Comics Workbook

An online magazine for comics makers

Posted in NewsTagged Chris Ware, Eric Scott Pfeiffer, Profweston, Susan Sontag

Harrison

Posted on April 14, 2016April 15, 2016

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09/29/2017

Sally IngrahamSeptember 28, 2017NewsSally here with Edwina Dumm, Tove Jansson, Sophia Foster-Dimino, Carol Tyler, and plenty more…! ———————————————————————————————— Once again I am writing from on the road, as the Comics Workbook team is in Columbus, OH, for Cartoon Crossroads Columbus. I really enjoyed this show last year, and look forward to a rewarding and profitable venture again this year. We pulled into Columbus around 2 PM yesterday and rushed straight to the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum to catch Kevin Huizenga‘s “Talk and Teach” (above). He dug into the ideas about deep time in his series Ganges. It was a nice way to kick off the show. Afterward I went to the BICLM gallery to check out the two shows on display. One is a history of the BICLM itself, detailing the founding acquisitions and how they came about. The other exhibition pulls unique comics from the collection and shares the stories behind them – whether they were groundbreaking strips, or controversial, or by an innovative creator. Everything caught my eye, each comic or strip was totally fascinating and a few brought me to tears (we’re talking original Peanuts strips here, pencil smudges and all). I’ll just share one thing with you today (all stops will be pulled next week!) I was delighted to find about 5 of Edwina Dumm‘s editorial cartoons on display (pictured below). She was the first woman to work full-time as an editorial cartoonist in the US. Her cartoons ran from Dec. 1916 to July 1917 in the Columbus Monitor. The newspaper folded, and she moved to New York City where she went on to create the nationally syndicated strip Cap Stubbs and Tippie, which ran for 60 years. An early version of Tippie seems to appear in the comic below – the dog sitting next to the money bag. Tippie morphed into a more terrier-like dog later in the strip, but at the beginning he looked quite a lot like that odd little fellow! This second strip delighted me due to the glorious “before” picture hanging on the wall. Poor little NEWS! Okay, I can’t resist, here’s one more thing – a drawing by Hal Foster (of Prince Valiant fame) that he made as a child (below). The BICLM has a bunch of his sketchbooks from 1901-1904, and as any great future cartoonist should, he busied himself copying the comics he enjoyed as well as coming up with his own. Hilarious. Today I am zipping out the hotel door to make it back over to the BICLM by 10 AM to catch Leslie Stein talk watercolor techniques, and then hear Signe Wilkinson review her career (she’s the first female Pulitzer prize-winning editorial cartoonist), and Jamaica Dyer discuss autobio comics. The reading room at the BICLM will be full of items from the archive picked out to be displayed by some of the CXC special guests, and tours of the archives themselves will be happening every hour. Oh yes, and around 3 PM the entire Comics Workbook crew at the show will be sure to attend the keynote spotlight on Chris Ware. PHEW! What a day. Obviously there will be plenty more to report on in the next few days – follow CW on Instagram (@comicsworkbook) and Frank Santoro (@santoro.frank) and my own Instagram feed (@sally_ingraham) for “live” updates. Once again, check out the full CXC schedule of events HERE. For the moment, however, I’ll turn my eyes to other parts of the world. ————————————————————————————————— There’s a lovely little article in The Guardian about Tove Jansson and the female characters that populate the world of the Moomins, which were often based on the women in Tove’s own life – her mother, friends, and lovers. She never spoke of herself as a feminist, but she was one in the truest sense. “In part thanks to the support of these women and the characters they inspired, Tove’s entire life was filled with bold decisions: selling satirical cartoons mocking Hitler; opposing war; choosing not to marry or have children; and turning down Walt Disney’s offer to buy the Moomin brand. She was the writer, illustrator, designer and controlled the business side of her creation, not trusting anyone else to do it justice. “She wasn’t willing to compromise on her beliefs,” says Sophia. “Her work says: ‘This is me. This is who I am. Take it or leave it.’ ” “ Read the whole article HERE. ————————————————————————————————— Sophia Foster-Dimino‘s Sex Fantasy (Koyama Press, Sept. 2017) was reviewed on Publishers Weekly. “Each tale is intimate and mysterious, the fantasy of the title often a denial of the harmful effects of desire. With her deceptively simple line, Foster-Dimino has captured deep, dark places where the conscious mind rarely goes.” Read the whole review HERE. Get a copy of Sex Fantasy HERE. ————————————————————————————————— Carol Tyler, ladies and gents. ————————————————————————————————— Okay, what else – let’s see here…. Vice celebrates Annie Koyama and Koyama Press on the occasion of their 10th anniversary – read the article HERE. Sara Lautman has a strip called Spelunking up on Kenyon Review – check it out HERE. Hilary Brown takes a look at Tillie Walden‘s Spinning on Paste Magazine – review and interview HERE. Over on The Comics Beat Rob Staeger interviews Mimi Pond and talks The Customer is Always Wrong. The Comics Journal has a length interview with Brigitte Findakly, who wrote Poppies in Iraq along with her husband Lewis Trondheim, who did the artwork. Read it HERE. Rob Clough reviews Meghan Turbitt‘s How to Eat Chips, and Whit Taylor‘s Fizzle #1. ————————————————————————————————— The fall semester of thee Santoro Correspondence Course for Comic Book Makers starts October 1st 2017. 8 weeks of comics instruction that will bang your practice into shape – 500 bux. Full details about the course and how to apply can be found HERE. ————————————————————————————————— Frank Santoro made a comic book about his parents and now he needs help making a handbound copy of the book for each of them. It’s a good story. Check out the Indiegogo campaign HERE – or if you want to contribute via PayPal, look at the campaign HERE. ————————————————————————————————— Suzy and Cecil – 9-29-2017 – by Gabriella Tito Share this page: [...]

