Right out of the gate on a Friday – Connor Willumsen has a new comic up on Study Group! Sweet Love is the last chocolate in the box, leftover from Valentines Day revels. A sticky treat for modern lovers wrapped in pink and red. READ IT HERE.
Connor’s past work includes Calgary: Death Milks a Cow, which punched us in the gut with it’s visual detail and fierce movement. On the move himself, Connor is hoping to supplement the cost of his transit – “I am currently selling drawings, accepting commissions, skype portraits, etc. email mail@connorwillumsen.com for all inquiries – thanks” You can find an extensive list of Connor’s work HERE. Check it out!
The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund is celebrating Black History Month by spotlighting Black comics makers and cartoonists “who made significant contributions to free expression“. It’s high time to learn about Larry Fuller –
Larry Fuller—a.k.a. A. Christian White—with his quick wit, eye for innovation, and keen sense of opportunity is regarded as one of the indisputable kings of the 1970s underground comix movement.
From Ebon to White Whore Funnies, Fuller wrote comics, drew comics, published comics, and would become one of the premier businessmen in an industry characterized by its fast, loose, and decidedly un-business-like attitude that arose out of the aftermath of the 1954 Comics Code. Fuller’s ability to effectively use satire to comment upon social issues such as race and sexuality would make him an influential and important icon not only in the Black, but also the LGBTQ comics communities.
Read all about Larry Fuller HERE!
The world is losing Sparkplug Books…! This news hurts the heart… Virginia Paine wrote on the Sparkplug blog:
It is with mixed feelings that I must announce that I will be shutting down Sparkplug this year. I appreciate the opportunities that running Sparkplug has given me and the wonderful people it has introduced me to. I know Sparkplug means a lot to many people and I want to assure you this is not a decision I’ve made lightly.
Read the rest of her letter HERE, and see what amazing stuff this publisher still has to offer for the next few months HERE. Don’t mess around – value and support for as long as you can a part of the community that meant a lot to so many.
Hey look! It’s an excerpt from Luke Pearson’s comic in š! #24 ‘Urban Jungle’. These Latvian comics anthologies bring together comics makers from around the world, and their latest offering – due to be released on February 23rd – looks like mad fun. Pre-order it HERE.
Frank recently caught up with Wayne Wise at Phantom of the Attic in Pittsburgh, PA, to get the low down on how Wayne became one of the first Xeric Grant recipients. During the grant’s long cycle (1992-2012) over $3,000,000 was awarded to comic book makers and non-profits. Pretty brilliant! Check out the video below.
Keep up with Wayne Wise over on his blog – Notes From the Playground – and get a taste of his comic Grey Legacy Tales HERE. (You can also get to know him better and hear more great stories via this episode of The AP Collection hosted by another cool Pittsburgh artist, Genevieve Barbee.)
Check out the web comic Lovely’s (story so far HERE), now on it’s 10th episode on Pulp Deluxe HERE.
LOVELY’S is a graphic novel / cookbook in the making, by Val Gallardo and Jonathan Beaton. The story follows a group of old friends who haven’t seen each other since they graduated from art school. Older but none the wiser, the ‘Brush Monkeys’ are reunited after they all receive an invitation to dinner from the mysterious philanthropist and burger tycoon Bingo Lovelett, owner of the Lovely’s Heavenly Burgers empire. New pages every Sunday 6 p.m GMT+1
Weird and funny, like all reunions of old friends should be, this comic is worth following. There’s a mystery to be solved after all…!
A new collaborative comic from Zach Mason & G.W. Duncanson – Team-Up Comic #3, pictured above – just rolled into town! G. W. Duncanson has a history of these team up comics and they’re all interesting in their own right. Check out Team-Up Comic #1, made with Laurie Piña – and Team-Up Comic #2, made with Karissa Sakumoto.
And finally, the fountain of knowledge is running over – another video from Bill Boichel and Comics Workbook, this time dishing up Melody by Sylvia Rancourt. You’re going to want to drop whatever you’re doing and get yourself a copy after watching this!