All posts by amt
Guest Entry: Roxie Vizcarra at the Pictopia Festival!
Editor’s Note: This guest entry comes from Illustration Senior Roxie Vizcarra, who participated in the Pictopia/Pictoplasma Festival in Berlin, Germany this past March.
When the Illustration Department invited me to help represent them at this year’s Pictopia Festival (part of the acclaimed character design organization Pictoplasma), I was excited to be able to visit a city I’ve never been to, especially one with some much history as Berlin. What I didn’t know at the time was that there couldn’t have been a more perfect location for Pictopia to take place. It’s impossible to go very far without encountering some form of art that incorporates strong character design.
I spent a couple of days watching over Parsons’ exhibition, Ugly is Beautiful, at the Collegium Hungaricum, which also featured work by other Pictopia Character Walk artists. The set-up for the show was long and tedious, but in the end it was worth the effort as everything looked fantastic, and I can attest to the fact that most people who came by to have a look were rather impressed by the variety of unique characters Parsons students have to offer.
Jillian Tamaki gives a MoCCA/Mini-Comics workshop!
What: Mini Mini-Comics Workshop!
When: Saturday, April 25 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Where: 8th Floor Illustration Library, 2 W. 13th
Who: Jillian Tamaki and YOU!
Come learn about comic conventions, the comics industry, self-publishing, and constructing your own zines, artbooks, and mini-comics. A great introduction to those considering submitting work to this year’s MoCCA Festival! Some people think these conventions are only about comic-comics (pictures in panels), but Jillian has amassed a huge collection of books at these types of festivals that run the whole gamut of arty, comic-y, narrative, non-narrative, silkscreen, photocopied, etc. etc. She will also talk about her experiences making her first mini-comic and how she did it SOOO wrong. She’ll talk about how to construct these things in a non-painful way. Plus, she’ll answer any other comics industry related questions!
Don’t miss this truly great opportunity to meet with Jillian and get the benefit of her experiences!
Dan Yaccarino wins prize at Bologna Children’s Book Fair
Parsons Illustration Alum Dan Yaccarino (’87) got an official Mention in the Fiction category for his book, EVERY FRIDAY, at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair this past March.
Here’s what the jury members had to say about his work:
With consummate awareness, Dan Yaccarino goes back over a key moment in the history of illustration, echoing with great skill the unforgotten magic of the years between the two world wars when posters, home furnishings, design objects and styles of fashion all came together to create a certain elegance of living. Yaccarino re-defines the light. The compact forms he draws and paints forego the weight of contours. His colour palette never includes the banal. Limpid perspectives are so clearly defined as to seem an accomplished exercise in style intent on inhabiting each scene with a serene, enlivening spirit. Yet as he returns, re-reads and re-thinks, Yaccarino shows a talent all his own that shows through in his own unmistakable style. The result is a magical encounter with a great artist and an unforgettable moment in the history of illustration.
Congratulations, Dan! And if you’re in the NYC-area, you can catch Dan signing copies of his new book at Books of Wonder soon. Here are the official details on that event:
Join Books of Wonder on Saturday, April 25th, from 12 to 2pm as we welcome an exciting new crop of books for spring by seven of today’s most talented authors and artists. On hand will be author KATE FEIFFER who will present her three new books: The Problem with the Puddles, her first chapter book for young readers; Which Puppy? a picture book illustrated by her father, Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist, author, and artist, JULES FEIFFER, and My Mom Is Trying To Ruin My Life, a picture book illustrated by Caldecott Honor artist DIANE GOODE.Also joining us will be author MICHEAL J. ROSEN who will introduce his new book of poems, The Cuckoo’s Haiku: And Other Birding Poems; husband-and-wife team WENDELL and FLORENCE MINOR to present their latest collaboration, the delightful If You Were A Penguin; and best-selling author and artist DAN YACCARINO who will share with us his fascinating picture book biography, The Fantastic Undersea Life of Jacques Cousteau. Each of these talented authors and artists will present their books beginning at noon, answer questions from the audience, and then sign all of their many wonderful books.
Stop by and catch Dan in action!
The Beats get illustrated!
Cory Doctorow over at Boing Boing! recently highlighted The Beats: A Graphic History, which seems like a pretty exciting new book by Harvey Pekar (of American Splendor fame) and a host of others Here’s a snippet of Cory’s write-up:
The Beats: A Graphic History is everything a radical history should be: critical, admiring, quirky and apologetic. The Beats is largely written by Harvey Pekar and illustrated by Ed Piskor, with a concluding section of more critical, less biographical pieces written and illustrated by a variety of critics and artists, including Nancy J Peters, Tulu Kupferberg, Summer McClinton, Anne Timmons and others.