03/02/2016

Sally IngrahamMarch 2, 2016NewsMarch is Women’s History Month, and the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund is celebrating female cartoonists. First up was Barbara Hall, the main artist for Girl Commandos, which appeared in issues of Speed Comics in the 1940s. Read a bit more about her HERE, and check the CBLDF throughout the month for more biographical snippets of women in comics. How about a female cartoonist who is working today? Anna Mancini, or Manzanna, is a Brazilian artist. Click on the image above for more info about that particular comic. You can find much of Anna’s work on her tumblr, but it is nice to experience her comic Sadnesses HERE. A simple slideshow format brings a different rhythm to the panels, forcing, or allowing, you to slow down and really see it. This different type of viewing experience leads to a discussion of Stela, a subscription-based iOS app for reading comics that just hit the stores. The app was reviewed over on Polygon. Stela is experimenting with a variation on a format known as…the Infinite Canvas, a term coined by that mad scientist of sequential art, Scott McCloud. For obvious reasons, comics on screens don’t have to obey the physical limitations of print, and in his 2000 book Reinventing Comics, McCloud proposed that the screen could be treated as a window. Will it work or won’t it? That’s probably up to personal preference and the quality of the content. Fortunately comics like Ronald Wimberly’s GratNin are trying the app on for size, and if Ron can make the endless scroll bend to his will then there’s probably hope for it. On a somewhat related note, Simon Reinhardt has just released Mystery Town #4 and announced that it is going to be “officially a monthly thing for 2016″…! Who else is excited? Follow the link above to check out the whole thing, and read issues 1-3 as well. Tyler Landry has finished publishing The Jaundiced Eye on Comics Workbook. Stumble into a shadowy state that mesmerizes and terrifies almost equally. If you’re hungry for more CLAV after this, Tyler just loaded all of Shit and Piss #3 on Ello – check it out HERE. I hope these bits and bobs help you get through hump day! Cheerio – Sally Share this page: [...]

04/12/2017

Juan FernándezApril 12, 2017los Cómics / NewsEmpezamos el día con el Fanzine Chileno; Martin Lopez Lam; El Museo Nacional de Japón; El Víbora; Sole Otero; Edd Muñoz; Conxita Herrero; Arturo Porras sobre Jack Kirby; Alexis Ziritt; y los tebeos de Comics Workbook. ————————————————————————————————— Uhu, papel y tijera – Constanza Gutiérrez y el Fanzine Chileno Hace dos semanas, el New York Times publicó un artículo titulado “¿Por qué internet no mató a los fanzines?”, y a los pocos días el diario El País también hizo lo suyo. Actualmente existen plataformas gratuitas para crear blogs y álbumes de fotos, y si la idea es conectar con otros o propagar una idea, se supone que la web es el medio adecuado, pero para un montón de gente no basta. Los fanzines viven hoy una época dorada y en Chile, como en varios otros países, están circulando muchos. Esta es una pequeña muestra. ————————————————————————————————— Alejandro Serrano entrevista a Martin Lopez Lam artista gráfico,editor, agitador cultural. De hablan? De todo. ALEJANDRO SERRANO: ¿Cómo surgió la idea de organizar un festival como Tenderete? MARTÍN LÓPEZ LAM: Surgió de casualidad. En septiembre del año 2010 vinieron a Valencia los portugueses de Chili Com Carne, que estaban haciendo una muestra-gira por Europa y llegaron a Lavakerí, que por entonces la llevaba Susana, con ayuda del Parras y mía. Ahí montamos una muestra, conocimos a los portugueses y éstos nos dijeron que hacían un festival en Lisboa, la Feria Laica. En diciembre del mismo año fui al festival y vi cómo la organizaban, a la vuelta pensé que no parecía tan complicado montar algo así, siempre y cuando hubiera gente interesada. Una de esas personas fue Clara Iris. Al final, fue todo muy improvisado. ————————————————————————————————— Cómics y noticias que me han llamado la atención esta semana: El Museo Nacional de Japón publica en su web casi 70 animes de la primera mitad del siglo XX. Tebeosfera os ofrece una galería con varias portadas la mítica revista El Víbora. Poncho Fue – Crónica de una relación tóxica, magníficamente contado por la argentina Sole Otero. Otero describe magníficamente en su novela gráfica los extremos de una relación sentimental dañina. Edd Muñoz abrió un blog, El Ojo Erratico, donde estara hablando de cómics. La primera entrada está dedicada a The End de Anders Nilsen. It’s Nice That le pone el spotlight a Conxita Herrero. Lanzate dentro su mundo lleno de color y emoción! Arturo Porras celebra el Centenario de Jack Kirby. Analiza y explora la vida y obra del Rey de los cómics en la ZONA NEGATIVA. Get an original page from #SpaceRiders volumen uno!!! Last opportunity to pick up art by Alexis Ziritt!!! Out of Step Arts had taken these SPACE RIDERS pages down, but so many folks asked about them so they’re now back for one last run. ————————————————————————————————— Blinkers – 4-12-2017 – by Jack Brougham ————————————————————————————————— Suzy and Cecil – 4-12-2017 – by Sally Ingraham ————————————————————————————————— Joanie and Jordie – 4-12-2017 – by Caleb Orecchio Share this page: [...]

