Category Archives: Illustration Faculty

Sergio Ruzzier on Sprayblog

General Info, Illustration Faculty, Illustration Industry, Interviews, , ,
Uccelli

The fine folks over at Spraygraphic’s Sprayblog just posted an interview with Parsons Illustration Adjunct Faculty Sergio Ruzzier. Here’s a taste:

SG: Describe your working process when creating a new work.

SR: I usually do very few sketches, one or two are often enough. I am lazy. Once I have a clear idea of the composition, I do a detailed preparatory pencil drawing on plain paper. If I’m not happy with some elements (proportions, size, placement…) I sometimes scan that drawing and change stuff with Photoshop. Then, I trace that drawing onto the watercolor paper, ink it, erase the pencil, and finally color it.

SG: What kind of things do you do when you get blocked or find it hard to create something?

SR: Well, I usually get depressed, or restless… I don’t have any particular trick to overcome that. I just waste a lot of time thinking. If there is a deadline, then for some reason I always find the solution at the last minute.

SG: Where are you currently finding your inspiration?

SR: The inspiration can come from everywhere: a sentence I read in a book, or something I see while taking a walk, or a detail in a painting. But often it’s the same old ideas that I keep elaborating in different ways.

SG: Can you tell us a little about your children’s book career. When did you start that kind of work?

SR: When I came to NY I already knew that I wanted to do picture books. So I took my drawings and ideas to children’s book editors and art directors, but initially I was always rejected: they would say my work was too “adult”, “sophisticated”, and “European” (never understood what that means!). Even “disturbing”. There was probably some truth to that. Anyway, I kind of gave up for a while, focusing instead on my editorial work. Later, I met a few editors who believed in my work, and gave me a chance. That’s how I started. Now this is what I mainly do, writing and illustrating children’s books, and I really like it.

SG: In what ways has your books’ art and subject material changed over the years? Do you experiment with different art styles depending on the subject or characters?

SR: I don’t think the nature of my work has changed much over the years. Of course you have to adapt a little to your audience, some themes are very delicate… For example, I would love to do a picture book about death, but you have to find the right way to handle such a subject matter (in order to convince editor, publisher, salespeople, reviewers, booksellers, librarians…)
My art style is always the same, I think. I’m not very good at experimenting. And besides, I feel that if you have a personal style, one that has naturally evolved through the years, well, that’s your way of doing things, and you cannot really force it. It’s like your handwriting. Of course this is how I feel about my own work, but there are some artists (not many) who can handle beautifully different styles and techniques. One great example is Saul Steinberg.

Catch the rest of Sergio’s interview & see more images of his work here.

Early Notice: ICON5

Events, Illustration Faculty, Illustration Industry, News, , , , , ,
adam mccauley

ICON5 will be held in New York City at the historic Roosevelt Hotel in midtown Manhattan. The theme of this year’s conference, The Big Picture, is more than a slogan, it is the perspective through which we see our future – a future of limitless possibilities for illustrators as thinkers, story tellers and providers of creative content. The conference promises to examine and discuss the current creative and economic forces that every illustrator and our industry face today.

Parsons Adjunct Faculty members Jordin Isip and Tara McPherson will speak on the following panel:

Gallery 101
Saturday, July 5, 2:00pm – 3:00pm

Martha Rich with
Tara McPherson, Jordin Isip and Jonathan Levine

The increasing popularity and success of the small gallery has created a need for new, affordable and original art. Exhibiting in a gallery is a great way for illustrators to expand beyond traditional forms of illustration and generate additional income. How do you take that next step into the exhibiting world and get your work out of the studio and on the gallery wall? Illustrator Martha Rich questions gallery curator Jonathan Levine and illustrators Jordin Isip and Tara McPherson about the challenges and successes connected to their gallery experiences. Curious about showing your work in galleries, curating your own shows or developing a new line of revenue and expanding your creativity? This session is for you.

