There's an App for That (Unfortunately)

Add me to the list of people getting peeved (enough to block it) at the recent app that attempts to "cartoon":

The latest annoying Facebook trend has hit, and it’s called Bitstrips. You may have seen these comics popping up over the last week, wherein your friends create animated version of themselves and others in “funny” or “wacky” situations. Mostly, they’re inside jokes that come with caricature versions of users.

I concur whole-heartedly with ProCartoonist:

"We have seen this kind of automation of cartooning skills before. And now, as then, we believe it is a poor substitute for bespoke cartoons created by a professional cartoonist. The software may be clever but it does not produce hand-drawn, unique cartoons."

BOO... Zombeavers!

In the spirit of the season, a bonus post in honor of Halloween. What better visage of horror than my face smushed up against a xerox and rendered in charcoal (demo piece for a subtractive exercise).

Where's Leslie Nielsen when you need him...

But wait - the best news ever to necessitate a Castor canadensis post: "Zombeaver" is a go. Yes, a feature film (and a poster-child for the "microbudget" aspect of the endeavor) is in the works for the ultimate in semi-aquatic horror. Interesting side-note about the trailer: it was assembled entirely from pre-existing footage.

STOKED: if there ever was a film destined for IMAX 3D this is it.... Hat-tip to Chris @ It Come To Me In A Vision for the tails-up.

Peace of Ass (Hindsight with B. Kliban)

   Not quite an epiphany, but a strange association occurred to me while surfing around the other day. There's been an uptick in the media onslaught what with the constant barrage of body parts being used for marketing Lady Gaga (seen above), Miley Cyrus, Rihanna, et al. Feminist perspective aside, it recalled for me a huge poster that used to grace my room as a kid, by the cartoonist B. Kliban:

Image: "Sorting It All Out" by B. Kliban  (from "Never Eat Anything Bigger Than Your Head" 1976)

   I was eleven years old when this book, "Never Eat Anything Bigger Than Your Head," was released in 1976. This was his second collection of works, preceded by the iconic "Cats," and followed by another nine volumes of works, the last published posthumously after his death in 1990. The promotional poster was produced by the publisher from the B. Dalton Bookseller store my father managed. It was there in the back room amidst piles of boxes, packing materials and mountains of books that I first discovered the inspirational works of this giant in the field of cartooning. Kliban rubs elbows with other contemporaries such as Gahan Wilson and Charles Addams. Tangentially speaking it's probably very revealing as to my own future as a cartoonist when I can clearly recall being more drawn to his panels in the pages of Playboy (where he started appearing from 1962 for more than a quarter century) than any of the other incidental content in that magazine.

   Well before Gary Wilson's "The Far Side" feature began to gain in popularity and exposure, Kliban's single-panels had already paved the way for this "subgenre" in the medium:

Based on data from Art Spiegelman, Kliban invented the form of cartoon, popularized by Gary Larson and others, of a single panel by having a third-individual caption describing the action. (link)

That said, I think to the editorial panels of William Hogarth, Francisco Goya and Daumier also to a degree often incorporated image with text, so "inventing" is a bit of a stretch. Still, as noted here before, these seems to be somewhat of a revival of his work... if it spurs an omnibus edition and/or a historical retrospective + biography that'd be sweet, and stand as testimony to his talents, honesty and humility. From Kliban's obituary in The New York Times:

''I find it amazing to be making money at what I like doing,'' he said in 1976. ''When I was in art school, I was nowhere near the top. So much of success is just perseverance. Maturity comes from banging your head on sharp corners. If the cartoon thing ended tomorrow, I would have a craft to fall back on and not have to work for some corporation. I could just take one of these paintings and trade it to some farmer for a chicken.'' - Peter Flint

That the National Cartoonists Society has never seen fit to award Kliban with any official recognition is an unfortunate oversight and is a disservice to his legacy and our profession.

