Jim Woodring heads to New York this weekend for three events in three nights, beginning at Forbidden Planet in Union Square on Thursday, followed by an artist's reception at Brooklyn's Scott Eder Gallery on Friday and featuring an exhibition of all the original art from Weathercraft, and concluding with a signing at Desert Island on Saturday (the above image is of the limited-edition silkscreen print Desert Island will be selling!). Don't miss out. 06/17/10 | 6PMNew York NYFORBIDDEN PLANET 06/18/10 | 6PMBrooklyn NYSCOTT EDER GALLERY 06/19/10 | 7PMBrooklyn NYDESERT ISLAND
Diaflogue: Michael Kupperman exclusive Q&A
I had some questions for Tales Designed to Thrizzle creator Michael Kupperman, which he graciously answered over email. All links below were added by me. MB: In the new issue of Thrizzle, apart from the move to full color, there also seem to be fewer short strips and gags and more multi-page stories — what led to this? Is this indicative of an evolutionary shift in the comic? MK: Well, yes — the comic has to keep evolving to keep going. For this issue I had been developing these three story ideas for a while, and it just worked out…
New Comics Day 6/16/10
Hokey smokes, hope you've been saving your nickels because we've got 5, count 'em 5, brand new books slated to hit comic shops this week! Read on for more info and to see what the other new-comics-day bloggers are saying [now edited to add Tom Spurgeon]. Artichoke Tales by Megan Kelso 232-page monochrome 6.75" x 8.25" hardcover • $22.99ISBN: 978-1-60699-344-6 "I absolutely loved this Megan Kelso graphic novel — a kind of anthropological/fictional-historical fantasy/love story thing involving a fractured culture of people with artichoke leaves for hair — and I'm not afraid to say so." – Douglas Wolk, Comics Alliance…
Belated Kupperman photos
Better-Late-Than-Never Dept: I finally got a chance to upload my photos from Michael Kupperman's appearance at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery back on May 8 for his art exhibit opening and launch of Tales Designed to Thrizzle #6. Browse the whole photo set, including shots of every piece of art, on our Flickr page, or if you like slideshows, there's one embedded below. And stay tuned tomorrow for our exclusive “Diaflogue” interview with Kupperman!
Daily OCD: 6/15/10
Online Commentary & Diversions: • Review: "This all-ages-friendly tale opens with a comical but sincere note of existential angst, but Billy ultimately discovers his orientation in the world through his relationships with others. … The tale itself frequently veers toward the lunatic, but if it skirts the surreal it does so precisely by taking the kinds of unfettered narrative turns that characterize the best children's literature. And like those books, Millionaire's [Billy Hazelnuts and the Crazy Bird] creates a safe space for exploration that remains grounded throughout in a humane sensibility that quietly makes itself known by showing, not telling."…
Artopia Arts Festival in Seattle’s Utopian Georgetown on June 26
Don’t miss this: The Artopia cultural extravaganza and Georgetown Music Festival take place on Saturday, June 26 from 3:00 to 10:00 PM. It’s all FREE! Dozens of bands will perform on several stages, including one right outside Fantagraphics Bookstore featuring the Tom Price Desert Classic with our own Martin Bland on traps. Old school carnival games and confections, aerial circus acts, and thrilling Power Tool Races are among the many attractions. You’ll love the demonic chainsaw-powered Daniel Clowes skateboard created by our curator Larry Reid and daughter Bella. Just don’t get too close. This year’s Artopia features a special appearance…
Cash in that 401K and Call Your Travel Agent!
Make plans for Labor Day weekend in Seattle now! The Bumbershoot art and music festival promises to be the best in recent memory. In addition to performances by the likes of Bob Dylan, Neko Case, Hole, the Decemberists, Weezer and countless other bands, the festival includes a large exhibition of contemporary Seattle cartoonists. Organized by Fantagraphics resident curator Larry Reid, "Counterculture Comix: A 30-Year Survey of Seattle Alternative Cartoonists" begins with Lynda Barry's work circa 1980 and continues through the present. The show reveals Seattle as the ancestral home of the alternative comix genre and examines the role comix played…
Kim Deitch master class at MoCCA June 28
Meanwhile, Deitch family fans on the other coast won't be left in the lurch — on Monday June 28 at 6:30 PM in New York City the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art presents a Master Class in Comic Art and Storytelling with Kim Deitch, who "will impart some key secrets. Secrets easily mastered that transformed him from being lazy, hedonistic and unfocused into a more positive, goal oriented human being. He will also show you a certain attitude about the idea of making art; how an artistic life can be more than a way to make a living; that…
Cinefamily presents A Tribute to Gene Deitch July 6
Los Angelinos and animation aficionados rejoice, as Cinefamily presents a tribute to the great Gene Deitch on Tuesday July 6, 2010 at 8 PM, hosted by Jerry Beck and featuring a rare U.S. appearance (he lives in Prague don't you know) by Gene himself! They'll be screening shorts from throughout Gene's career, including the Oscar-winner Munro, with a Q&A afterward. More info & tickets here.
Things to see: 6/14/10
Periodic clips & strips – click for improved/additional viewing at the sources: • Whoa, how come I didn't know that Kevin Huizenga has a Fight or Run blog? Now I do, thanks to Sean T. Collins. Meanwhile, over on his main blog, a screenshot of a scan of something wild • Michael Kupperman gives a blurry sneak peek of a work in progress (I took the liberty of bumping up the contrast) • A new Johnny Ryan comic for Vice; elsewhere, this • A sketch for The Groovy Age of Horror by Josh Simmons (uh, NSFW) — via Sean T….