Other ICON5 speakers are: Marshall Arisman, Steven Bliss, Enrico Casarosa, Allan Comport, Andrew Coningsby, Tad Crawford, Ronnie del Carmen, Chrystal Falcioni, Mark Gallagher, Von Glitschka, Rudy Gutierrez, Mirko Ilíc, Jordin Isip (Parsons Illustration Adjunct Faculty), Barry Jackson, James Jean, Jerelle Kraus, David Lanham, Jonathan LeVine, Luba Lukova, Ross MacDonald, Gedeon Maheux, Leonard S. Marcus, Tara McPherson (Parsons Illustration Adjunct Faculty), Stephan Martiniere, Tim Mendola, Mitch Nash, Gary Panter, Daniel Pelavin, Louisa Saint Pierre, Ina Salz, Keri Smith, Mark T. Smith, Greg Spalenka, James Sturm, June Walker, and Robert Zimmerman.

icon5
July 2-5, 2008
New York City
Registration info can be found here.

 

[image by Parsons Illustration Alum Adam McCauley]

Tara McPherson solo show at Jonathan Levine

Exhibitions, Illustration Faculty, Illustration Industry, News, , ,
tara mcpherson

Parsons Illustration Adjunct Faculty Tara McPherson is currently showing new works at her first solo show for the Jonathan Levine Gallery, here in New York. Here’s the official press release:

For the artist’s first solo show at the gallery, Lost Constellations features a new series of oil paintings and resin-cast sculptures, incorporated into a site-specific installation. The sculptures are a new experience for the artist, who has never before worked in this medium, three-dimensionally in full-scale proportions.

The painted portraits in Lost Constellations depict adventurous super-heroines from an alternate universe, crossing dimensional planes of time and space. McPherson considers the idea of parallel existence through the use of multiple views or angles on a subject, inspired by the Einstein cross (a phenomenon caused by gravitational lensing) while her series of bodily transfigurations convey principles on the physical manifestation of thought. A reoccurring cast of female characters appear in various states of action-fighting battles and growing toward self-discovery. Using her signature bold and graphic style, Tara’s imagery explores love, loss and loneliness through variations on strength, vulnerability and female empowerment. Concepts of non-verbal communication and the evolution of spoken language are explored as well, along with an interpretation on the circle of life- represented through transitional properties of water particles: gas, liquid and solid.

One of the first women to gain recognition in a genre (and greater Art world) dominated by Male artists, Tara McPherson is a role model for younger female artists in the movement. A multi-faceted artist, she has successful careers in both Fine Art and Illustration. Her process remains the same in commissioned illustrations as in her personal work. Tara only does what she enjoys, never compromising her talent or individual sense of creative expression. Fine Art allows McPherson to develop a deeper, more intimate narrative for her subjects. Through layers of paint and symbolism, ideas that take pages of storyboard to convey in illustration projects can be condensed into a singular panel for one of her original pieces of artwork.

tara @ levine 2

Lost Constellations: Tara McPherson
Jonathan Levine Gallery
Feb 23 thru Mar 22, 2008
529 West 20th Street, 9E New York, NY 10011 ph:212-243-3822

Congratulations, Tara!

Ben Katchor’s Opera Reviewed in the New York Times

Events, Illustration Faculty, Illustration Industry, News, Performances, Reviews, , , ,

slug bearers shot

The Slug Bearers of Kayrol Island (Or, the Friends of Dr. Rushower), an opera created by Associate Professor of Illustration Ben Katchor and Mark Mulcahy, received an enthusiastic review by New York Times’ critic Ben Brantley yesterday. Here’s an excerpt:

“The Slug Bearers” may deal with subjects common to contemporary satire: fiendish industrial autocrats (in this case, the cackling George Klatter, played by a Lex Luthor-like Stephen Lee Anderson); shortsighted do-gooders; the limited attention span of news gatherers; and the (literal) insubstantiality of a technology-driven culture.

But Mr. Katchor is not an attack artist, and “The Slug Bearers” is neither sendup nor angry social rebuke.

Instead, like much of this artist’s work, it is propelled by a brooding and amused awareness of the strange, individual quirks and appetites that both keep people apart and occasionally bring them together.

This sensibility is conveyed with real enchantment by the set and projection designs of Jim Findlay and Jeff Sugg (subtly enhanced by Russell H. Champa’s lighting), which bring to eye-teasing life Mr. Katchor’s drawings of lonely town (as in New York City) and polluted country (as in the tropical isle of Kayrol). Projections on scrims are used to create some delightful trompe l’oeil moments involving walking amid street traffic, riding elevators and even answering the phone.