Ch 3: Inking the Head and Figure (FACC)

Juan FernándezJanuary 1, 2016ResourcesShare this page: [...]

12/09/2016

Sally IngrahamDecember 9, 2016NewsSally here with Vanesa R. Del Rey’s new book, work by Sylvie Fontaine, Fiona Smyth, and Gabriella Tito, and notes on the All Time Comics project. ————————————————————————————————— “Frank Santoro: Vanesa, I’m quite taken aback by your sheer technical ability which seems to be married to a poetic sensibility. There’s a lightness there. Sometimes illustrators with that ability get heavy-handed. Yet you manage the push-pull between the two sides of yourself – because you’re like a samurai. The humble samurai. Vanesa R. Del Rey: It’s about trying to remember that. I can get all this praise, I can get all these amazing responses from strangers, but at the end of the day – I’m still a student. I’m still learning. The crown doesn’t fit. The crown should never fit.” In May 2016 Vanesa R. Del Rey came to Pittsburgh, PA, to visit the Rowhouse and share her sketchbooks and her passion for comics with Frank and the rest of us. Their conversations about her work and experiences have been transformed into the book The Art of Vanesa R. Del Rey, which is full of gorgeous images as well. You can get a peak into the book at the pre-order site HERE – the book will be released later this month! Vanesa is known for her work on Marvel’s Black Widow, and the Boom Studios stories Hit and The Empty Man. She is the “vertical invader” in comics that Frank has always talked about – the artist who “could employ the naturalism of the Noel Sickles/Alex Toth school but who could paint like an Alice Neel or a Jenny Saville.“ Vanesa is an inspiration to me on a lot of levels, and getting to hear more of her stories and thoughts via this new book – getting to hang out with this samurai! – is a great privilege. To hear another woman voice out loud something like “I want to be a strong female – I want to be powerful” and then to watch her truly kick ass IS incredibly powerful. Check out more of Vanesa’s work HERE. Pre-order a copy of The Art of Vanesa R. Del Rey HERE! ————————————————————————————————— Big news broke yesterday – EW revealed that Fantagraphics is going to release a line of superhero comes starting in March 2017. Wait…whut?! “Headed by writer Josh Bayer, the All Time Comics line launches in March 2017 with All Time Comics: Crime Destroyer #1. The supersized issue will introduce the four main characters of this shared superhero universe: Atlas, Bullwhip, Crime Destroyer, and Blind Justice, each of whom will be getting their own individual series. As proof of the line’s blending of eras, this first issue will feature the final published comics work of the late Herb Trimpe, a Marvel veteran of the Lee/Kirby era who helped co-create Wolverine. All Time Comics will also feature work from the likes of Al Milgrom (who co-created DC’s Firestorm), as well as younger artists like Noah Van Sciver and Ben Marra. Each issue, Bayer promises, will feature a new unique mash-up of different cartoonists.” – via EW It’s true – here’s the pre-order page on Fantagraphics’ website. And I do think this is exciting news. I totally want to read a superhero comic that Noah Van Sciver has worked on. But Heidi MacDonald over on The Comics Beat has already voiced the thought that immediately occurred to me – the project is kind of “a throwback boys club that proves just how far comics have come….not. Tsk tsk, boys. Haven’t you heard the news? Girl cooties are allowed around comics now and even superheroes!” Heidi shouts for Katie Skelly to get in on the project, or else. I am going to start the clamor for Lale Westvind and Anya Davidson and Vanesa R. Del Rey for heavens sake, and I’m going to keep adding to the list! Overall I do think it’s a cool project (I look forward to collecting the issues!) and I like what Bayer has to say about it: “All Time Comics is celebration of independent comics and the best of pulpy superhero comics of the past,” Bayer tells EW. “We are making a circle complete. This is also a period when comics seem to be in danger of being eclipsed by movies and video games, and All Time Comics is here to remind people that comics, not movies, not action figures or toys, that started our cultural obsession with superheroes. All Time Comics is us, and we stand for comics. Comics are not fading. They will stand… for all time.” – via EW The EW press release is HERE. Heidi on The Comics Beat has the whole list of who exactly is working on what issues at the end of her post, HERE. ————————————————————————————————— I spend two days a week at one of the best alternative comics shops in the world – Copacetic Comics, in the Polish Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh. A twice-weekly perusal of the shelves or a thorough dig through the many long boxes of small press and self-published work usually turns up a few treasures. Yesterday I poured over a little book by Sylvie Fontaine, called Miss Va-Nu-Pieds (2008). Sylvie Fontaine is a French comics maker who has been publishing work since the 90’s. Despite the fact that her book Le Poulet du Dimanche (2007) earned an introduction by Moebius himself, the internet did not reveal much more about her. I was quite content with Miss Va-Nu-Pieds though. The black and white panels reminded me of Frans Masereel woodcuts, with a little Mary Fleener mixed in. The wordless story follows a young woman through a swiftly changing wonderland. She moves forward constantly, encountering new landscapes and beings, falling into traps and narrowly avoiding accidents, planting , dancing, until she rides a giant hand to a point of rest and possibly fulfillment. I would say you can get a copy of this book at Copacetic, but I think I’m keeping it. So if you’re interested, you can order it through the publisher, Tanibis. ————————————————————————————————— Another work that I was reminded of while looking at Miss Va-Nu-Pieds was The Rendered (2016) by Fiona Smyth. Perhaps something about the harsh black and white made me long for hot pink – although there is a slight stylistic similarity. Speaking of Fiona Smyth, when I saw her this past summer she was bemoaning the fact that the building in Toronto where her studio has been located for years was being torn down, or was kicking all the artists out – something really depressing – and now I see on her site that she’s having a final studio sale. Boooooo. She’ll be selling drawings, paintings, zines, and prints on Dec. 10th and then Dec. 17/18th – here are the details. In other news – much more delightful news! – I just discovered Fiona’s CHEEZ archive. CHEEZ is a weekly strip that Fiona has been publishing on the web since…2009?! It was “originally a monthly comic/drawing published in Canada’s Exclaim Magazine over a ten year period from 1992 to 2002.“ Here is the first strip that appeared on the site in 2009: And the most recent one: Yes, you read that correctly – Fiona Smyth has drawn 489 CHEEZ strips. Check them all out HERE! ————————————————————————————————— There are 4 days left to get an early application in for the Santoro Correspondence Course for Comic Book Makers, and get that sweet $100 off discount on the Winter Semester. Apply by Dec. 13th! The course starts December 29th 2016, and you have until the 28th to submit an application – the course is 8 weeks long – Frank takes 10 students and you won’t find a better teacher out there. One-on-one feedback, techniques and ideas about comics that will transform your practice and push you to a whole new level. Winter is the time to hunker down and make some serious work – and have a bit of fun too. Check out the course – take the course: More details can be found HERE – or email santoroschoolATgmail. ————————————————————————————————— Suzy and Cecil – 12-9-2016 – by Gabriella Tito Share this page: [...]

