illustrationclass

Danny Gregory Sketches From Life

“Danny Gregory and his wife, Patti, hadn’t been married long. Their baby, Jack, was ten months old; life was pretty swell. And then Patti fell under a subway train and was paralyzed from the waist down. In a world where nothing seemed to have much meaning, Danny decided to teach himself to draw, and whatContinue reading “Danny Gregory Sketches From Life”

Paeregrine’s Kickstarter Flies High

UPDATE: FUNDED at $1800, 3 times original goal! Frank Marsters is also known as “Paeregrine” and “Frank of Mars.” A Kutztown Communication Design grad, he is creating a full-color comic book based on his popular web comic Paeregrine.Cast. The comic book project is already funded via Kickstarter and heading toward new goals. I’m a backer.Continue reading “Paeregrine’s Kickstarter Flies High”

Hansel and Gretel and Lorenzo and Neil

Once upon a time, in 2007, The Metropolitan Opera staged Humperdink’s Hansel and Gretel. Françoise Mouly, art editor for The New Yorker, helped organize an exhibition at the opera house based on the fairy tale. Contributors included stellar New Yorker cover artists including Roz Chast, Jules Feiffer, Anita Kunz, Christoph Niemann, Gahan Wilson, and LorenzoContinue reading “Hansel and Gretel and Lorenzo and Neil”

Return of the CD Grads

C.D. stands for Communication Design. I say C.D. so often I forget it is jargon used at Kutztown U, not everywhere. One of our annual events is the David Bullock Return of the CD Grads. This year we have two Renaissance men coming to campus to share their art and design. If you are in KutztownContinue reading “Return of the CD Grads”

Believe It or Not: Illustrators can be Rich!

In 1930, in the depths of the Great Depression, the highest paid artist in America was a cartoonist. Robert Ripley earned $350,000 in 1931. Presidents of railroads earned less. Babe Ruth earned $80,000. The average American earned $1,850. King Features syndicated his Believe it Not cartoons to hundreds of newspapers. That contract alone was worthContinue reading “Believe It or Not: Illustrators can be Rich!”

My Mexican Sketchbooks

In a few days I find out if I have enough students to run a sketchbook class in Oaxaca, Mexico. Info on the class can be found here. I’ve been looking through my Mexico sketchbooks. These pages remind me of the wonderful days I have spent in Mexico over the years. Sometimes my drawings are quickContinue reading “My Mexican Sketchbooks”

Citizen 13660: It happened in the U.S.A

I picked up a sad old book for 50¢ at the Kutztown Library sale. The cover reminded me of Jean Charlot’s art. The pages were yellowed, torn in places, many illustrations were defaced with crude blue pencil marks. Even in this sorry state I found the book quite moving. Citizen 13660 is a graphicContinue reading “Citizen 13660: It happened in the U.S.A”

Groot in a Box designed by Kelly Weihs

Invest now in Guardians of the Galaxy collectible toys! O.K, I was wrong about Beanie Babies & Longaberger baskets. But I should have trusted my gut and bought a second Pee-Wee Herman Doll in 1985. Kelly Weihs is a 2010 grad from Kutztown University’s Communication Design major with a dual concentrations: graphic design and illustration. She designs the packaging forContinue reading “Groot in a Box designed by Kelly Weihs”

Tom Hart & Leela Corman on Grief & Cartooning

I went to NYC for the 92nd meeting of the NY Comics & Picture-story Symposium. I’ve missed 90 meetings, but they are a welcoming bunch. The Symposium pops up someplace different each meeting, so you need to find it. The Symposium is free, info here. This is not Comi-Con. The emphasis is on D.I.Y., independent and innovativeContinue reading “Tom Hart & Leela Corman on Grief & Cartooning”

Tom Quirk’s Stations of the Cross: Sacred Sequential Art

St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Church, Kutztown, PA is out by the Rt. 222 bypass. From the highway it looks like a typical mini-mega-church. Inside there is something to behold -the art of Tom Quirk. Stations of the Cross are a fixture of Catholic and some Protestant churches. The stations are 14 sequential images depicting the crucifixion ofContinue reading “Tom Quirk’s Stations of the Cross: Sacred Sequential Art”