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After finally reaching a breathing point after months-worth of deadlines (could be the eye of the storm, mind you) I finally took the chance to get back to some illustration work. Here’s the new cover of my soon-to-be-launched comic (co-written with Nikil Saval), Hard Hats. For more info, go to the Hard Hats page.
2012 is already looking to be a busy year for me, I’m pleased to say. From May 24-28 I’ll be in Phoenix, Arizona for the International Communication Association’s Conference, talking about comics journalism, followed a month later by the Woodstock Digital Media Festival, where I’ll be discussing visual storytelling on digital platforms. Straight after that I’ll be reprising my comics course at EPGY, Stanford’s Summer program in late June, followed immediately by my second stint at Idyllwild Arts College, near Palm Springs, California (that’s about 1.5 hours east of LA, non-yanks). Click here to find out more about the 1 week adult class I’m giving at Idyllwild, and here for 2-week youth (14-18) class.
I know it’s a long way off, but I’m also delighted to say that this December there will be an Archcomix exhbition at Studio Unfiltered in Pleasanton, where I’ll be displaying select pages from my latest comics journalism projects. The reason I chose to work with SU was because of their “art for social change” ethos, realized in the fact that one third of all sales will be donated to an anti-trafficking NGO. But of course if you can’t wait for the festive season, you could always head over to the Archcomix online comic art repository and order a page directly through this site.
Behold! The first glimpse of final artwork for my Alcatraz comic, based on the abortive escape attempt made my John Giles in 1945. Soon to be published by the National Park Conservancy Trust and available in Alcatraz, as well as through their (and my) online store, date tba. If you can’t wait for a hard copy, I’m previewing pages on the locked part of this site – though you’ll need to subscribe to the Archcomix Newsletter (which you can do here) to get the top secret password.
Now that’s over, I’m already headfirst into my comics project on human trafficking in San Francisco, parts of which will be published by the SF Public Press and Truthout. The SF Public Press is funding the publication through journalism crowdsourcing site spot.us, so click here and support investigative comics journalism. Only 6 days left!
Lots of other news and announcements to share with you below the fold, so scroll down for the full skinny.
To read from the start of this harrowing true story about one man’s wrongful incarceration on death row, click here.
Ray Krone’s tragic true story continues. To read from the start, hit “previous” twice won’t you.
Extract from my latest comic on the wrongful conviction of Ray Krone, who spent several years on death row for murder before being acquitted. To read the whole preview in page by page format, sign up for the latest Archcomix newsletter.
I’m back, after an extended hiatus in south america (sketchbook pages and an interview to follow) and a blistering sprint finish with several different pre-xmas deadlines before that. One of which was a short story featuring the snippet of panels above, chronicling miscarriages of justice in the american legal system. Another, out next week, is a second interactive piece for cartoon movement. More about it in the “news” section, just a scroll away, down below the fold.
Work on Alcatraz continues as I near the finish line, now that I’m well into colouring the inked pages. You’ll have to check out the “Extras” page from the tabs above for a glimpse of the finished pages as they come off my drawing board – but for that, you’ll need to get the passcode, which you can only get from the latest edition of the Archcomix newsletter (next one drops on Monday). Simple.
All this and I haven’t even mentioned my next big project, focusing on human trafficking in SF. I’m currently researching and doing interviews, and should have something for you in a few weeks. I’ll post separately about it soon.
In the build-up to a bumper deadline December, it’s been all hands on deck at Archcomix HQ, as the inked bristol slowly piles up on my desk. So as a taster to hold you over until next month when I can reveal what I’ve been up to, here’s a pencil (run through an iphone filter) of John Giles, the (anti)hero of my Alcatraz comic for the National Parks Conservancy Trust. See the Alcatraz page for more details. If you’re interested in how the pencils turn miraculously into inks, then check out my new time-lapse video on you tube by scrolling down (new users to the site: news is below the “fold”, under this here header announcement, and free comics are accessible through the drop-down menus above and via the buttons in the sidebar to the right).
I’ve also added some recent sketches to my flickr stream – check them out and follow my photostream here. And just in time for the festive season, check out my prints section and order some original artwork for the art lover/comic artist/discerning aesthete in your life – all come signed (with dedications optional).
A brief video intermission from the wishful thinking dept today – something to keep you sated until I can officially point you towards some of the myriad projects that have kept me busy for the past months. By busy, I mean manacled to my drawing board. This is from my upcoming comic on Alcatraz and will give you an idea of the new noir-ish style I’ve moved towards. Drybrush aplenty. Now if only I could speed up my inking process this easily…
As promised above, here is a link to the Yiddishkeit slideshow detailing my process of turning a comics script into finished pages, including using visual references, digital colouring in photoshop, thumbnailing, all that good stuff. Here is the Kickstarter campaign to erect a statue in Harvey’s native Cleveland.
Many thanks to Sterling Warner at Evergreen Valley College in San Jose for inviting me to talk about my work and comics journalism in general on Wednesday. It was great talking to the next generation of visual storytellers afterwards and I hope that some of them have made it here to the Archcomix online HQ – if so, welcome! Be sure to browse comics using the drop-down menus at the top of the page.
Meanwhile this week Alcatraz continues to rumble ahead, with the finish line now finally in sight; a new animation-based project involving Vietnam is in the works; I’m building another interactive piece, this time on the history of the International Criminal Court; pencilling some pages on a potential legal academic graphic novel; working on the follow-up to my crisis comix for Marketplace; AND laying the groundwork for my follow-up to last year’s Borderland, which will tell the story of trafficking in the US. Oh and the Stanford Graphic Novel Project! More about that on the soon to be re-launched”teaching” page – stay tuned for updates.
