Submit your work to The Best American Comics!

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What is The Best American Comics?
It’s an annual anthology of the best comics short stories and (excerpts of) graphic novels by North American authors each year, published by Houghton Mifflin. It is part of the prestigious Best American series, which also includes The Best American Short Stories, Essays, Non-Required Reading, and so on.

Eligibility
The author must be North American (i.e. from Canada, United States, or Mexico). Work published between September 1, 2007 and August 31, 2008 is eligible for the 2009 volume. The 2010 volume will cover work published from 9/1/08 * 8/31/09, and so on. Individual issues, collections, original graphic novels, and self-published comics (including mini-comics) are eligible for consideration. We must see your comics in order to consider them! Please send one copy of each book you publish to us at the address on the left. Please clearly label each book submitted with contact information and date of publication. Comics published on-line must be submitted in the form of print-outs.

How does it work?
The series editors (that’s us) are responsible for collecting, reviewing, and selecting semi-finalists from all comics published by North American authors in a given year. Each year the editorial team (ourselves and Houghton Mifflin in-house editor Anjali Singh) select an established comics author to act as guest editor. The guest editor is responsible for choosing among the semi-finalists (and adding to the list if he or she sees fit) to create the list of works for inclusion in the book. If your work is on the final list, you will be contacted by us in October or November for permission.

Send Us Your Comics!
We hope you will put the Best American Comics on your finished book mailing list and automatically send in anything that might be eligible. Keep in mind that even if you miss one year’s deadline a book will be eligible for the following year’s volume.

Note that the publishing deadline for the 2009 volume is coming up at the end of this month.  We will only accept books for this volume until mid-September so send your books in sooner rather than later!

Please send your books to us at the address below. If you have questions don’t hesitate to e-mail us at either jabel@jessicaabel.com or matt@mattmadden.com.

Mail all your eligible comics to:
Jessica Abel & Matt Madden
Series Editors
The Best American Comics
Houghton Mifflin
215 Park Avenue South
New York, NY 10003

Good luck!

Hanoch Piven at Society of Illustrators

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Hanoch Piven, renowned illustrator and creative force will be presenting a lecture at the Society of Illustrators next week.  Piven uses found objects to create three-dimensional artworks and is known for his educational workshops.

Hear him speak:

Wednesday, September 10th
6:30 – 9:00pm
Society of Illustrators
128 East 63 Street, NYC

Mr. Piven will also be conducting a workshop called FOUND OBJECTS PORTRAITS at Materials for the Arts, NY’s premier reuse center on September 11, 2008, from 10:00 am – 12:00 pm.

Beautiful Losers screening at Parsons!

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Parsons Illustration Faculty Noel Claro has gotten Sidetrack Films to arrange for a special, FREE screening of the fantastic movie, Beautiful Losers. Don’t miss this wonderful opportunity!  Here’s the official description and trailer:

BEAUTIFUL LOSERS celebrates the spirit behind one of the most influential cultural moments of a generation.

In the early 1990’s a loose-knit group of likeminded outsiders found common ground at a little NYC storefront gallery. Rooted in the DIY (do-it-yourself) subcultures of skateboarding, surf, punk, hip hop & graffiti, they made art that reflected the lifestyles they led. Developing their craft with almost no influence from the “establishment” art world, this group, and the subcultures they sprang from, have now become a movement that has been transforming pop culture.

Starring a selection of artists who are considered leaders within this culture, Beautiful Losers focuses on the telling of personal stories. It speaks to themes of what happens when the outside becomes “in” as it explores the creative ethos connecting these artists and today’s youth.

[vodpod id=ExternalVideo.680661&w=425&h=350&fv=clip_id%3D1324674%26server%3Dvimeo.com%26autoplay%3D0%26fullscreen%3D1%26md5%3D%26show_portrait%3D0%26show_title%3D0%26show_byline%3D0%26context%3D%26context_id%3D]

There are still tickets left–this screening is open to all Illustration, Photo, CDT, and Fine Arts students at Parsons. So drop by and pick up your pass!

