From the Vault: Illustration/Animation Used in United Commericals

From the Vault, General Info, Illustration Industry, , ,

For such a large corporate company, United Airlines is using animation to create some unconventional advertisements. I rustled up an old USAToday article with this quote,

Why drawings? “We really wanted a unique look and feel, and that’s how we hit on the animation and illustration,” says Alex Leikikh, group account director at Fallon Worldwide, the agency that created the ads.

Here’s one of the (award-winning) spots called, “The Meeting,” created by Wendy Tilby and Amanda Forbis :

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nU5DasW5nUY&rel=1]

You can see other spots at United’s website and read an article/analysis of the ad-series in the Slate archives.

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.

Early Notice: Splat: A Graphic Novel Symposium, featuring R. Sikoryak

Events, Illustration Alumni, Illustration Faculty, Illustration Industry, News, , , , , ,

splat

Among a host of others, Illustration Adjunct Faculty and Alum Bob Sikoryak will be taking part in Splat: A Graphic Novel Symposium. Here’s the official scoop:

SPLAT! A Graphic Novel Symposium will take place on Saturday, March 15
at the New York Center for Independent Publishing (NYCIP) in
Manhattan, with keynote speaker Scott McCloud. The NYCIP is a
non-profit educational program (part of the General Society of
Mechanics and Tradesmen) dedicated to promoting and supporting
independent publishers across the United States.

Graphic novels are becoming increasingly popular, creating a
groundswell of excitement and interest. Addressing the graphic
novel’s considerable impact on the public consciousness, the SPLAT!
Symposium, organized by the NYCIP, will provide an intensive
educational forum for the publishing community, educators, librarians,
and people eager to find out more about the comics universe. It will
also supply prospective creators with a unique opportunity to learn
what it takes to be a graphic novelist.

The conference will feature a number of movers and shakers from the
graphic novel world, including: Scott McCloud (Zot! and Making
Comics); Jim Killen (Barnes and Noble); David Saylor (Scholastic),
Raina Telgemeier (The Baby-Sitters Club), Ted Rall (Attitude), CB
Cebulski (Marvel Comics); Bob Mecoy (Bob Mecoy Literary Agency); R.
Sikoryak (The Seduction of Mike); Nick Bertozzi (The Salon); and
Charles Brownstein (CBLDF).

SPLAT will consist of three different tracks of panels, seminars, and
workshops designed for the publishing industry, would-be creators, and
librarians to be followed by the SPLAT Gala Reception. The first track
will feature panels, including “Who Reads Graphic Novels?” and “How to
Get Published;” the second track will consist of hands-on workshops
such as “Storytelling” and “Where to Start with Art;” and the final
library-oriented track will include seminars on “Using Anime & Manga
to Light the Fire in Your Young Adult Collection” and “Defending Your
Graphic Novel Collections from Challenges and Censorship.”

The cost of the day-long Symposium will be $125; this will include
lunch and the Gala Reception with the keynote speaker, Scott McCloud.

Spread the word and catch this great event if you can. More information about registration can be found here and a complete breakdown of the panels can be found here. Don’t miss it!

SPLAT
NYCIP, The General Society of Mechanics and Tradesmen
20 West 44th Street, New York City. For more
212-764-7021
nycip@nycip.org.

Illustration Full-Time Faculty Ben Katchor’s New Opera!

Illustration Faculty, News, Performances, , , , , ,
slug bearers
TICKETS:
Purchase 30%+ discount seats online here:
https://www.ovationtix.com/trs/pr/28151/prm/BB40SB
or, phone box office (212-353-0303) and mention the code BB40SB
Ticket discount valid for performances thru 3/2/08 only.
Phone and online orders are subject to regular service charges.
This offer not valid on previously purchased tickets, is subject to availability and may be revoked at any time.

