Bob Kessel’s Square Spider-Man and Boxy Batman Art Will Squeeze Your Brain

If you thought Jamie Roberts' vector art or Mark Grambau's superhero silhouettes represented crowning achievements in boiling down comics characters to their most iconic states, have a look at artist and illustrator Bob Kessel's little boxes of thick lines with color. Kessel's no amateur; his work has appeared in The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, as well as fine art galleries and private collections. Still, the jaw-dropping ease with which he's able to cram Spider-Man, Captain America and Wonder Woman into tiny spaces and keep them recognizable is downright astonishing.

Amid the cube-loving legacies of Pablo Picasso and Jack Kirby, he does a great service to both men's contributions to fine art and pop art, and depending on your own perspectives on the two of them, you may find a lot to get cosmically jazzed about below.