Hey all! I wanted to take a minute to talk up all the comics, cards, prints, and zines I got at DDLL and MOCCA this year. DDLL remains one of my favorite things across all possible categories of things. The new location was wonderful - and actually allowed some drawing to happen!- and big thanks to Lucy Knisley for organizing it in the middle of her new book tour.
First pic is goodies from DDLL. L->R and top-> bottom, these are:
- Kaitlin Sullivan- love the tetris motif!
- Alisa Harris made a cute and informative mini! Cooking up Comics is excellent & highly recommended.
- Ashley Austin drew this card on the spot based on a two-word prompt!
- Katie McDermott has an awesome website URL and makes even more awesome illustrations.
- Dre Grigoropol is sorely missed in Philly.
- Rel made a clever little mini with a neat twist!
- Rebekka Dunlap’s zine Waterslide is lovely and deserves a few readings.
- Rebecca Mock is killing it with her illustrations (and mentoring a whole host of brilliant MICA students while at it)! Her tiny chewable zine was excellent for getting folks to make fun faces. Check her work out!
- Kelsey Sunday’s work is full of lovely palettes and neat game assets!
- Michelle’s card doubles as a cool sticker!
- Luca is a rockin animator and possessor of a host of hamster cards.
- Elise Dinkelaker does wonderful things with ink.
- Bridget Gibson is making some amazing creature (and everything else!) illustrations.
- Maugerite Dabaie has a really gorgeous comic going on that you should all check out.
- Dirty Diamonds- I’ll be sharing a table at SPX with DD editors Kelly and Claire! Now open for submissions for Issue # 4 : )
- Aimee Fleck makes awesome fresh illustrations and comics!
- Meg Brennan is currently making Pencil Pup, among many other wonderful things. It’s delightful and terrifying and worth your time. Pencil Pup loves you! ◑‿◐
- And a bonus donation sketchbook because DDLL is a worthy cause. I met a bunch of other wonderful people who had run out of trading things —a whole crew of kick-ass illustrators from MICA included— and I can’t wait for next year!
I also bought a couple prints, continuing on my ridiculous goal to fill a whole wall up with artwork bought from illustrators I dig:
- Othello by Steen- gorgeous screenprint with brilliant colors!
- Smallest Feline by Hillary Blair - Hillary let me yoink the one blue variant of this super-sweet print, but I love the orange as well!
- Sleep Sleep by Nora - I love the paisley & the pale pink goat together! Thanks to the artist for solving the mystery of who made it : )
And finally, an absurd hoard of comics- I went way overboard and over budget, but I’m really happy with everything I bought.
- Women Warriors Zine, edited by Abby Boeh and Roxie Vizcarra- 100% full of amazing work by a ton of my favorite illustrators and comics folks. Should be available for purchase online soon!
- Lead Paint Comics- a webcomic that makes me laugh; minicomic did the same!
- Harbinger - stay tuned for a possible new URL for this comic, by Hillary Blair!
- The Blacklight by Kelsey Sunday - intriguing and well-executed preview; looking forward to the rest of the comic!
- Three Tales by Connie Li Chan- weird and wonderful retellings! Love the expressiveness of her drawing style.
- Tomorrow and Boys with Flowers by Aimee Fleck-Aimee’s comics are a treat and her zine full of drawings is wonderful, too!
- Sup Kids by Noelle Stevenson - fresh & fun & friendly & generally delightful drawings! I got to meet Noelle at DDLL, too, and was very glad to do so.
- Moonlight by Katie McDermott- a one-pager with a delightful surprise of a gorgeous full-page illo on the back.
- Pocket Book by Gregory Benton- a gorgeous collection of drawings from life. Love the tiny format.
- Let’s Make Out by Annelise Capossela- fun accordian format and cute drawings. Check out her larger-scale color works!
- Opposites Attract- a gorgeous zine collecting work from MICA’s new MFA in illustration. I got to chat with Kevin and Alex about the program- thanks again!
- House of Women by Sophie Goldstein- Sophie’s work rules! Can’t wait to read more of this one, and be sure to read Betsy and Mothership Blues as well.
- Life of Luna by Meg Brennan- if you don’t read Meg’s comics (see: Pencil Pup, above) then you’re missing out on a lot of clever, funny strange & wonderfulness!
- Rockall, Part III by Amelia Onorato- no joke, this comic made me cry on the train. I think Amelia’s putting together a collection of all three issues soon- buy them!
- 45* Dogs by Nora- super-cute little zine!
- Animals with Jobs by Laura Kovalcin- funny & unexpected!