04/14/2016

Posted on April 14, 2016April 15, 2016 by Harrison

Daily News for Thursday April 13 with poetry, storytelling, and casual.

RVA Comics Spotlight:

Eric Scott Pfeiffer!

Humbly astonishing. Two words that come to mind when thinking of this fine sir. Before we get all gushy on how he great he is just check this out below….

Need I say more? So Eric has been here in Richmond, Va for quite some time. (there’s a whole crew that’s been here just spewing out good shit, but I’ll get to that in later news). He has a remarkable comic under his belt, “Arcadia”.

Check that out!
Here’s a link to his website, but as your checking that out. Put on some smooth tunes and just be amazed by his marvelous ideas: http://ericscottpfeiffer.com/category/illustration/

Last but certainly not least, follow him on social media because he’s got a couple secret projects worth looking out for!

Speaking of tunes, this week will also be very Richmond inspired. I’ve got a joint here for you that no one should pass up. Jefferson Harris (not DJ Harrison, but just as good) and Robilu Gibson. These two do a fusion dance AND form *drum roll* SOLUHHH! (SoLuh). A powerful yet smooth beat-maker and a mesmerizing yet stern poet. Rob has been on television a couple times, so you might know his face. Jefferson has been playing all around Richmond, just killin’ the scene with lovely tunes. Together they create a smooth, striking junction of poem, similes, and beats. But that’s enough yappin’ from me. Check them out below.

“Incredible Heat Machines”
https://soluh.bandcamp.com/album/incredible-heat-machines

As always remember to drink water! Take a break, relax.

https://youtu.be/9PcJR5MWrzc

Storytelling 202

“But John don’t you think that people make a distinction between a story that is true and a story that is imagined or invented? I’m always struck by the fact that there is a kind of ambiguity in the very notion of storytelling. On the one hand we think of storytelling as a truth telling activity, “Tell me the real story”. We think of stories as bringing information, we think of stories as revealing secrets. But we also think of stories as, “That’s only a story!” or “Don’t tell me stories!”, meaning don’t tell me lies, and don’t you think at the very center of the whole enterprise of storytelling there is the fact that storytelling is an activity that faces in two directions. On the one hand is connected to the idea of truth, on the other hand it’s connected to the idea of invention, imagination, lies. One is thrilled by the story precisely because it describes something that can’t happen, it’s connected with fantasy.” -Susan Sontag.

Listening to this discussion twice and still running out of paper for notes, maybe the thoughts can come in handy for other artists as well.

Special Announcement: Comics Workbook Rowhouse Residency Fundraiser Auction
ebay.com/sch/copaceticcomicscompany/m.html?_trksid=p3692

**PLEASE NOTE: The Copacetic Comics Company is managing this auction on behalf of Comics Workbook.**

This is a BENEFIT AUCTION for the Comics Workbook Rowhouse Residency. It is part of the ongoing fundraising campaign to get the Rowhouse Residency up and running and serving students. All proceeds of this auction are going to Comics Workbook to defray the expenses involved in realizing this goal. This auction is a continuation of the now completed Rowhouse Residency IndieGoGo campaign and other fundraising efforts.

