Exquisite Book comes to Brooklyn on Friday!

Just when we thought that San Francisco has all the fun…the authors and artists of The Exquisite Book are coming to Brooklyn on October 22nd.  Hooray!

You’re invited!

Please join us THIS FRIDAY on Oct 22nd at Powerhouse Arena in Dumbo Brooklyn to celebrate the launch of our book, The Exquisite Book, with a big PARTY andEXHIBITION ! All 100 of the artists’ pages will be on view, hung in the connected order they appear in the book. The pieces have been created as Plywerk bamboo mounted prints and will be for sale at the exhibition.

The book will also be for sale and you can meet and get your book signed by these participating artists: Carson Ellis, Mike Perry, Deanne Cheuk, Jen Corace, Jennifer Daniel, Nigel Peake, Joe Hart, Caitlin Keegan, Nigel Peake, Mike Lowery, Katy Horan, Zach Kanin, Chris Kyung, Aaron Meshon, Leif Parsons, Arthur Jones, Laura Ljungkvist, Jonathon Rosen, Ryan Jacob Smith, Claudia Pearson, Ben Finer, Liz Zanis and the authors Julia Rothman, Jenny Volvovski and Matt Lamothe.
Here are the details:
Friday October 22nd 6-9pm
Powerhouse Arena
37 Main Street
(corner of Water & Main St.)
DUMBO, Brooklyn
Subways: F to York Street, A/C to High Street
[artists above: Mike Perry, Camilla Engman, Lab Partners]

Special Walt Disney Screening/Event at Parsons

Parsons faculty, staff, students and alumni are invited to a special Walt Disney screening/event. RSVP Required.

Parsons welcomes award-winning Walt Disney Producer/Director Don Hahn to a special event. Mr. Hahn will be screening his insightful documentary, Waking Sleeping Beauty, followed by a Q&A session. Waking Sleeping Beauty looks behind the scenes at Disney, at how a perfect storm of people and circumstance between 1984 and 1994 changed the face of animation forever.

Don Hahn is one of the most successful filmmakers working in Hollywood today. He produced the Disney blockbusters Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King, and is currently producing Tim Burton’s next animated 3D feature Frankenweenie.

Please RSVP to parsonsRSVP@newschool.edu no later than Friday, November 5th. Space is limited so do not delay your RSVP. This event is only open to Parsons faculty, staff, students and alumni. We cannot guarantee seating so prompt arrival is suggested.

Location: Parsons The New School for Design, Kellen Auditorium, 65 5th Ave.
(Note: please enter on 5th Ave and not 13th Street.)
Date: Friday, November 12th
Seating Begins: 7:00 PM
Screening and Presentation: 7:30 PM * 9:30PM

Sponsored by Parsons Career Services, 2 West 13th Street, room 511, 212-229-8940, parsonscareers@newschool.edu.

Follow-Up: Gilles & Cecilie Workshop at Parsons Illustration

[slideshow]

The dynamic duo of Gilles & Cecilie recently visited Parsons Illustration Concepts III classes to hold a collaborative workshop with students.  Below is their write-up about the experience and you can see pictures from the workshop above.

BRIEF:
What is your uniqueness when all is unified?
Are we going towards the same currencies/ unions of countries/ mega corporations/ mass productions/ same social networks/
listening to the same music/ dress styles/ same level of educations/
SCHEDULE:
20 min brainstorm (messy and non-critical)
15 min selecting ideas (critical and relevant)
1hr10 min visualising ideas (quick, enjoyable, experimental)
40 minutes presentation (6 min per group) (clear, concise, contextual)
ORGANISATION:
45 students divided in 5 groups. Each group had three tables and a selection of materials (papers/ tape/ rope/ pencils/ markers/ glue.)  We asked all the students to take their chairs out of the room so that they could move and interact better during the process.
THE IDEA PROCESS:
challenging, frustrating, profound, exciting, hard work, collaborative, wild, questioning, curiousity, breaking borders, mind-blowing, intellectual, involving, intuitive, world changing!
THE EXPERIENCE:
During the process of the workshop we visited each group with help from Isabelle, Guy and Sean to motivate the students to interact with each other, be working together as a whole group, be curious, develop new ways of thinking and drawing.
The students made different stories and answers to the brief and one group also involved volunteers in their presentation of an interactive puzzle on how to fit in.
Group 1 were illustrating the female with animalistic characters; group 2 developed a new way of high five human reproduction, group three made a puzzle of creatures to represent: with some alterations we all fit in, group four illustrated each other within the group visualising how they see eachother as forexample a cartoon character or just a lot of beautiful hair (as this was one students way of recognising her friend in the street) and in the end group five where making a twist on the game exquisite corps by creating several unique people with elements from all the students within the group.
As designers, we often use this speed workshop in our studio to get as many thoughts and ideas as possible about a brief from a client.  In this way we often find themes or elements to continue the conceptual process.
Thanks to Gilles & Cecilie!