Beautiful Losers
T. Lang Center
55 W. 13th, 2nd Floor
7 p.m.
Tuesday, September 9th
Free
Tickets available in the Illustration Office

Illustration Alums in Dark Pop show

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Dark Pop: a guest-curated show by Andrew Michael Ford goes up at Last Rites Gallery this week.  Here’s the official description:

Last Rites Gallery and guest curator Andrew Michael Ford (director of Ad Hoc Art, curator of Deep Pop) have decided to find out what several of today’s brightest art stars are capable of when asked to create ONE piece of what could be considered truly ‘dark art’. Many artists find themselves in a nice groove of creating a certain mood or emotion through their work and have, understandably, become quite comfortable following this path in their art-making. We were curious, however, what would happen if things were to get a little uncomfortable, as the artist challenged themselves to search through new or buried feelings and emotions, the kind which might find their place on the ‘darker’ side of the artistic spectrum. With that in mind, Last Rites Gallery and guest curator Andrew Michael Ford proudly present “Dark Pop”: A collection of truly ‘dark art’ from an incredibly talented and diverse group of artists who would normally never get anywhere near this stuff! The results, we believe, are nothing short of astounding!

Artists include: Ron English, Isabel Samaras (Illustration Alum), Gary Taxali, Esao Andrews, Nicole Steen, Yoko D’holbachie, Nathan Lee Picket (Illustration Alum) and more.  Go check out it out!

Dark Pop
Opening Reception: Saturday, 9/6/08, 7:00pm-11:00pm.
Show runs September 6th thru October 11th.
Last Rites Gallery
511 W. 33rd Street, between 10th & 11th Avenues (3 blocks from Penn Station), 3rd floor
212.529.0666


1st Sundays featuring R. Sikoryak

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1st SUNDAYS COMEDY FILM FESTIVAL
Special Howl Festival Show
featuring Arts of the East Village and the Lower East Side

“Videos by Dale Goodson”
written and directed by Dale Goodson
East Village poet, comedian and filmmaker Dale Goodson
presents works from days gone by, as well as a world premiere.

“Masterpiece Comics”
written & directed by R. Sikoryak (Parsons Illustration Alum & Faculty member!)
Literary masterpieces and comics as you’ve never seen them before.
(In glorious Powerpoint!)

“Masters of the Universe”
written and directed by Kevin Maher
Kevin Maher bares a bit of his soul.  And plays the bongos.

“Why, Grandma?”
written and directed by Chandler Simms
Part of the “Wanna Be a Star” contest, starring audience member Polina Roytman!

Sunday, September 7th, 6:00pm
at the BOWERY POETRY CLUB
308 Bowery (between Houston and Bleecker)
$10 ($7.00 for students)

Updated: The Panorama Project 3 at Jonathan Levine

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The Panorama Project 3: 134 artists, one continuous piece
curated by Jordin Isip (Parsons Illustration Faculty)
and Rodger Stevens (Parsons Illustration Faculty and Alum)
September 6th—October 4th, 2008
Opening Reception: Saturday, September 6th, 7pm—9pm
Jonathan Levine Gallery, NYC

The Panorama Project 3 is a group exhibition featuring commissioned works by over one hundred artists, which will be combined to create a single collective artwork and a site-specific installation. This show will be the latest in a series of large-scale group exhibitions curated by New York based artists Jordin Isip and Rodger Stevens. Since 2001, they have been bringing together an ever-expanding network of painters, sculptors, illustrators, designers, photographers, and video makers to create conceptually and visually unconventional group projects. Some of the original participants included: Doze Green, Chris Johanson, Misaki Kawai, Barry McGee, Georgie Stout, and Eric White.This exhibition is a variation on one of their earliest efforts.  It creates a single, continuous work, comprised of one hundred and thirty-four individual pieces.

