The Most Famous
COMIC ARTISTS from Canada
This page contains a list of the greatest Canadian Comic Artists. The pantheon dataset contains 226 Comic Artists, 4 of which were born in Canada. This makes Canada the birth place of the 8th most number of Comic Artists behind Italy, and Argentina.
Top 5
The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Canadian Comic Artists of all time. This list of famous Canadian Comic Artists is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity.
1. Joe Shuster (1914 - 1992)
With an HPI of 53.51, Joe Shuster is the most famous Canadian Comic Artist. His biography has been translated into 31 different languages on wikipedia.
Joseph Shuster ( SHOO-stər; July 10, 1914 – July 30, 1992), was a Canadian-American comic book artist best known for co-creating the DC Comics character Superman, with Jerry Siegel, in Action Comics #1 (cover-dated June 1938). Shuster was involved in a number of legal battles over ownership of the Superman character. His comic book career after Superman was relatively unsuccessful, and by the mid-1970s, Shuster had left the field completely due to partial blindness. He and Siegel were inducted into both the comic book industry's Will Eisner Comic Book Hall of Fame in 1992 and the Jack Kirby Hall of Fame in 1993. In 2005, the Canadian Comic Book Creator Awards Association instituted the Joe Shuster Awards, named to honor the Canada-born artist.
2. Hal Foster (1892 - 1982)
With an HPI of 48.03, Hal Foster is the 2nd most famous Canadian Comic Artist. His biography has been translated into 18 different languages.
Harold Rudolf Foster, FRSA (August 16, 1892 – July 25, 1982) was a Canadian-American comic strip artist and writer best known as the creator of the comic strip Prince Valiant. His drawing style is noted for its high level of draftsmanship and attention to detail. Born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, Foster moved to the United States in 1921, and began his illustration career in Chicago, eventually becoming an American citizen. In 1928, he began one of the earliest adventure comic strips, an adaptation of Edgar Rice Burroughs's Tarzan. In 1937, he created his signature strip, the weekly Prince Valiant, a fantasy adventure set in medieval times. The strip featured Foster's dexterous, detailed artwork; Foster eschewed word balloons, preferring to have narration and dialogue in captions.
3. Todd McFarlane (b. 1961)
With an HPI of 44.35, Todd McFarlane is the 3rd most famous Canadian Comic Artist. His biography has been translated into 27 different languages.
Todd McFarlane (; born March 16, 1961) is a Canadian comic book creator, best known for his work as the artist on The Amazing Spider-Man and as the creator, writer, and artist on the superhero horror-fantasy series Spawn, as well as being the current President and a co-founder of Image Comics. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, McFarlane became a comic-book superstar due to his high-selling work on Marvel Comics' Spider-Man franchise, on which he was the artist to draw the first full appearances of the character Venom. In 1992, he helped form Image Comics, pulling the occult anti-hero character Spawn from his high-school portfolio and updating him for the 1990s. The debut issue sold 1.7 million copies, which as of 2007, remains a record for an independent comic book. The character's popularity in the 1990s also encouraged a trend in creator-owned comic-book properties. After leaving inking duties on Spawn with issue No. 70 (February 1998), McFarlane has illustrated comic books less often, focusing on entrepreneurial efforts, such as McFarlane Toys and Todd McFarlane Entertainment, a film and animation studio. In September 2006, it was announced that McFarlane would be the Art Director of the newly formed 38 Studios, founded by Major League Baseball pitcher Curt Schilling. McFarlane used to be a co-owner of the National Hockey League's Edmonton Oilers before selling his shares to Daryl Katz. He is also a high-profile collector of record-breaking baseballs. As a filmmaker, he produced the 1997 film adaptation of Spawn starring Michael Jai White. He will make his directorial debut with the reboot film, which will star Jamie Foxx.
4. Guy Delisle (b. 1966)
With an HPI of 44.22, Guy Delisle is the 4th most famous Canadian Comic Artist. His biography has been translated into 23 different languages.
Guy Delisle (/ɡi dəlil/, born January 19, 1966) is a Canadian cartoonist and animator, best known for his graphic novels about his travels, such as Shenzhen: A Travelogue from China (2000), Pyongyang: A Journey in North Korea (2003), Burma Chronicles (2007), and Jerusalem: Chronicles from the Holy City (2011).
5. Bryan Lee O'Malley (b. 1979)
With an HPI of 32.98, Bryan Lee O'Malley is the 5th most famous Canadian Comic Artist. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.
Bryan Lee O'Malley (born February 21, 1979) is a Canadian cartoonist, best known for the Scott Pilgrim series. He also performs as a musician under the alias Kupek.
People
Pantheon has 5 people classified as Canadian comic artists born between 1892 and 1979. Of these 5, 3 (60.00%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Canadian comic artists include Todd McFarlane, Guy Delisle, and Bryan Lee O'Malley. The most famous deceased Canadian comic artists include Joe Shuster, and Hal Foster. As of April 2024, 1 new Canadian comic artists have been added to Pantheon including Bryan Lee O'Malley.
Living Canadian Comic Artists
Go to all Rankings
Todd McFarlane
1961 - Present
HPI: 44.35
Guy Delisle
1966 - Present
HPI: 44.22
Bryan Lee O'Malley
1979 - Present
HPI: 32.98