The eight items donated to The Comics Workbook Rowhouse Residency Fundraising Drive by one Mr. Chris Ware. Each item in this auction has been hand packaged and signed by Mr. Ware and was shipped by him directly to Comics Workbook for the purposes of being auctioned here to raise funds for the Rowhouse Residency.

Comics Workbook would like to express our profound gratitude to Chris Ware for his support of the Rowhouse Residency.

ebay.com/sch/copaceticcomicscompany/m.html?_trksid=p3692

Featuring Jim Rugg | jimrugg.com/
Video by Michael Pisano | michaelpisano.com

Soundtrack | Johann Sebastian Bach // Gott fähret auf mit Jauchzen, BWV 43 – 7. Aria: Er ists, der ganz allein // performed by
Michel Rondeau

John | McCoy | Jimmy | Elvin

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Comics Workbook

An online magazine for comics makers

Posted in NewsTagged Chris Ware, Eric Scott Pfeiffer, Profweston, Susan Sontag

Harrison

Posted on April 14, 2016April 15, 2016

Explore

08/19/2016

Sally IngrahamAugust 19, 2016NewsSally here with your Friday comics news roundup – a little bleary after a late night comics-making blitz with Gabriella Tito. The Rowhouse is a busy place these days and Comics Workbook is moving ahead at full-steam in a number of directions – I’ve got updates on those projects, as well as some glorious Olympic moments with Katie Fricas, Leslie Stein with some guitar riffs, Meghan Turbitt on the the move, and a brick or two thrown by a mouse named Ignatz. ——————————————————————————————————————— Gabriella Tito arrived at the Rowhouse last night for a weekend residency, and she hadn’t been in the house more than 5 minutes before the index cards came out. She and Frank and I sat around until late in the night drawing and discussing comics. Gabriella is a graduate of Frank’s correspondence course and a member of the Comics Workbook Roller Derby League. You can find more of her work HERE – and expect to hear more about this true comics ninja soon. ——————————————————————————————————————— Speaking of the Comics Workbook Roller Derby League…the girls have been quietly pumping out articles, reviews, and comics all summer, meeting for “practice” and “derby bouts” every Sunday, honing skills and getting comfortable “skating together”, if you will. You can find an index of the work that the league has published HERE on the site – follow them on Instagram (@cwrollerderby) – catch up with members of the team at SPX and CXC this year (more details on those appearances soon!) – and stay tuned for other exciting developments as the Comics Workbook Roller Derby League continues to evolve. More info about CWRD can be found HERE. ——————————————————————————————————————— Katie Fricas jumped on the Olympics bandwagon this week and published a hilarious comic on The Awl about Forgotten Moments From Past Summer Olympics. Check out the rest HERE! ——————————————————————————————————————— The Bandcamp Daily blog recently published a profile on Leslie Stein, which showcases her music as well as her comics (she is a guitarist and vocalist for the rock band Prince Rupert’s Drops). “Though her comics are usually based on her own life, and are infused with her love of music (referencing Alex Chilton, LCD Soundsystem, Ringo Starr, The Band, Neil Young, Michael Hurley, and even the Osmonds), they rarely focus on her experiences as a musician. “I think art has always taken precedence over everything in my life,” Stein says. “I read about Hendrix falling asleep with his guitar in his bed; I fall asleep on the floor next to my drawing table sometimes. Not that I am comparing myself artistically to Hendrix, of course.” “ I read the most recent volume (Time Clock) of her long-running series Eye of the Majestic Creature a few weeks ago and found the stories about weird jobs, bad hangovers, and mysterious loneliness to be very funny and heart-wrenchingly familiar. Be sure to also check out her diary comics, which are running on VICE – here’s the most recent update. The rest of the Bandcamp Daily piece on Leslie Stein is available HERE. ——————————————————————————————————————— SPX announced the 2016 Ignatz nominees – HERE. ——————————————————————————————————————— Meghan Turbitt is having a Moving Sale! Original drawings from her NYC and Philadelphia Subway Sketchbooks starting at $10 – get all the goodies HERE. ——————————————————————————————————————— Comics Workbook is very pleased to present a new book from Connor Willumsen – Portraits. Available now for pre-order – get your copy HERE! Connor is one of the original CW samurais. He will be joining Frank Santoro at The Lakes International Comic Arts Festival this fall, teaching workshops and sharing his process. Look for him there! ——————————————————————————————————————— Go forth and lead extraordinary lives this weekend, folks. Sally out. Share this page: [...]