The opening section consists of Pekar’s biographies of the canonical Beats, Kerouac, Ginsberg, Burroughs, and then onto the less-celebrated members of the scene, including Rexroth, Ferlinghetti, LeRoi Jones, and so forth. These pieces are loving but harsh, sparing their subjects little sympathy for their misdeeds (which are many, ranging from murder and betrayal to vicious misogyny and naive, fleeting affairs with reactionary politics and mysticism). Pekar shows us that a mature person can admire the worthy deeds and art of historical heroes without glossing over their bad acts — or throwing away their art with their sins.
Ed Piskor’s Kerouac (seen above) is just a taste of the great illustration included in this volume. You can pick up your copy here.
Parsons Reunion Weekend
Parsons Reunion Weekend 2009: April 17-19, 2009
The Parsons Reunion is for all alumni (all class years, all programs) and is an annual opportunity to gather your classmates, reconnect with Parsons, and network with fellow alumni. We encourage you to take the weekend to reconnect with Parsons and your fellow alumni. See below for information about the various events, ticketing, and more.
This year, 2009, is also a special reunion for the classes of 1959, 1969, 1974, 1979, 1984, 1989, 1994, 1999, and 2004!
Friday, April 17
8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. View Spanning the Decades: 100 Years of Student Work from the Kellen Archives in the Gimbel Library. On display will be examples of student work from 1906 through 2007, including sketches, travel diaries, presentation drawings, and more. Departments and disciplines represented in the exhibit include Advertising Design, Communication Design, Costume Design, Environmental Design, Fashion Design, Graphic Design, Illustration, Interior Architecture & Design, Product Design, Printmaking and Photography.
4:00-5:00 p.m. Tour Parsons’ Kellen Archives. The Kellen Archives documents the history of Parsons, with materials including archival records, manuscripts, posters, art and design works on paper, oral histories, photographs, films, videotapes, serials and ephemera. Wendy Scheir, Director of the Kellen Archives, will lead the tour and answer alumni questions about the materials. An RSVP to alumni@newschool.edu or 212-229-5662 x3784 is required for this event. Please indicate your class year or any questions you have about Parsons history when you RSVP, as the information on display will be specially geared towards alumni attendees. For more on the Archives, click here.
5:00 -8:00 p.m. Visit Parsons’ Sheila C. Johnson Design Center at 66 5th Avenue. In the Aronson Gallery you’ll find a student project called “Oyster Gardens” led by faculty member Mara Haseltine. In the Kellen Gallery you can view “Into the Open: Positioning Practice,” which is coming from the Venice Biennale of Architecture.
6:00-8:00 p.m. Join Felicitas Oefelein ’95 and Christine Leitner ’95 for a reception celebrating the launch of their new website, DESIGNintermix, a networking resource for designers.
Continue reading
Ben Katchor’s “A Checkroom Romance” adds second show!
New York Public Library – Cullman Center presents
A Checkroom Romance by Ben Katchor and Mark Mulcahy
Wednesday, May 13, 2009 at 7pm SOLD OUT
Just added: Friday, May 15, 2009 at 7pm TICKETS AVAILABLE!
5th Avenue and 42nd Street
New York, NY 10018
In this new, musical tragicomedy by cartoonist Ben Katchor and musician Mark Mulcahy, one man’s casual obsession with the architecture and culture of coat checkrooms ensnares him in a desperate struggle between employment agents, maitre ‘ds, lovesick podiatrists, low-budget contractors, and paraphilic playboys.
A Check-Room Romance was commissioned by the Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers.
Order tickets online here or call 212.868.4444.
Tickets: $15 general admission/$10 Library Donors, Seniors and students with valid ID.
Humbug (Arnold Roth and Al Jaffee) at the Strand tomorrow
An Evening with HUMBUG at the Strand, April 14th!
FANTAGRAPHICS BOOKS AND THE STRAND PRESENT: AN EVENING OF HUMBUG
In 1957, five artists — Harvey Kurtzman, Will Elder, Arnold Roth, Al Jaffee and Jack Davis – hot on the heels of creating MAD magazine, pooled their money and their talent and entered into the creative, exuberant folly of a lifetime by creating the greatest satirical magazine of their careers. Join HUMBUG co-founders Arnold Roth and Al Jaffee in a book signing and discussion about this historic publication with Fantagraphics Publisher and editor of the collected HUMBUG, Gary Groth. Attendees will also enjoy an exclusive screening of a documentary short film about the late Will Elder.
