The Sculptor (comics)
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| Creator | Scott McCloud |
| Date | 2015 |
| Page count | 496 pages |
| Publisher | First Second Books |
The Sculptor is a graphic novel by American cartoonist Scott McCloud published in 2015. It tells of a David Smith whom Death gives 200 days to live in exchange for the power to sculpt anything he can imagine. Complications set in when David falls in love.
26-year-old New York-based artist David Smith is dealing with a difficult life—his family is dead, his patron has abandoned him, and he is broke—when Death greets him in the guise of his dead uncle Harry. Death offers David the power to sculpt anything he wishes, at the cost of having only 200 days to live. After David accepts, Death tells him he will receive his wish at sunrise. Following their meeting, David is surrounded by a crowd of strangers, including a woman with angel wings who tells him "everything will be alright".
At a later meet-up at his friend Ollie's art gallery, David meets Penelope Hammer, an elder board director who is eager to help him, and Finn Tanaka, a privileged artist and Ollie's boyfriend. Ollie takes David after to a party in an attempt to get him to make friends, and during the party David overhears Finn bragging about exploiting Ollie. He also discovers the crowd of strangers from earlier in the day, who are also now at the party, was a flash mob filming him for a viral video. David is angered that they tricked him, but the woman who played the angel, named Meg, apologizes and comforts him. David wanders back home, and on a bridge at sunrise discovers he's gained the power to reshape any material with his hands.
Six weeks later, David has created dozens of sculptures in his apartment for a massive showing. Ollie invites several guests, including art critics, but his sculptures receive poor reviews. Later that night his landlord kicks him out after a sculpture breaks through the floor, and David is left without money again. He wanders homeless for days until attempting to commit suicide, but is discovered by Meg and brought to her apartment. David is allowed to stay with her and her roommates until he gets enough money to return home. Getting in contact with Ollie, he learns of an opening at the gallery and prepares a new set of sculptures to compete for the spot, while also growing closer to Meg.
After she and her boyfriend separate, David and Meg begin dating, despite Death-as-Harry's warning that David's impending death could affect her badly. After Hanukkah passes, David learns that he didn't get the gallery spot but Ollie's boyfriend Finn did. Accusing Ollie of nepotism, he breaks off their friendship and grows frustrated due having only four months left to live. Shortly thereafter, though, Meg falls into depression and David learns from her roommates that she is frequently afflicted by it. David resolves to stay and provide her emotional support, but it takes three weeks for her to recover, during which a frustrated David vandalizes Finn's sculpture with his powers.
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