11/10/2016

Sally IngrahamNovember 10, 2016NewsSam, Sally, and Juan here with Thursday’s comics news! Thoughts on originality, a moment with Yona Harvey, and some comics Instagram gems. ————————————————————————————————— Sam Ombiri: I find it hard these days to quote something where there is power in the words the person says and part of the power is reaffirmed by their accomplishments and stuff like that, and then their words are elevated really high. I guess what I’m kind of scared of is the trap of mentioning some important person’s name, followed with that important person’s quote, all manipulated so that I might appear important. Anyways, this isn’t to criticize others, it’s more a personal gripe. I was reading something where this guy (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VNMPrPyUcnM) quoted Kubrick. It was cool what Kubrick said, it reminded me of something Josh Bayer said, since in both instances they were dealing with the subject of originality. There’s a huge appeal of originality, and aspirations towards it. Maybe it’s because of bragging rights? However, Kubrick didn’t think that. Or maybe he did, but he instead looked at originality as something different. What he was saying was: you shouldn’t be so preoccupied with ideas of how to be original because original people can’t help but be original because they can’t work in the old form so they have start a new one. Josh Bayer’s trajectory in the subject of originality was that originality is “just a red herring.” When I heard that, it felt awesome to hear that thought so well articulated. I more than agree with that for many reasons, one of them being that originality doesn’t take too much effort. I also disagree with it, at the same time though if that makes any sense. Luckily Josh wasn’t using this idea as an excuse, but realigning focus to other aspects of the work. So I don’t disagree with what he said at the time he said it, and that being said, his originality just came by automatically, for reasons I can’t articulate nor do I feel I’m in the position to attempt. ————————————————————————————————— Juan Fernández: Last night I raced from work to Phantom of the Attic Comics in Oakland to catch Poet Yona Harvey’s signing for her first issue of the new World of Wakanda series. For those not in the know, this series is a spinoff of the popular new Black Panther series (written by Ta-Nahisi Coates). It made me really happy to see Phantom welcome one of Marvel’s newest creators and usher in a new wave of Marvel comics. Of course, when I had arrived all copies had been sold out! Bummed for myself, overjoyed for Yona, I placed an order for a copy 😉 In 2008 Yona taught a class that I can safely say, has informed pretty much all of my art creation. Synthesis through metamorphosis of existing images and words. The class was on archiving and autobiography. We read, and wrote and discussed a wide gamut of fiction and non-fiction that blurred any conceivable lines of categorization. Above all, we explored the idea of “truth”. She required us to go see lectures, attend poetry readings in the city and so much more. It’s thanks to her pushing us out of the classroom that within my first months as a student in Pittsburgh, I had understood that I wanted to call Pittsburgh home. I have so much gratitude in my heart for all the time that she has given her art and her students. I can say, without a doubt that I’m still unpacking the things I learned from her 7 years ago. She’s an amazing educator and to see her get the chance to swing fiercely on her work on the World of Wakanda brings me so much joy. Her collage based approached is very much the approach that I believe is the most fertile space for comics. Collaging thought through the collage of image and word. Here’s a little about her from the Pennsylvania Center for the Book: “Harvey’s work tends to originate through methods of collage or sampling, informed by her background in archiving and information science, and she celebrates the many lives one piece of literature can possess through the various multimedia and web-related forms it can take. She welcomes innovation in the study of how poetry is constructed and presented, and she is often referred to as a, “literary artist.” Her interest in audio archives and rare poetry recordings furthers this fascination in her study of how poetry is read aloud. The American jazz pianist, composer, and arranger, Mary Lou Williams (who happened to grow up in the East Liberty area of Pittsburgh) is often a muse to Harvey’s work. This is especially true of her recent poetry collection, Hemming the Water (2013), which publisher Four Way Books describes as, “ speaks to the futility of trying to mend or straighten a life that is constantly changing.” The description goes on to read that with references to fairy tales and ancient fables, Yona Harvey, “inhabits, challenges, and explores the many facets of the female self—as daughter, mother, sister, wife, and artist—both on a personal level and cultural level.” ————————————————————————————————— Sally here: I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but increasingly Instagram is the place to keep up with the new work of your favorite cartoonists. The little square offers the chance to reveal only so much of a “wip” so you an keep fans engaged without giving away all your secrets. Folks have started to play with the format as well, when it comes to a publishing platform for actual work. A single panel comic is easy to share, as is a 4-panel strip. A few people have figured out how to share longer work as well, through the use of video. Here is recent work by some of the cartoonist that Comics Workbook follows (and follow @comicsworkbook!): Went to Walmart, being an adult, and these fruits (I think they were some kind of lemon??) had on tiny sweaters! ? #inktober A photo posted by Shannon Wright (@shannondrewthis) on Oct 26, 2016 at 8:47pm PDT Shannon Wright – @shannondrewthis Samurai mechanica colors. #mecha #conceptart #art #artwork #drawing #samurai #sword #coloring #comicartist #comic #anime #manga A photo posted by Skuds McKinley (@skudsink) on Nov 8, 2016 at 8:41pm PST Skuds McKinley – @skudsink a tomato wake into a bar… A video posted by Cameron•Weston Nicholson (@prof_weston) on Nov 3, 2016 at 1:34pm PDT Cameron Weston Nicholson – @prof_weston Another ☝️ #nyc #newyork #brooklyn #majorkey #peaches #sketchbook #art A photo posted by Chris Visions (@chrisvisions) on Nov 6, 2016 at 9:44am PST Chris Visions – @chrisvisions ————————————————————————————————— Sally started an eBay store to help out the Comics Workbook Rowhouse Residency and also her own comics-making projects. Check it out HERE! Share this page: [...]