The Exquisite Book Signing and Live Drawing event tonight!

If you’re in San Francisco tonight, stop by The Exquisite Book Signing and & Live Drawing event at Rare Device. Artists in attendance will include Julia Rothman, Lisa Congdon, Caitlin Keegan, Susie Ghahremani, Kelly Lynn Jones (Little Paper Airplanes), Tom Neely, Eunice Moyle and Lorena Siminovich.  Grain Edit hipped us to the publisher details and image below:

The Exquisite Book
More details on the book:

In The Exquisite Book, one hundred indie artists play an ingenious version of the Exquisite Corpse drawing game. Each adorns a page with artwork—having seen only the page of the artist immediately prior and using a single horizon line to connect the two. Some continue the “story” quite literally while others build on the previous page in more fanciful ways. This astonishing volume’s format is as unique as its content, with each of the book’s ten chapters residing on a ten-page accordion pull-out, allowing readers to view the art continuously. With an illustrated foreword by Dave Eggers, and art from such luminaries as James Jean and (Parsons Illustration Alum) Jill Bliss, this charming book is, simply, exquisite.

You can pick up a copy of the book here.

Jill isn’t the only Parsons Illustration-related person in the book: Illustration faculty members Jordin Isip and Mike Perry are in on the action as well!  Congrats to all.

Illustration Professors in Ink Plots show at SVA

Full-time faculty members Ben Katchor, Nora Krug and Lauren Redniss will be part of INK PLOTS, an exhibition curated by Marshall Arisman and Tom Woodruff, featuring original drawings, books, prints and animation by over 100 artists, showcasing the work of School of Visual Arts alumni who are pushing the boundaries of the graphic novel today. Other exhibitors include Sue Coe, Will Eisner, David Sandlin, R.O. Blechman, Gary Panter, Art Spiegelman, and many more.

Reception: Thursday, October 14 · 5:30pm – 7:00pm

Location: Visual Arts Gallery, 601 West 26 Street, 15th floor, New York, NY

Masterpiece Comics wins an Ignatz Award!

Congratulations, R. Sikoryak!

Winner of the 2010 Ignatz Award for Outstanding Anthology or Collection
 — Masterpiece Comics (Drawn & Quarterly)

The Ignatz Awards, named for the character in the classic comic strip Krazy Kat by George Herriman, is a festival prize that recognizes outstanding achievement in comics and cartooning. The ballot is created by a panel of five cartoonists and is then voted on by the attendees at the Small Press Expo, held back in September. This offers a unique reflection of the views the professionals and their fans.  You can read a complete list of the winners here.

Upcoming Events in the Children’s Book Illustration World

Below is a list of upcoming events that might be of interest…

OCT. 9 Sat. 9-6pm A IS FOR ANANSI: LITERATURE FOR CHILDREN OF AFRICAN DESCENT A Is For Anansi will cover the history, criticism and theory of contemporary books for and about children of African descent, as told by its most influential critics, scholars, teachers and producers. The need for more in-depth analysis and for more information, critical evaluation, and publications on this topic still remain. The conference will look at these and consider other questions and issues as well. Speakers include LEO & DIANE DILLON (Parsons Illustration Alums), ARNOLD ADOFF, KAMILI FEELINGS, GEORGE FORD, ZETTA ELLIOTT, and MICHAEL PATRICK HEARN among others.