Screen-grab of a surprising ad that appeared on an unrelated website

   I always use Kliban's black & white line art in my Drawing courses as examples for my students to follow when learning the techniques and craft of using pen & ink. Kliban's use of line and texture - primarily by employing the use of hatching and cross-hatching - and the ease with which his drawings incorporate these marks from one extreme (simple, descriptive contour) to the other (rich, dense range of value) and everything in between for balanced compositions like the one above. Illustrator Pete Sanfaçon gives us a wonderful window into the genius of Kliban - and an insight to his technique - with some delightful correspondence he had with the artist:

For one of the best essays I've ever come across on Kliban's cartoon works, click here for a PDF, and the Eat Mousies Official Site is here.

Grant Snider's "Incidental Comics"

Excerpted panel from "The Ghosts of Creativity" by Grant Snider

Been really digging the work of cartoonist/orthodontist Grant Snider whose art has been popping up on various feeds. Clean, simple lines paired with a clean, simple palette + insightful commentary and topics. Website here.

Pauline Baynes: The Art of Narnia

Among the key artists who shaped my own world as a youngster and influenced my own creative aesthetic is Pauline Baynes, an English illustrator who is for me forever indelibly associated with bringing C.S. Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia to vivid life. Baynes belongs aside other illustration masters of classic children's literature such as Maurice Sendak (Where the Wild Things Are, Higgelty Piggelty Pop! et al.), Garth Williams (Stuart Little, Charlotte's Web et al.), E.H. Shepard (The Wind in the Willows, Winnie the Pooh) and Peggy Fortnum (Paddington).

Baynes' iconic imagery - both spot illustrations and full-page compositions - feature pen and ink pieces that are characterized by both tight, rich textural treatments and a lively, gestural line quality. Her characterizations of animals are as varied and unique as they are for the humans in each story and situation.

I'm of the opinion that a life-long penchant for sequential art is hatched in part by an early childhood association of image + text which begins with the pairing of pictures and words on pages like this. In my case, it's on a continuum that starts with being read books as a kid, continues through young adulthood with works of illustrated literature such as this, and reaches its apex with the juxtaposition of image + text on the pages of comics. This is in stark contrast with the presumed trajectory of a mature reader who is supposed to abandon pictures altogether: the societal expectations of what constitutes a "serious" book can be effectively plotted simply by observing the size and frequency of any art that appears between its covers.

These images are from a 6th edition hardcover I have from the British publisher Bodley Head of the final book in the Narnia series "The Last Battle." Unfortunately the preceding five volumes on my shelves are are all from Collier Books, mass-marketers who instead inexplicably opted to use uncredited "pictures adapted from illustrations by Pauline Baynes," which is a damn shame. Read more about Baynes and her work in a nice article about her catalog here.

"Genetically Modified"

One of Alaska Senator Mark Begich's pet peeves and planks in his platform is the labeling of GMO's. The irony is how the root of the problem isn't being addressed: population pressures in conjunction with depleted natural resources mean we as a species have to start getting growing our food elsewhere. This is unfortunately the bed we are collectively making, and after killing off the rest of the damn planet we'll all have to lay in it together.

Alaska's seafood industry is already crippled: can you imagine the collapse if it had to accommodate any additional pressures such as increased demand? It's insanely unsustainable to expect everyone to wallow in some Edenic fantasy where Mother Earth has a bottomless cornucopia which will feed the masses. To whit: there simply isn't enough biomass left in the ocean to sustain us, and we are making matters worse by accelerating the rate of pollution (see this: "The Ocean is Broken").

Measures such as Begich's are stop-gap feel-good gestures that make for politically appealing programs but there's nothing on the other end of the line here. Poisoning the earth, air and water on the planet should first and foremost be the direction to look, and not to put too fine a point on it, fake food is the very last thing the multitude of humans need to worry about. Recent scarey pictures that are making the rounds - nevermind mutant farm animals that we are already aesthetically anesthetized to (not) seeing - but there are millions who would salivate at the sight of such a creature. I mean, it's healthier than the ingredients that would go into the tartar sauce slathered on top!

Sculpey Beav

Really quite the sad, misshapen beaver, but lovable in its little, lumpy way. A quick lesson in how dam hard it is to realize one's grand artistic vision when switching to a new medium, in this crafty case experimenting with that weird Scupey stuff during recess.