An Evening with HUMBUG
Featuring Arnold Roth and Al Jaffee in conversation with Gary Groth
Tuesday, April 14, 7:00PM
The Strand Bookstore
12th St. & Broadway,
New York, NY
Isabel Samaras has first monograph released!
In just a few shorts weeks, on April 29th, Parsons Illustration Alum Isabel Samaras will have her very first monograph, On Tender Hooks, published by Chronicle Books! Here’s the official description:
On Tender Hooks — Isabel Samaras’s quirky, sexy, pop-surrealist art has had a cult following for years—and now at long last her first monograph, On Tender Hooks, is here. Drawing her influence from classic TV shows and paintings by the Old Masters—for example riffing on Géricault’s Raft of the Medusa by replacing the figures with characters from Gilligan’s Island—Samaras has created a witty, erotic, and surreal body of work. This fresh and dazzling volume includes a three-way interview between Samaras and fellow low-brow artists Shag and The Pizz, as well as delightful and enlightening commentary from gallerist Justin Giarla and art writer Colin Berry, and an erotic short story by Lucy Blue.
Pre-order your copy here and note that you can also get a deluxe version which includes:
Edition limited to 100 and 5 artist’s proofs
Print: Honey Dripper (Goldilocks & the Three Bears), 2008
Signed and numbered by the artist, 8×10 Giclée print
Fancy! There’s also an accompanying postcard collection if you’re short on cash but still want a little of this beautiful art.
Our congratulations to Isabel on this huge accomplishment. Seems like she’s pretty happy with the results, as well. Over at her blog, you can check out her reaction on getting a copy of the completed book.
Devil’s In The Details Group Art Show Opening at Giant Robot New York
Giant Robot is proud to present Devil’s in the Details, a 10-person group art show. Contributors range in artistic styles and backgrounds, from illustration and graphic design, to graffiti and fine art. Representing some of the most prolific and engaging voices in the art world today, each artist has created new original works for this show.
Participants include:
- Sean Boyles – Applying his loose, yet honed style to drawings, paintings, printmaking, and even photos and videos, Boyles has the uncanny ability to make carefully composed depictions of the street appear effortless.
- Ako Castuera – Castuera depicts a hyper-colored, gravity-defying world that is somewhat terrifying but also super fun. When she is not making her own art, she is a character artist for the Metacopalypse animated TV series.
- French – Utilizing a distinct, finely detailed method to his drawings, French’s subjects include the morbid, the classic, the contemporary, and the strange, all executed with care and precision.
- Maxwell Loren Holyoke-Hirsch – One of the hardest working artists in the art scene today, Holyoke-Hirsch has maintained his artistic vision and expanded on his style while showing in galleries around the world.
- Andrew Holder – The patterns and shapes of Holder’s art are as distinct as the compositions he creates with both. Continually making work that exemplifies the direction of modern art, Holder most recently graced the cover of Arkitip.
- Jordin Isip – Isip’s mixed media work combines the look of raw sculpture with simple, modernist design, and graces book covers, album covers, and magazine articles. [Parsons Illustration faculty!]
- Yellena James – In her artwork, James combines complex abstract forms to form larger images that take on lives of their own. Her colorful arrangements of organic shapes and tangled lines are at once floral and alien, organic and sci-fi, crafty and fantastic.
- Jeremyville – Art, product design, animation–Jeremyville seems to do it all, and always with his trademark, innovative style and sophisticated presentation. His work has been shown around the world, and he continues to fill galleries with art that defies definition.
- David Jien – Still developing as an art student, Jien’s pencil drawings incorporate a dream like world that embraces such elements as graffiti, aliens, and the people around him.
- Matt Lock – At once, Lock’s colorful, heavy metal-inspired paintings recall the crudest of notebook doodles with the most epic sci-fi landscapes. They are simple, stunning, and thought provoking.
Devil’s in the Details
April 11 – May 6, 2009
Reception: Saturday, April 11, 2009 at 6:30 p.m.
Giant Robot Gallery
437 East 9th Street
Between 1st Ave. & Ave. A in the East Village
New York, New York 10009
(212) 674-GRNY (4769)
grny.net