cars.
No wonder that Barks wished to try his hand in artwork containing great numbers of vintage cars. He practically grew up with them! Young Carl saw his first real motorcar at age 10 when he and his family moved to the - for him - big city of Santa Rosa in California, and the interest in cars stayed with him all of his life. And now he was free to dream up a painting featuring scenic elements from the past.

THE PAINTING

127-84 A 1934 Belchfire Runabout

The painting was made in 1984 as Barks' 127th official Disney painting according to his own numbering system. It was produced using oil colours on Masonite and it measures 24x30" (610x760mms). The theme is the presentation of vintage cars preparing for a rally with the Duck family and their red car with the license plate number 313 in the center. One may argue that it is not an old car (it was introduced by artist Al Taliaferro in the Donald Duck newspaper comic on July 1, 1938 and modeled around the real 1938 American Bantam. But in the comics it was soon better known as the 1934 Belchfire Runabout.

Here is a complete listing of all the participating characters (except the Duck family) mentioned clockwise from the left: Pluto, Horace Horsecollar, Clara Cluck, Grandma Duck, Gus Goose, Mickey Mouse, Scrooge McDuck, Daisy Duck, Minnie Mouse, Gladstone Gander, Clarabelle Cow, Gyro Gearloose, and Little Helper. Barks also added two one-timer story characters namely the parrot Joe from Singapore from WDCS065 and the chipmunk Cheltenham from WDCS168.

The paintings Barks made in the surrounding months were sold at 22,500 dollars each, which was a clear indication that he 'ruled' the market and could demand any price he chose to. The Belchfire painting became just another example of this beneficial rule, when Barks sold it. The amount was so huge at the time that it was customary for the purchasers to pay (in advance) in 3 installments of 7,500 dollars! The painting was ordered by Hamilton.

The paintings that were produced from 1982 on were all made into lithographs and/or serigraphs so that more fans could be able to obtain an almost genuine Barks artwork on their walls. The Belchfire painting was the 4th lithograph in the series and it was issued in 345 regular editions on Opalesque paper all numbered and signed by Barks.

THE PRELIMINARY

As mentioned before Hamilton was not too keen on having too many popular Disney characters in the painting, so Barks made a few toned down suggestions, before he finally took the plunge and made the character gallery as he saw fit. In this preliminary painting you are missing a number of the well known characters, of which some have been replaced with uninteresting generic characters.

THE CONTINUATOR

Several artists worldwide have over the years since Barks' death made brilliant copies of some of his Disney paintings. The most dedicated and productive is the Italian autodidact artist Gilberto 'Gil' Ugolini, who paints copies of Barks' artwork as a hobby (see examples HERE). By now he has made several dozens and you can see more examples on Gil's own website HERE.

Here follows a small excerpt written by Gil describing his technique of painting copies of Barks' artwork:

First of all, I must say very clearly that I only paint to pay tribute to the greatest comic book artist of all time, and only for my personal pleasure. The following account should be useful to those who only paint for hobbies.
I always choose acrylic colours for the following reasons: Today acrylic colours have reached a great quality, and are very bright. Oil colours are certainly brighter, but they need very long time to dry, and then correct the mistakes that are made. With acrylic colours, however, you see the colour rendering immediately, and you can intervene, within a few minutes, with all the necessary corrections. In addition, oil colours require the use of dilution solvents, that are very harmful to health when used in closed and un-ventilated environments. Instead, the acrylic colours should be diluted with water.

Use a full size copy of the original painting on the Masonite board and place a black charcoal paper inbetween. With a very hard pencil, print out the contours of the figures on the print. In this way you get a drawing amalgamated with the Masonite plaster surface.
Perform this work with great patience, every now and then checking the correct execution of the recalculation. You should not be mistaken even a tenth of a millimeter. This is very important, as the figures have an anthropomorphic character, and only a tenth of a millimeter can alter the appearance of a figure. Barks did exactly that. When the drawing is completed, review the figures with a soft pencil correcting any errors.
Now you just have to start painting. Generally I start at the top left. Always complete small parts in a definitive way, often comparing the painting with the original colour printing.

I use acrylic colours trademarked Maimeri Brera and Schmincke Primacryl. These colours are among the best on the market.

I use brushes of the brand Leonhardy Toray Gold 375 #3. They are synthetic brushes with an incredible quality. Without these brushes, it would not be possible to paint all the details. I've used other brands of brushes but these are the best ever.

When painting dissolve small amounts of colour onto a glass plate. The glass does not absorb water, and the colour will remain liquid for a few minutes, i.e. for the time necessary to paint.

The final step: Apply a coat of varnish, using a soft and wide brush. Pay close attention to this, and act with calm and precision. The end result will be a brilliant painting protected against dust. Wait at least 15 days before framing the painting.