Everything Spike Knows about Comics

Friend (hat-tip Charlotte!) sent me a link to this: exceptionally clear & concise breakdown of cartooning, and now required reading for the course. Check out the full set from Spike Drew This.

Drawings: Michael Quinn

"Bear Me Another" ©2013 Michael Quinn (image used by permission)

Here's a couple of images scanned from the sketchbook of recent UAF Art Department graduate student Michael Quinn (website here).

"Moose Nugget" ©2013 Michael Quinn (image used by permission)

His thesis exhibition "Subconscious Indigestion" featured a series of paintings, but I prefer the unfettered doodles of his drawings. Great to see him in the Art Department as it's a refreshing alternative to the more traditional instruction offered as part of the degree programs. Check out this short interview here for more.

Decaffeinated Designs

Another illustrious alum from the Cartoon & Comic Art class is James Kelly, now with his "Decaffeinated Designs" Etsy shop with some fabulous stickers + they are also available at Goldstream Sports out in the Valley. Love the work!

10 Rules for Drawing Comics

Bookmarked this site which looks to have some excellent pointers - hat-tip to Robin! Here's a quick, random culling:

3. Think all the time.
8. Motion Lines Are a Cheat
1. NEVER forget how much you love making comic books.
3. Let the land lie fallow, but harvest the crops while they're heavy on the vine.
10. Don't Listen to Any Dumb Rules.
7. Avoid computers when possible. 

Mine, off the top of my head:

1. Read as much as possible, all kinds of books, all genres, all the time.
2. Check out every exhibition for any kind of art, including museums.
3. Find some local folks who are also into making comics.
4. Draw at least a little every day – it adds up.
5. Write stuff down along with all the doodling.
6. Sketchbooks are like compost heaps: keep shoveling in material, let it ferment
and incubate, turn it over every so often.
7. Even fruiting bodies will rise from complete and utter shit.
8. Have as many irons in the fire as you can stand without burning the place down.
9. Learn to juggle your art – keep a lot of balls in the air
10. Make your own rules… then break them

Special Event for Animators in Fairbanks

Courtesy of Hannah Foss (The Aussie-Alaskan Animator), who recently completed a program with Animation Mentors, we'll have the opportunity to meet with character animator Royce Wesley (currently with at Pixar Studios) for an informal chat about his experiences within the industry. It'll be at 2pm in the Drawing Studio of the UAF Art Department. A great opportunity to ask some questions for anyone interested in becoming an animator.

Peggy Fortnum: "Please Take Care of This Bear"

Illustration by Peggy Fortnum

It's been years since I came clean about my personal artistic inspirations, giving up the heroic, traditional canon and admitting it was in fact much more humble in origin. There are drawings that have stayed with me long after working their magic on a young reader's imagination. If words are a doorway to other worlds, then these accompanying pictures were like big picture windows... mysterious, evocative and tantalizing illustrations that enticed a child along into a story, told to them over the pages of a book. Whether read on a lap, on a floor, at a desk or even under covers, the images came to be an inseparable, crucial accompaniment, a part of the story. As I grew older and graduated to longer and harder works, the pictures began to go away, grow smaller and farther and fewer between. This I think is when the unfortunate association is made between "growing up" and leaving those silly picture books (ie comics/sequential art) behind - only serious books are sadly empty of imagery, and unless one has cultivated the instinctual mental powers to envision one's own conceptual world (assuming the author gives enough description to go on) and/or create it yourself, part of the joy of reading leaches away, the art and soul of the craft starts to wither up, along with the everyday, special wonders of childhood itself. Presumably a writer would object to that perspective, but I'm not speaking here as someone who writes, or from the point of view of a practicing artist either. This is from that kid still deep inside who loves books and everything in them, pictures and words.