Northampton, MA Scene Report

Frank SantoroJanuary 22, 2012Riff Raff / Scene ReportsThis week’s scene report is brought to you by Colin Panetta. Please enjoy. ———- Hey, I’m going to be telling everyone about the small town of Northampton, MA. We’re about an hour east of the New York state line and an hour and a half west of Boston. We’re pretty close to the center of the state, but we’re branded as Western Massachusetts. We’re riddled with fancy colleges, including Smith, Hampshire and Mount Holyoke, which gives the area a strong NPR vibe. HISTORY Most comics people probably know Northampton for its historical significance. Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird moved here and started Mirage Studios shortly after Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1 was released. In the ensuing years, the tidal wave of activity that followed their unprecedented levels of success in the comics world and beyond caused a number of historic events to occur here. You can read a lot about it in this recently posted Comics Journal interview with Kevin Eastman from 1998. Suffice it to say that in addition to Mirage Studios itself, the Creator’s Bill of Rights summit was held here and Eastman opened the Words and Pictures comic book art museum downtown, and planted the home offices of his infamous comic book publishing company Tundra right across the street. Main Street, that is. Here’s the building where the Words and Pictures Museum was located: It’s seen better days. Ex-Mirage artist Jim Laswon recently told me that there used to be a giant gargoyle at the top of it that not all the locals were thrilled with (although in general there was a lot of local support for the museum). That gargoyle is gone, but some smaller, distinctly Ninja Turtle-esque ones remain: The block directly across the street used to house the Tundra offices, and the original Mirage Studios before that. (Just the business offices though, Lawson told me the the artists worked in a warehouse space outside of town.) Mirage is now located just off of Main Street, and some of the old staff artists still have studio space there. I’ve been, it’s amazing. Jammed full of three of every Ninja Turtle product ever made, occasionally topped with a random piece of fifteen year old original comic book art. There aren’t many public facing remnants of that time left in town, but these two pieces of local street art show that the shadow of the Turtles still looms large in the area’s consciousness (in fact every long-time local resident has a Ninja Turtles story if you raise the subject): Kitchen Sink Press moved here after they absorbed Tundra, and Denis Kitchen still lives nearby. He also co-founded the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, which was based in Northampton until just a few years ago. To top it all off Disney Adventures, which featured many indie cartoonists in its pages, was also based in Northampton until it folded in 2007. HOT SPOTS The big store in town is Modern Myths. They make a great effort toward catering to every type of person who might go into a comic book store, having distinct sections for superhero floppies, graphic novels, manga and role playing games. In the time that I’ve been here they’ve hosted events with Evan Dorkin, Howard Cruse and the late Harvey Pekar. And they put up with me constantly emailing them at 3am with requests for oddities from the back of Previews, so they’re a very good shop: There’s also Bob’s II Comics N’More, a 90’s throwback store with endless back issue bins. Non-comics stores FOE Gallery and Feeding Tube Records also dedicate some shelf space to comics. As far as events go, last year saw the first comics and illustration themed Paint and Pixel Festival, and we have a monthly Dr Sketchy’s. FOLKS Northampton is a very small town, but we’ve got a few artists kicking around. I mostly draw with a guy named Mark Velard. We table at shows together and post our work online under the name Mysterious Transmissions. Here are a couple panels from Mark’s latest page: I recognised the nice guy with the goofy glasses strap who works at the local art store in one of Tom Spurgeon’s recent “Who Are These People?” posts. Turns out he’s Sam Gaskin, a CCS graduate. He’s got a few different books out, including a mini he did with Matt Furie called Hot Topic. When I told him what my favorite gag in Hot Topic was, he told me it was his favorite too and it’s what he wants to be remembered for when he dies. I assured him I’d let the people know, but you’re going to have to wait to find out which one it is. Here are his book covers: You’ll see the old Mirage artists Michael Dooney, Dan Berger and Jim Lawson around. I love Jim’s work. He made incredible strides in developing a very distinct style, somewhere between Jack Kirby and Paul Pope, during his twenty plus years as a staff artist. I’m helping him put his dinosaur comic Paleo online as a webcomic this year. He’s a comics drawing machine: Bryant Paul Johnson is a nice local face who helped me fact check this article and has been working on a graphic novel in his web-savvy style. Here’s the cover: Colin Tetford occasionally brings his community focused approach to comics making to town, and often sends me a bulleted list of his itinerary when he does. It’s adorable. Local graphic designer Tom Pappalardo has a strip in the local weekly. Hans Rickheit also lives somewhere nearby, but every time I ask him where he just tells me it’s not on any maps. Mark and I had a successful art show in nearby Greenfield with him last year. (Successful in that lots of mentally unstable people wandered in from the street.) Hans is great, Fantagraphics puts his stuff out. Here’s a crazy panel he drew last year: NEIGHBORS The Center For Cartoon Studies is an hour and half north, but you guys already heard all about that. Easthampton, the unassuming next town over, is somehow the webcomics capital of the country. R Stevens of Deisel Sweeties, Jeph Jacques of Questionable Content and Jeffrey Rowland of Overcompensating (plus more, I’m sure) all live in and around there. Rowland runs TopatoCo, an online store that represents all the biggest names in webcomics from Kate Beaton to Ryan North, out of the old Eastworks building. I tried to walk in there and buy something in person once and they looked at me dirty, but they’re super nice folks. Kevin Eastman has an office full of God knows what in the same building (I’ve seen walls of original art from the museum and a full Predator suit when I peeked in), and between those two institutions is legendary back issue warehouse Gary Dolgoff Comics. Share this page: [...]