These are never mere sight gags, though, but part of a thoroughgoing mise-en-scène that melts boundaries between the real and representational. At the same time there’s a strong, melancholy suggestion that the people who inhabit this flat but fluid landscape can never fully step into the world they live in. (And I mean the characters, not the performers.)

Read the complete review here, listen to a narrated slideshow about the opera’s development here, and as an extra bonus, we present you with a small preview of the show:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1l7p7XBHc4&rel=1&border=1]

The Slug Bearers of Kayrol Island (Or, the Friends of Dr. Rushower)
An Opera by Ben Katchor and Mark Mulcahy
Vineyard Theater
108 E. 15th St (btw Union Square and Irving Pl.)
New York, NY
212-353-0303

[image by Carol Rosegg]

Martin Mazorra on Printmaking Panel at MoMA

Events, Illustration Faculty, Illustration Industry, , , ,

cannonball & 1026

Illustrative Printmaking instructor Martin Mazorra tipped us off to the following event this coming Thursday. Here’s the official scoop:

Join PopRally for a special night with Martin Mazorra and Mike Houston, printmakers and founders of Cannonball Press, along with artists from Space 1026, a unique creative community located in downtown Philadelphia.

Cannonball Press is a Brooklyn-based organization that produces affordable black and white prints by a number of artists (including Sean Star Wars, David Rees, David Ellis, Maya Hayuk, and Swoon.) In addition to their own art, Mazorra and Houston also work together to create large format woodcut prints. Space 1026 was founded over a decade ago by a handful of artists and tricksters who organize rowdy public events and outrageous installations at their building and at other institutions. At the heart of Space 1026 is a communal screenprinting workshop where the madness comes to life.

Following presentations by the artists, Gretchen Wagner, Curatorial Assistant in MoMA’s Department of Prints & Illustrated Books, moderates a discussion about the artists’ work, printmaking, collaborations, and more. A cocktail reception follows the event.

Tickets are $5 and are available at the Museum information and Film desks.

You must be twenty-one or older to attend this event.

PopRally presents: An Evening with Cannonball Press and Space 1026
Thursday, February 14, 2008
7:00–10:00 p.m.
MoMA @ The Lewis B. and Dorothy Cullman Education and Research Building
4 West 54 St.

[image by Martin Mazorra & Mike Houston; Space 1026]

Illustration Faculty Nathan Bond in “Body of Work” Exhibition

Exhibitions, Illustration Faculty, Illustration Industry, News, , ,
body-of-work.jpg

Illustration Adjunct Faculty Nathan Bond has work included in Manifest Gallery‘s show entitled “Body of Work” which is on view through February 22nd.

The human form has been a central subject of artwork since well before it was called ‘art’. From Lascaux to Willendorf, to Matthew Barney and Jenny Saville, artists have found ways to provide forms of self-reflection to society.

Body of Work invited artists to submit works in any medium or genre that investigate or incorporate the human form in some way. A range of types of entries were strongly encouraged. Manifest received over 450 entries representing this spectrum, from purely academic examples of anatomical figure drawing, to conceptual and less-obvious interpretations.

Over 130 artists from 34 states and 9 countries submitted entries to this exhibit. The final selection includes 17 works by 12 artists from eight states and the United Kingdom. Works of painting, sculpture, collage, drawing, and printmaking promise to make Body of Work an exceptional exhibit marking the first exhibit of Manifest’s fourth year in operation.

For more information about the show, visit the Manifest Gallery website.  Congratulations on your inclusion, Nathan!

Body of Work
Manifest Gallery
2727Woodburn Avenue
East Walnut Hills
Cincinnati, Ohio 45206

Illustration Alum & Faculty featured in Society of Illustrators Exhibition

Exhibitions, Illustration Alumni, Illustration Faculty, Illustration Industry, News, , , , , ,
nora for society of illustrators
Gold Medal Winner Nora Krug (Associate Professor, Illustration)

Congratulations go out to Nora Krug on being awarded the Gold Medal by the Society of Illustrators for her illustration work, which is included, along with works by Parsons faculty Steven Guarnaccia and George Bates (who is also an alum) in the Society’s Sequential Category.

