The Batman on Gargoyle statue was sculpted by Randy Bowen in 1991 and released in 1992 in 5500 copies. It can be considered one of the true forerunner of the statues dedicated to the superheroes world, the pieces that, presumably, contributed to create this kind of collecting. In the early 90s, one of the most popular cartoonist of Batman was Kelly Jones. His representations of the hero were often lengthened, characterized by a vaguely vampire style and (as usual for many artists of that period, starting with Todd McFarlane) by very long cloaks. In addition, the image of Batman perched on a gargoyle had become a kind of popular icon, widespread among the designers and very popular to the fans of the hero. In essence, the Batman sculpted by Bowen represents the sum of these ingredients. The head is clearly inspired by the original concept-art created by Dick Jordan (see the figure on the left) which, however, Bowen decided not to propose to the DC (because of the excessive cost of production), opting for a less complex design, closer to the style of Jones. The result is a statue of a relevant figurative appeal, characterized by a great attention to detail and a remarkable sculptural quality, in which somehow the character mixes the traits of the Silver and Bronze ages of the US Comics. The sculpt is amazing and very original: Batman is completely covered by a huge cloak which the body shape shine through, with an excellent naturalness, in a willowy and very well designed pose. The figure exhibits two sharp-cornered epaulettes, an extremely stretched neck, the typical ears of the mask elongated and pointed, and while the left hand is placed head-on with clenched fist, the right holds a hem of the cloak with an incredible realism. The perfect curved silhouettes of the left leg, feet and right arm are well visible under the cloak, whose countless folds are scattered everywhere on the figure, with the beautiful pointed tips shaken by the wind. The face exhibits elegant traits, quite similar to the table of Jordan, with squared nose and chin, a well shaped mouth and the contours of the eyebrow arches and cheekbones sculpted in a masterful way. The gargoyle offers a great visual impact, although a little squat and rather different from the old Gothic style which should be inspired to: the contours of the face appear very sharp, the legs stubby and squared and the wings are characterized by a series of incisions to simulate a kind of internal plumage. The base resembles a pyramidal wall of stones: it shows a frontal plate with a bronze semblance (and the hero's name) and, on the back, the words “1992 DC COMICS INC. BOWEN”, equipped with the copyright symbol. The coloring reveals more than any other detail the notable age of the piece! The color gradients, shadows and nuances characterizing the more recent Bowen statues here leave room for a dirty painting, with rudimentary traits, instinctively made of brushstrokes of color and spartan chromatic contrasts, yet of great charm. It is sufficient to note the continuous and net gaps between the black and gray on the body of the gargoyle or, in particular, the mask of the character, where the blue color (almost uniform along the neck and pointed ears) “suddenly” turns into the background black, aimed at highlighting the forehead and the perfect white eyes. The Batman on Gargoyle statue is made of porcelain and was released in a box with two large blocks of foam, in the attempt (not always successful) of safeguarding the statue and, above all, the delicate extremities of the mask and the cloak. Probably the commercial success of this piece was remarkable, so much so that in 1996 the same statue was proposed again in a resin version (in a smaller scale, in 5400 samples) and even in real bronze, with a black marble base (only 250 pieces), thus creating an artwork of great value which soon became the dream of many collectors. After so many years, the availability of this piece on the market is quite good. Due to the extremely wide run, in fact, it is not rare to find it on the international ebay networks (in particular, the American one). The quotations, however, are always very high, especially in case of perfect integrity and presence of the original box and packaging. Also the mini-statue (made of resin) can be found with relative easiness and at a considerably lower price, while the bronze statue of 1996 is, like all true bronzes, one of the rarest and most expensive collectible of this hobby. Despite the slightly stylized design, the particular sculpt and the little rough coloring demonstrate the pioneering nature of the piece, the Batman on Gargoyle (in my opinion) stand very well the comparison with the more recent and beautiful Bowen statues. Anyway, whatever the personal judgment could be on the aesthetics of this piece, its charm and its historical and collectible value are simply incomparable.