08/14/2017

Caleb OrecchioAugust 13, 2017NewsCaleb Orecchio here with thoughts on comics by Matt Seneca, and other news. ———————————————————————————————— Flipping through my some of my magazine-sized comics, I ran into my copies of Matt Seneca’s Trap; The Magazine About Drugs. Seneca is someone who I feel like doesn’t get talked about enough. Below are some thoughts: Matt Seneca‘s comics are painfully brutal and at times seem gratuitously so. His work reads like the cartoonist has been to hell and back. The work never flinches, never covering up the grotesquely violent or sexually perverse. It has been a while since I have read a cartoonist’s work that is so consistently visceral. You can read his debut work online, here. You can buy his other in-print comics here. I think a lot of people know Seneca from the podcast Comic Books Are Burning in Hell and his comics criticism. I was a bit suspicious when I heard he was also a cartoonist AND a critic, but the latter he is no longer unless you count the podcast. I was pleasantly surprised by his comics. Though at first glance they seem a bit rugged, his storytelling is what won me over at first. Seneca’s religious horror epic 200 Deaf Boys is a very conscious and complete story, a quality that seems to be lost on most self-published cartoonists (or really most comics makers in general); and though many would argue that Seneca’s drawing is a bit lack luster, I would argue that it gets exponentially better with each comic he makes–particularly when he uses color. In his latest and greatest work so far, Trap: The Magazine About Drugs vol. 2 no. 3: Frankie Teardrop, Seneca reaches new personal bests. He continues, as he’s always done, to not draw panel borders. This technique really comes to life in this particular strip where he will often alternate colors within a panel, rendering the use of borders unnecessary. He also expands on his use of not automatically using black lines as outlines. The color and use of black are one and the same for Seneca which makes for really nice and bright images that feel loose and alive. Not a lot, that I can find, has been written about Seneca’s comics. The links on his tumblr to reviews have been moved, removed or deleted. Like I said before, his work is riddled with the brutally violent and sexually explicit. Their is a lot of pain and anger in his work–but it is all completely and utterly earnest with little irony which gives his stories a sense of reality that the most autobiographic of cartoonists struggle to render. Seneca has an upcoming comic called The Infinite Prison. It looks great and the pencils already suggest that it will be awesome. Excited to see how it turns out. ———————————————————————————————— if you don’t know, now you know Never Comes Tomorrow – Frank Santoro, our illustrious founder/editor-in-chief, is raising some money for a book-making project, and is offering a good deal of historical comics documents in support of this. Please consider helping out. Check out the latest episodes of Study Group’s Process Party. The latest guest being Darryl Ayo and Gina Wynbrandt. There was a fair amount of hubbub around Rich Tommaso’s recent lamentations on the poor amount of comic shops ordering his latest book. Seems like he took a breath and talked a bit about it with Aaron McPherson on TCJ.com. Not sure how I feel about this League of Regrettable Heroes stuff, but Heidi Macdonald’s interview with the author at least has me intrigued. SPX is almost upon us. This will be my first year attending and look forward to the experience. Check out their site and read up on what’s happening with the show this year. I like hearing when libraries intensify their focuses on comics. The people in Salt Lake City have spoken! ———————————————————————————————— Suzy and Cecil – 8-14-2017 – by Gabriella Tito Share this page: [...]

06/21/2018

Juan FernándezJune 21, 2018NewsHartley Lin Interviewed at Comix Experience; Zak Sally’s latest zine; the Summer Santoro School Correspondence Course – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – Hartley Lin (Pope Hats, Young Frances) is interviewed by Brian Hibbs, live at Comix Experience in San Francisco. This is a great interview that in addition to giving great insight on where Lin is coming from as a comics maker, also notably discusses the world before and after the Xeric Grant. A little on Hartley Lin before you dig in: Lin is a cartoonist and illustrator from Toronto. His comic book series Pope Hats has received a 2013 Ignatz Award, 2012 Doug Wright Award and 2010 Joe Shuster Award. He has illustrated for Slate, HarperCollins, Chronicle Books, COMPLEX, Wired, The Walrus and The Believer. He now lives in Montreal. Hartley debuted Young Frances, his first major graphic novel with AdHouse Books at TCAF this year. Watch it over on Youtube. – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – FOLRATH PART 2 – Zak Sally $9.00 at La Mano At long last, here it is. Starting mere moments after where Part 1 left off, it’s 159 pages of stories about landing in punk rock Oakland, CA circa 1993. It was a hot fucking mess. Still printed on shitty newsprint (blue ink !!!) then folded/ assembled by me. Unbelievably, this ain’t the end: part 3 wraps it all up (it’s way shorter than the other 2), but it’s not quite done yet. I’ll let you know but in the meantime, come wrestle with me down the verdant horse-trough of memory lane why don’t you. – Zak Sally – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – Thee Santoro Correspondence Course for Comic Book Makers Summer Session starts NOW! Floating start date! Apply anytime between now and July 12th 2018 to join the summer course. Email santoroschoolATgmail for more details. Ask about the Fall Course if now is too busy for you! The course is 8 weeks – 500 bux for 8 weeks plus access to Frank’s coaching for as long as you need. Payment plans are available. Put your summer to good use! – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – Cozytown – 06-21-2018 – by Juan Fernandez – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – Joanie and Jordie – 6-21-18 – by Caleb Orecchio Share this page: [...]

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