- How to make strawberry milk by Milkyaway- I will never look at strawberry milk the same way.
- Bug Boys 1 & 2 by Laura Knetzger- earnest, delightful, sweet, and fun. Read these!
- Art Block by Chandler Moses- I laughed, I sobbed, I found my new life goal.
- Freeze by Kelsey Sunday-really neat & well-drawn designs!
- Between Blood & Water by Katie McDermott- another comic I very much want to read more of.
- My First Time Buying Condoms, edited by Maritsa Patrinos- Rebecca Mock ‘s and Kris Mukai’s might be my favorites for the moment, but they’re all brilliant and make a wonderful collection!
In closing: it was amazing and I want to go again right now. Can’t wait for SPX this fall! : )
I drew Ramona Flowers today because I was feeling like a lazy butt. I saw a girl drawing on the subway and I thought…”hey…drawing…I do that! I should do that.”
I know. It’s just snow. It happens.
Today was awesome though. I finally have the boots I have been wanting for most of my life, but could never afford/need. I got to walk outside in the snow. I now realize is my second favorite activity compared to walking on the beach. I also drank hot chocolate and sang to myself in the street. I want to do that everyday.
I discovered these common, self imposed restrictions are rather insidious, though they start out simple enough. We begin by worrying we aren’t good enough, smart enough or talented enough to get what we want, then we voluntarily live in this paralyzing mental framework, rather than confront our own role in this paralysis. Just the possibility of failing turns into a dutiful self-fulfilling prophecy. We begin to believe that these personal restrictions are, in fact, the fixed limitations of the world. We go on to live our lives, all the while wondering what we can change and how we can change it, and we calculate and re-calculate when we will be ready to do the thing s we want to do. And we dream. If only. If only. One day. Some day.
Every once in a while — often when we least expect it — we encounter someone more courageous, someone who choose to strive for that which (to us) seemed unrealistically unattainable, even elusive. And we marvel. We swoon. We gape. Often , we are in awe. I think we look at these people as lucky, when in fact, luck has nothing to do with it. It is really about the strength of their imagination; it is about how they constructed the possibilities for their Life. In short, unlike me, they didn’t determine what was impossible before it was even possible.
[…]
If you imagine less, less will be what you undoubtedly deserve. Do what you love, and don’t stop until you get what you love. Work as hard as you can, imagine immensities, don’t compromise, and don’t waste time. Start now. Not 20 years from now, not two weeks from now. Now.
Song: “This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody)” by Talking Heads
I was asked to draw a castle yesterday. I was then asked about who lives in this castle. I claimed it was a child king whose father never taught him to swim. One day he was being an arrogant, little ass of a king and fell in the moat. Now the castle is vacant and will most likely end up as spoils in an invasion.
Confession 1/8/13
I’m not leaving my apartment today. They changed the lock on the front door and I don’t have the new key yet. I start my new job tomorrow. I just can’t be locked out of the house tonight.
Adventure Awaits!
Today I start a new chapter. I started snooping around NYC about a month ago. Since then, I have a place to hold my stuff and a new job. None of the pieces fit right just yet, but it just takes a little effort. The biggest lesson I’ve learned so far is this: don’t give up on something because you have to change things along the way. Very rarely do things work out the way you imagine them in your head. This, however, does not necessarily mean you will be tweaking your situation constantly. In fact, you might end up in a situation that you never imagined and could be really incredible.
Keep an open mind, work your butt off, and do what you love.
Day 1: I drew a living room. It’s an imaginary living room and it’s in NYC.
Yea…maybe?
I have this friend. He once told me he was in love. I thought he was full of shit. Like seriously…gone off the deep end, you’re making excuses, bullshit. I find myself believing him more each day. Guess maybe you weren’t full of shit after all. I hope it all works out because it’s probably the only thing that keeps him going.
Long Day is Long
This morning I was in New York. Now I am back in Louisiana. It is a weird feeling to be back. The way I felt for the past week felt so right, like I belonged there. I come home and suddenly I have to start getting things in order. Being an adult so to speak. It’s not a vacation, so much as a mission. I haven’t been back in the house more than three hours and I already have a trash bag filled to the brim and a pile of books waiting to be sold at the used book store. I just want money for them at this point. I have a list of things that need to be accomplished in about two weeks time. There will be very little sleep. I have to juggle everything all at once. It’s not that it has to be done all right now, but the sooner the better. I still have another trip to the house to collect something, but I already know most of it will also be sold. I don’t mind down sizing really. It’s refreshing. I’ve always had so much stuff. It’s unnecessary. You guys wish me luck ok. I need it.