Quick Hit: Illustration Faculty Guy Billout in show at UWEC

Exhibitions, Illustration Faculty, News, , , ,
billout planes
If you happen to be in the Eau Claire, Wisconsin area, make sure to drop by the Foster Gallery at the University of Wisconsion-Eau Claire to see “Meaning and Metaphor,” a show showcasing work by Illustration Adjunct Faculty Guy Billout. The official description reads:
A show demonstrating how four nationally renowned illustrators condense contemporary issues into single images. Featuring Anitz Kunz, Guy Billout, Jason Holley, Daniel Bejar.
This is a great opportunity to see the work of these illustrators in sharp focus.
Meaning and Metaphor
January 31st-February 21st
Foster Gallery
University of Wisconson-Eau Claire
Haas Fine Arts Center, 121 Water Street
Eau Claire, Wisconsion

Quick Hit: Illustration Alum in show at Cinders Gallery

Exhibitions, Illustration Alumni, Illustration Industry, News, , , ,

Illustration alum Keren Richter (whose wonderful work has been recently featured in the Illustration Department display cases as part of the Jordin Isip-curated show “Expatriates”) is part of a group show at Cinders Gallery in Brooklyn, called “Brevity’s Rainbow.”  Here’s an excerpt from the curator’s note:

Nothing against Christo and Jean Claude, but art isn’t meant to be big grand flourishes of orange gates. And really, I love Olafur, and huge waterfalls under the great bridges of New York are really cool, but art is supposed to be an intimate affair.

Which is why I asked some of my favorite artists and some of my best friends to interpret the idea of the Lilliputian and the temporal, the specks of dust that make up the world, the fleeting moments of pleasure and pain. I wanted the artists to bend over their workbenches and canvases and get inside of their tiny artworks. I wanted to freeze a moment so you could all lean in, get our faces right up next to the artwork, as close as you can possibly get, and see a tiny beautiful thing.

I wanted to make a galaxy of tiny art, a prismatic assemblage of little moments: this is Brevity’s Rainbow.

If you’re in the New York area, make sure you check it out. Congrats to Keren on her work!

Brevity’s Rainbow
A Group Show of Tiny Works
February 8th – February 17th 2008
Opening Reception Friday Feb. 8th 2008
Curated by Maxwell Williams

Marshall Arisman Moderates Illustration–a panel discussion

Events, Illustration Industry, , , , , ,
illustration night

Marshall Arisman will moderate a panel on Illustration featuring Nathan Fox, Sam Weber, Eddie Guy, and Yuko Shimizu. The official write-up reads:

For over five decades illustrators have produced a single image to illuminate an author’s text. Illustration is changing. What are illustrators today saying through their work? Are illustrators making a contribution that other art forms do not? Is illustration relevant? Can illustration be a vehicle for personal vision? Join us for a stimulating evening of words and pictures that explore the possibilities of an illustrator becoming an author of their own work.

Personal Vision
Thursday, February 7th, 2008
Katie Murphy Amphitheater at FIT
27th Street and 7th Avenue, NYC
7-8:30 p.m.
Students with valid ID = $5

Ray Hooper is interviewed on Spraygraphic

Illustration Faculty, Illustration Industry, Interviews, , , ,
ray hooper card

Our fine friends over at Spraygraphic Sprayblog caught up with Parsons Illustration Adjunct Faculty Ray Hooper, who has taught Type in the department for some time and who has branched into the world of greeting cards with his company, Ray Hooper Designs. Here’s an excerpt:

SG: Can you tell us a little about your business, Raymond Hooper Design, LLC.

RH: We design Greeting Cards, Appointment Books, Journals, etc. My company is a year old this month and after a year of building a staff and inventory we had our first sales last month. We are trying to appeal to people who are both sophisticated about art and design and don’t necessarily need someone else to write their sentiments. As a result many of our cards have very terse messages on the inside or none at all. A number of our cards are blank note cards with photographs, illustrations or just some kind of graphic on the front.

SG: Where has your work been seen?

RH: The books in book stores and museums across the country. The cards, so far, only at trade shows and in trade publications.

SG: Where will it be seen next?

RH: Trade shows in Atlanta, San Francisco and Seattle. Card stores in North Carolina, Texas, Washington state and upstate New York.

SG: What is your dream art assignment?

RH: No such thing. It’s a joy making my living designing.

SG: What is your favorite color?

RH: I like them all.

Make sure you read the rest of Ray’s interview here and check out his designs here.

Internship Fair at Parsons on January 31st

Events, Illustration Industry, Internships, , , , , , , ,

internship fair

Parsons Internship Fair!
January 31st, 2008
10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
T. Lang Center, 55 W. 13th, 2nd Floor

50 + businesses at Parsons’ largest internship fair ever! Employers include Target, Gucci, Cooper-Hewitt, BCBG Maxazria, Bloomingdale’s, Abercrombie & Fitch, Mad Magazine, Sesame Workshop, and many more.

Bring your resume!