The last pages of my dog-eared adolescence were bookmarked by the pens of such artists as Sendak, Garth Williams (Charlotte's Web etc.) and of course E.H. Shepard (Pooh). Often overshadowed by other classic in the field of children's book illustration is the artist behind another diminutive and distinctive bruin, one Paddington Bear, by Peggy Fortnum:

Margaret Emily Noel Nuttall-Smith who works under the name Peggy Fortnum was born in Harrow, Middlesex. She illustrated some eighty childrens' books, but is perhaps best-known for her timeless illustrations for Michael Bond's series of books on Paddington Bear from 1958-1974. She attended the Turnbridge Wells School of Arts and Crafts, and the Central School of Arts and Crafts - Cambridge Prints 

I'm fortunate to have a hardcover 3rd edition in my collection of this title, and it really takes me back every time I crack the cover, and come across one of her wonderful renderings. Fortnum was the first artist to bring the bear to life on the printed page (a far cry from the current sorry state of affairs when it comes to contemporary pop culture bears), and she has left an indelible mark on the lives of countless children with her loose, gestural linework that is so deceptively simple. Her black & white pen & ink pieces are sparse in their use of sketchy texture, but always arrive at that perfect balance between overkill and ineffective and useless illustration.

My favorite Paddington story these days has to be the classic "Paddington and the 'Old Master'." In this charming, bumbling tale he takes a bottle of paint remover and a rag to one of Mr. Brown's own pieces which is slated for entry to an exhibition. Paddington paints over the canvas, which is picked up and delivered to the show and awarded first place in the competition. The prize money is donated to "a certain home for retired bears," and Paddington is heard to comment:

"I think," said Paddington, to the world in general, "they might have stood it the right way up. It's not every day a bear wins first prize in a painting competition!" 

And also it's not every day we come across such a whimsical and wonderful combination of words and artwork so perfectly put together.

Process: "Caribou Cards"

Here's another focus on a process piece, annotated by a running background narration on the various stages of development.

Comics Podcasts: Digital Beards "The Craft of Comics"

I'm very pleased to have been invited to participate in our own local epicenter of ed-tech with Digital Beards, part of UAF's eLearning and Distance Education, who has a budding series of comics-related podcasts. Looking forward to hearing more of the endless stream of toon-talk edited into something coherent and concise - and hopefully educational if not entertaining. More projects are in the works, which I'll be posting updates as they are produced. In the meantime here's the first excerpted conversation with Instructional Designer Chris Malmberg, who was extremely patient in humoring my obsessive and extended monologues. But if it's one thing I've learned teaching a class on comics is that I can talk about 'em for hours, day in, day out, week after week... and that's in-between drawing.

Been really getting into using podcasts in the classroom: kept these running in the studio background for the Cartoon & Comic Art course which, seeing as how there's no visuals, is a helluva lot less distracting to students than, say, non-stop Adventure Time. "To The Best of Our Knowledge" has some insightful interview with many creators, and is a great way to eavesdrop on really interesting conversations. Via Boing Boing, which brought to my attention this episode (link here) featuring Peter Bagge + Evan Dorken.

Also Recommend If You Like has one with Fart Party creator Julia Wertz, which joins the growing roster with others like Word Balloon, Inkstuds and The Beat.

Read This... about Reading

Photo by Robin Mayes from The Reading Agency

     WOW: perhaps the single-best summation I've ever personally read about reading - and libraries -  from a great practitioner of the craft , Neil Gaiman. Read here the edited transcript from The Guardian about his speech for the lecture series by The Reading Agency.
     Folks sometimes are curious as to why I ceaselessly advocate for literacy as opposed to say, art. It's because for me personally reading the books came first. As an only child with a librarian mom and a bookseller dad, I was raised on imagination, and had the good fortune to have parental support and encouragement for creativity. High among the multitude of inspirations that led me to drawing comics was, quite frankly, daydreaming. It was a safe place, full of companionship and adventure, and a salvation in many a boring classroom in school and to retreat into afterwards at home. And still to this day the most attractive, fulfilling and amusing place to be is wandering around my thoughts with a blank piece of paper in front of me with a pen or pencil in hand. And reading books made that possible.
     So please visit the Literacy Council of Alaska's website (and "Like" their page on Facebook too for updates and more information on events) to learn about opportunities to volunteer in the Interior, and then also visit any one of our wonderful libraries like the Rasmuson and the Noel Wien here in Fairbanks.