The participating artists each received a 7” x  5” wooden panel, on which to create their portion of the installation, with one requirement:each work had to include some manner of horizontal line or division, set at 1-3/4” from the bottom of the board. This common visual device allows each of the separate pieces, when installed together side by side, to cohere into one long contiguous image**a panorama, encircling the entire gallery space. With no knowledge of what would appear on either side of their panel, each artist had the freedom to interpret the line in their own unique way. The installation creates a grand and unpredictable visual synthesis, in a monumental iteration of the exquisite corpse concept. Bringing together artists from so many disparate fields, unlikely to ever appear in the same exhibition space at the same time, this show creates an opportunity for lively experimentation and unexpected results, inspiring innovation while working within a set of prescribed limitations.

The show features a whole plethora of Parsons faculty and alums including:

Yong Choe
Carl Dunn
Ingo Fast
Johanna Goodman
Chesiel John
Andy Kehoe
Hiro Kurata
Liz Lee
Chang Park (faculty)
Jeff Quinn (faculty)
Jessica Ward
Noel Claro
William Buzzell
AJ Fosik
Eddie del Rosario (faculty)
James Gallagher (faculty)
Cat Lauigan
Philip Fivel Nessen
Jordin Isip (faculty)
Rodger Stevens (faculty)

ABOUT THE CURATORS

Jordin Isip is from Queens, NY and has lived in Brooklyn since graduating with a BFA from Rhode Island School of Design. He makes artwork for both publication and gallery walls. His work has appeared in numerous publications including: The Atlantic Monthly, Juxtapoz, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, and Time. He has curated over a dozen group exhibitions including Mystery Meat at Future Prospects (Phillipines), Scab on My Brain at Space 1026 (Philadelphia), and A Piece Apart at Aidan Savoy (NYC).

Rodger Stevens was born in Brooklyn NY. He studied at the School of Visual Arts and Parsons School of Design, where he currently teaches. His sculptures, installations, and drawings have been exhibited in galleries and museums in New York and abroad and he has been commissioned by numerous institutions including: The Whitney Museum of Art, Tiffany&Co, The Rockwell Group, W Hotel, Sotheby’s, and MTV. His work has been featured in publications such as Art&Antiques, Harper’sBazaar, Elle Decor, and The New York Times.

The Panorama Project 3
September 6th—October 4th, 2008
Jonathan Levine Gallery
529 W. 20th Street, 9E
New York, NY 10011

Last Minute: Hobnobbing Zmirkies

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The McCaig-Welles & Rosenthal Gallery presents an exhibition of new works by the artist Roman Klonek titled “Hobnobbing Zmirkies.” In the 1970s the Kloneks moved from Poland to Germany, where he quickly became addicted to comics and cartoons. In the 1990’s he studied Graphic Arts in Duesseldorf and earned his diploma with 12 huge woodcut printings that showed the inner-workings of the human brain. In 2001 he founded the Gallery Revolver with friends in Düsseldorf/Flingern, bought a printing press and started a never ending range of woodcut printings.

Roman Klonek likes to draw heros, mostly half animal/half human, in hair-raising situations.

You may ask: How could this have happened? For heavens sake, how will this move on?

You will see snapshots full of adventure, thrill and fateful encounters captured by one of the oldest graphic techniques. Woodcut printing is based on the principle of a stamp. The reduced forms remind you of the first days of comics and cartoons. The hybrids are forced to a tragicomical chord between tradition and subculture. In general: The basic principles of the woodcut printings are rough drafts of Roman’s drawing books. These books are sort of diaries, just with drawings instead of stories. The subjects are always inspired by his personal present. So one can say the images are autobiographically encrypted.

The exhibition will be on display through September 8th, 2008, so check it out while you can!