 

august wilson by george
George Bates (Illustration Alum and Adjunct Faculty)

 

Here’s the official announcement from the Society:

January 30—February 16, 2008: Kicking off the 50th Anniversary of the ILLUSTRATORS ANNUAL is the Sequential Category of the Annual Exhibition. This juried competition features the best sequential illustrations of the year. This category includes any multi-image project for which a sequence of images is necessary to fully convey an idea or story. Examples include: comic books, art journalism, graphic novels, pre-production art and animation.

steven @ society

Steven Guarnaccia (Illustration Department Chair)


Society of Illustrators
128 East 63rd Street (between Park and Lexington Avenues)
New York, NY 10065
Tel: (212) 838-2560
Fax: (212) 838-2561
E-Mail: info@societyillustrators.org

Illustration Adjunct Faculty Deroy Peraza gets his shot in the Spraygraphic Spotlight

Illustration Faculty, Illustration Industry, Interviews, , , , , ,
marquez-hyperakt

Deroy Peraza, an Illustration alum and faculty member, discussed his business Hyperakt and artistic process with Spraygraphic’s Sprayblog back in January. Here’s an excerpt:

SG: Describe your working process when creating a new work.

DP: There’s two answers to that. The creative process and the pragmatic process. The trick is getting the two to get along.
On the creative side, there are always some vague ideas floating around in my head that are waiting to get matched with the right project. They are usually inspired by something I saw, read or heard somewhere, and tend to be unfinished fragments that don’t really mean anything until they are activated by a concept. But all of that is bullshit without answering some very basic, practical questions first:
1. What does it need to do?
2. Who needs to get it?
3. Why?
Whether the work is personal or commercial, print or interactive, 2d or 3d, the same questions apply. I need to be able to define what I’m trying to do concisely in one statement before creating anything. Otherwise, I feel lost. Like most things in my life, the process of creating any work is one of structured chaos.

SG: What kind of things do you do when you get blocked or find it hard to create something?

DP: Ask for help. One of the great things of working in a collaborative environment, with people I like and respect, is that I can ask them for help. Everybody gets stuck sometimes. Whether your brain forgot to power up that day or whether you’ve been working on something for so long that you’ve been blinded to reality, there’s nothing like a little perspective from your peers for a reality check. At Hyperakt, we don’t really have the luxury of letting a project sit around waiting for brilliant ideas, so we tag team on them when we get stuck. We’ll just trade projects and hit reset. Its a practice that is not easy to learn. It requires putting the ego aside, and trusting your baby to someone else. Both are hard. Other than that, there’s the usual. I dig for inspiration in our library or on the web. I go for a walk. I try to travel as much as possible. I’m also very competitive, so nothing fires me up more than seeing good work from the competition.

Read the rest of Deroy’s interview here!

Ben Katchor in New York Magazine

Illustration Faculty, Performances, Publications, , , , ,

slug bearers

Illustration Associate Professor Ben Katchor got interviewed for New York Magazine recently. He talked about the development of his new opera with Mark Mulcahy, The Slug Bearers of Kayrol Island. Here’s a snippet:

As a cartoonist working in theater, how would you compare the two?
Comics are an economical way to figure out stories. There are zero expenses. You just need a place to live. Whereas theater is the most luxurious art form that there is: You need live actors, and everyone has to show up at a certain time and do a lot of rehearsing. Are they going to catch a cold that day? Are they going to show up? You realize how fragile all of it is. But it’s a great thing. When you’re watching a great actor try to figure out his scene, it’s like watching a cartoonist making a drawing, but they’re doing it somehow with their body. It’s amazing.

How would you sum up the play for someone who hasn’t seen it?
It’s an absurdist romance. It’s about the romance of poetry and humanitarianism.

The show also seems to be making a statement about consumerism.
There is a trend in the world now toward the immaterial — with people digitizing books and making tiny portable electronic devices. But if you want to make table phones and toasters, they need to be augmented artificially. The weight needs to be augmented. There is nothing physically to them, they’re just little microchips and plastic casings. We’re at this strange point in time where a lot of life we’d like to have miniaturized so we can carry a library in our pocket. But on the other hand, we still have hands and physical bodies, and we need to deal with the physical world. It’s a dilemma of technology.

Catch the rest of Ben’s interview here and see here for more information about The Slug Bearers of Kayrol Island.