“Comics have been decried as fostering illiteracy. It's tosh. It's snobbery and it's foolishness.”

PlatyMorph!

Photo: Dead Rose Studios

A former student and exceptionally talented artist from the very first Cartoon & Comic Art course has really taken off in a wonderful, weird way with her mask-making venture: PlatyMorph. Check out Jolene Schafer's website + Etsy shop for some more wild & whimsical creations. I think I need me a beaver mask!

Reposts from NY Comic Con

Image of Penelope Gaylord via BuzzFeed

In the meantime and far, far away from out local efforts, the New York Comic Con was another success (creeps aside) for some friends on both sides of the tables. A couple stand-out articles (Hat-tip Angie and Shayna): the first, "20 Pieces of Advice for Female Artists from Female Artists" from BuzzFeed - excellent for everybody - and another, "Meet the Women Who Are Changing Comics," from The Atlantic Wire:

"I think that the message is that no one is 'other,' that white males are not the 'default human being,'" DeConnick said

Cartoons to Die For?

Image: Akram Raslan

Via the Cartoonists Rights Network - hat-tip Mike Lynch's vigilance - comes (update - possible) news of Syrian cartoonist Akram Raslan's execution for "...various crimes including sedition and disrespecting the head of state. The only evidence against him was his Facebook posted cartoons encouraging people to laugh at the dictator." Humbling perspective while making fun of the usual idiots here at home, and a cautionary lesson in how, if given true power, many of them would do the same.

“Here in the United States we are experts in the knowledge that editorial cartooning is a dying art. In other areas of the world, however, it is an art that people die for.” - Dr. Robert Russell

Anchorage Press cover: Wikipedia

Here's another fun little cover job for the Anchorage Press: I was tasked with caricaturing some infamous Alaskan/Anchorage personalities and tying in the topic of Wikipedia.

Grabs from the on-line edition, the website and Facebook.

Given the draft version of the article to work from, I selected Bill Allen of VECO, Miss Teen Alaska and Mr. Whitekeys. Some initial concepts included the cast of characters rendered as Mount Rushmore but on a glacier or on Denali, as snowmen, participating in a frontier card game, and on a totem pole with a crew of busy beavers editing away. Most of these ideas involved a horizontal composition, which is a challenge to wrangle into the format of a newspaper cover.

Spots

Printed out the draft of the article and over lunch doodled a few ideas on the back page: these caricature roughs were then scanned in to rearrange in a couple trial compositions to bounce off the editor for feedback:

Roughs

Trivia: I was asked to drop Miss Alaska and draw The Quitter instead, as she was going to be included in the final article. I confess to only changing two things: adding those glasses and taking off the sash. Ta-Daaa. Another edit was taking off the original wording on Bill Allen's button that said "Corrupt Bastard" and substituting instead the logo for VECO - prudent for a cover. And since nobody knows what Allen actually looks like, or on the equal chance my caricature didn't work either, a little tag sometimes helps connect the dots for the viewer.

Spots: digital

A couple quick, last-minute spot-illustrations rounded out the commission: for our readers keeping score at home there is an inspirational lining to the whole canine editor concept that comes from a classic panel - New Yorker cartoonist Peter Steiner's "On the Internet, nobody knows you're a dog."

Line art

In the end this turned out to be a really fun exercise and also inadvertently reconfirmed that quite often it's challenging assignments that initially don't seem to be easy that will ultimately turn out to be a satisfying, as they will push you to reach new creative solutions. See here for some previous samples of covers or peruse the Commercial folio for more.

Finished full color

"Floss" (Wash)

One of my recent reworks: color wash over the original pen & ink panel. Actually as of late I've taken to first doing the usual Derwent water-soluble wash pencil with black only for pushing back some rich value, letting that dry, and then hitting it up again with some Graphitint color for highlights, then finally a good soak in a clear varnish, which results for a lush piece that really stands in contrast against the print version. Trying to do one a day and catch up on the backlog of original material: makes for a nice warm-up exercise before penciling and/or inking in new cartoons.