LOCATION: NEW YORK UNIV., KIMMEL CENTER,  60 WASHINGTON SQUARE SOUTH, RM. 914-SILVER.
FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.
INFO: http://africanastudies.as.nyu.edu/object/anansi.html
RSVP: 212.998.4222

Oct. 9 Sat. 2pm NYPL CHILDREN’S LITERARY CAFE discusses The Authors Guild, SCBWI and PEN. Join moderator BETSY BIRD for a look at three prominent organizations for authors and illustrators. With a slew of different organizations to consider joining what do these organizations offer their members? (Illustration Adjunct Faculty) PAT CUMMINGS of the Authors Guild, SUSANNA REICH of PEN, and VICKI WITTENSTEIN of SCBWI will discuss what benefits their organizations provide and the good works they do in the community and the world. FREE.

LOCATION: Berger Forum, 2nd Floor in The New York Public Library, Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, Fifth Avenue and 42 Street, New York, NY, 10018

Oct. 12 Tues. 6:30-7:30 p.m. THE NEW SCHOOL FORUM ON WRITING FOR CHILDREN presents THE GETTING PUBLISHED PANEL: Meet three publishing professionals who will share their expertise about publishing children’s books today. You’ll have an opportunity to direct questions to JENNY BROWN, reviewer, TwentyByJenny.com; ANDREA CASCARDI, agent, Transatlantic Literary Agency, Inc.; and JOY PESKIN, Executive Editor, Viking Children’s Books. With moderator: DEBORAH BRODIE. After 22 years at Viking and six as cofounder of Roaring Brook Press, Deborah Brodie is now a freelance editor, book doctor, and writing coach for publishers, literary agents, and individuals.

LOCATION: 66 West 12th Street, Room 510. TICKETS: Admission $5.

Tickets at The New School Box Office, Mon-Fri 1-7 p.m.; call 212-229-5488.

INFORMATION: For more information: 212-229-5611.

Oct. 12 Thurs. 7:30-9:30 p.m. SOCIETY OF CHILDREN’S BOOK ILLUSTRATORS AND WRITERS (SCBWI): Twenty-Five* Revision Techniques. CHERYL KLEIN, Senior Editor at Arthur Levine Books and author of the blog Brooklyn Arden will talk about twenty-five* techniques that writers can use to revise their manuscripts.

LOCATION: The Anthroposophical Society, 138 West 15th Street, NYC
DOORS OPEN AT 7:15pm.
INFO (Please check for last minute changes): metro.nyscbwi.org/profseries.htm
COST: $15 for SCBWI members, $20 for nonmembers; Seating is limited to the first 80 people.

Oct. 19 Tues. 6 pm THE AUTHORS GUILD invites you to a children’s book panel discussion: Trends in Children’s Book Publishing 2010, sponsored by the Authors Guild Foundation. Panelists will be Moderator, RACHEL VAIL, Author; MEG CABOT, Author; LISA HOLTON, Founder, CEO, Fourth Story Media; NEAL PORTER, Editor, Founder, Neal Porter Books; and ROSEMARY STIMOLA, Literary Agent, President, Stimola Literary Studio.

FREE.
DOORS OPEN AT 5:30 p.m. Space is limited.
LOCATION: Scandinavia House, The Volvo Room, 58 Park Avenue at 38th Street, NYC.
RSVP: 212.563.5904

Oct. 21 Thurs. 6pm SOCIETY OF ILLUSTRATORS RECEPTION FOR THE ORIGINAL ART SHOW celebrating the fine art of children’s book illustration.  Opening Reception and Awards Presentation.

LOCATION: Society of Illustrators 128 East 63RD Street NYC
RSVP NECESSARY by Oct. 12th: kb@societyillustrators.org 212 838 2560
TICKETS: Members $25 Non-members $30
INFO: http://www.societyillustrators.org/At-the-Museum/2010/2010-Original-Art/Opening-Reception–2010-Original-Art.aspx

event listings via: Pat Cummings

The Bunny In The Moon: Solo Exhibition of New Work by Tara McPherson at Jonathan LeVine

The Bunny In The Moon: Solo Exhibition of New Work by Tara McPherson
Saturday, October 23 at 7:00pm – November 20 at 1:30am
Jonathan LeVine Gallery
529 West 20th Street, 9th Floor

Tara’s second solo show at Jonathan LeVine explores the myths and legends from different countries she has traveled to over the past few years.

Opening reception: Saturday, October 23, 7 to 9 pm

Free and open to the public!

More Info: http://www.jonathanlevinegallery.com/