McCaig-Welles & Rosenthal Gallery
129 Roebling Street, Suite B
Brooklyn, NY 11211

Bonus footage: Here’s a recent SoyJoy commercial animated by Roman:

[vodpod id=ExternalVideo.679516&w=425&h=350&fv=%26rel%3D0%26border%3D0%26]

[woodcuts by Roman Klonek]

Andy Kehoe included in Annual Blab! exhibition

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THE 4th ANNUAL BLAB! SHOW
September 6th-27th, 2008
OPENING RECEPTION: September 6th, 8:00-11:30 pm

COPRO/NASON GALLERY and Monte Beauchamp proudly present “THE BLAB! SHOW,” the fourth Group Art Exhibition featuring original paintings and illustrations from the forthcoming issue of BLAB! magazine – Monte Beauchamp’s periodic anthology of sequential and comic art, illustration, painting, and printmaking.

Artists include: SHAG, TRAVIS LOUIE, RYAN HESHKA, GARY BASEMAN, RON ENGLISH, LUKE CHEUH, GARY TAXALI, FRED STONEHOUSE, ANDY KEHOE (Parsons Illustration Alum!), TRAVIS LAMPE, LAURA LEVINE, MARC BURCKHARDT, CJ PYLE, MARK TODD, TOM HUCK, and MANY MORE.

Check out all the artwork for sale here.  And our congrats to Andy on his inclusion!

Display Opportunities in the Illustration Department

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Illustration Students and Faculty Members,

You might notice how fantastic our display cases are looking these days.  That’s thanks in part to Illustration Faculty member Noel Claro, who has taken on the huge task of scheduling exhibitions and shows in the 8th floor lobby.  On display now is:

–an entire case devoted to Frankensteinia, in conjunction with the Illustration Department Summer Reading Project.  Illustration Faculty and Alum Les Kanturek curated this case with fabulous paraphenalia and publications from his own collection.  Check out his Concepts blog for entries about other Frankenstein-related information.

–a case devoted to work by our two newest faculty members: James Gallagher and Isabelle Dervaux.  James will be teaching Digital Presentation and Isabelle will be teaching Senior Thesis.

–two cases devoted to international publications picked up by our full-time faculty members Nora Krug and Ben Katchor, as well as some collected by Steven Guarnaccia, our chair.

–a case full of fascinating current works by current students Zach Zezima and Ana Mouyis.

So of course, you’re wondering: I’m an Illustration faculty member/student!  How do I get my work in those cases?  Look no further.  Instructions for the whole process are after the jump!

Continue reading →

Pictoplasma takes place next weekend!

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Pictoplasma is coming to New York City for the very first time and it’s happening next weekend, Thursday, September 4th through Saturday, September 6th.  Excitingly enough, two Parsons Illustration Alums will be featured speakers–Aaron Stewart and Motomichi Nakamura.  Here’s the official description:

Characters are taking over…

Our visual culture is being taken hostage by a new wave of characters, abstract and reduced to minimal distinguishing graphic features. In the process of a truly explosive movement, they invade digital media, animation, advertising, art, fashion and street art. They playfully quote and remix such diverse phenomena as pop culture, tribal and folklore, brand logos and comics without restricting themselves to any single one of these genres. In such a way, characters speak to observers at an emotional level as well as crossing cultural boundaries.

Starting in 1999 with the world’s first extensive inventory, collection and archive of contemporary character design, the Berlin based Pictoplasma project is defining the shape and velocity of this trend. Besides giving the characters a timeless and worthy manifestation through their acclaimed publications, Pictoplasma has been bringing together a growing international community of designers, artists, critics, producers and fans at their annual conferences in Berlin.

Go here to see the day-by-day program, including Motomichi and Aaron’s talk, which happens on Friday night from 9-11:30 p.m.  Register here!

Pictoplasma NYC
Festival of Contemporary Character Design and Art
September 4th-September 6th
Skirball Center for the Performing Arts
New York University
566 LaGuardia Place at Washington Square South
New York, NY