24-Hour Comics Day 2013: Recap

WOW: Last weekend's 24-Hour Comics Day went awesome, with a record-breaking eighteen folks signing up to take on the challenge this year. Plus there were lots of other people who stopped by to say hi, sketch a bit and hang out - not to mention a few bonus deliveries of tasty victuals and creative juices. Traffic was steady (many thanks again go to the hospitality and accommodation from Kevin at The Comic Shop), with many people visiting the venue for the first time, and a lot of curious onlookers asking what was going on and vowing to take a stab at it next time. There was a Yu-Gi-Oh! and a Warhammer 40k campaign going on in the gaming room as a constant backdrop, but we pushed some display racks over and set up tables + chairs for a section in the back of the store to stay cloistered away in relative comfort and peace. Part of what makes this an interesting experience is the disconnect with external reality as one observes the ebb and flow of the outside world continue apace as one remains ensconced in a creative buffer zone. And I'm always reminded of the contrast between the glossy pages of the shelves of comics surrounding us and the reality of the raw material we are creating within such a context: this is where it happens. That to me is personally more inspiring than looking at the pretty pictures produced in a publication by a pro - I prefer seeing it happen live. In fact, the same correlation can be drawn between an analogous experience with listening to an mp3 with earplugs versus hearing an actual performance: there's simply no comparison.

The best part's always the basic camaraderie and there was some simply outstanding talent on display - especially from a handful of first-timers. A couple folks showed up from the Visual Art Academy  Cartooning class and the UAF Summer Sessions Cartoon & Comic Art course, a couple random drop-ins from campus who caught the fliers + posters, with some from the local high-schools too, along with some adventurous independents and a recent immigrant to Alaska: to all a warm welcome to the community of Interior cartoonists.

As the clock ticked onward to the second half some spiffy original art started getting racked up to dry on display. There was a range of tools employed from brushes to Microns, even an old-school lightbox made an appearance (no digital tablets this year, though many tablets were in use for reference). Some beautiful washes were made along with excellent linework, both contour and texture, nice use of spot blacks and even a couple bonus color pieces. Even the unfinished material I peeked at in a couple of sketchbooks was impressive: by no means whatsoever were the incomplete efforts any less in caliber than the work of those who managed to do a full set of twenty-four pages. In fact it's one of the side-effects of such an undertaking, to re-calibrate and tackle the challenge again... not to mention what to do with the wealth of ideas and inspiration left over afterwards.
Posted here are some snapshots - crappy ones from an iPhone, but take a minute to check out the links to better versions from a few of this year's participants: Lucas Cheek (website here), Grace Posserotti (website here), Maria Frantz (website here) and Eta Mu (website here). Also both the Aussie-Alaskan Animator and Russell Ryan Pierce returned to meet the challenge as two of the final four who finished all their pages - in color no less. Outstanding!

Artwork by Grace Passerotti

Artwork by Hannah Tallan

Artwork (L-R) by Hannah Foss, Lucas Cheek, Maria Frantz

Artwork by Ryan Russell Pierce

Meanwhile the two returning vets, me and Robin, relinquished the reins as far as leading the charge - at least across the finish line - for this year: despite panel frames + captions meticulously lettered on all twenty-four pages, I barely managed to complete fifteen before doing a face-plant on a table in the back room for an hour, after which I was pretty much useless for the remainder of the event. I think I farted around too long at the onset culling material & editing a script, plus it's harder to use a dip-pen as opposed to a Sharpie, and six-panel pages as opposed to (comparatively) less complicated layouts are always a good idea. This can be crucial when one's style doesn't lend itself to such an undertaking and keeping it simple = keeping pace with high output. Then again, excuses & whines aside ... maybe it could be I'm just be gettin' too damn old for this sorta gig? Nahh... next year I just gotta pack my own coffeepot and set up an IV drip. Regardless, learned firsthand for the first time that it ain't all about finishing - there sure aren't any losers. After recovering it was back in the cartoon saddle cranking out the work the very next day... and remembering what a great time this always is, with a group of good people all doing what we love to do best.

Respect your Elders... let them nap...