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A little nepotism to go with your coffee this morning? Don’t mind if I do!  As you may know, my husband Matt Bird has a book coming out this spring that is a culmination of his blog’s breakdown of what makes a good story.  Called The Secrets of Story: Innovative Tools for Perfecting Your Fiction and Captivating Readers (Writers’ Digest, 2017), Matt takes his Ultimate Story Checklist and makes it easy, accessible, and invaluable.  I’ve mentioned all this before. What’s new is that he’s now doing something that I’m personally incapable of.  Folks sometimes ask me if I ever do manuscript consultations. I don’t, but there’s a good reason for that: I’m lousy at them. Maybe not lousy, but I’m no editor and that’s the truth.  Matt, however, is fantastic at them. Now he’s offering his services to folks who are interested.  Children’s books, YA, scripts, adult novels, you name it.  Dude’s got mad skills.  And I say that as someone who can’t do the same.

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All right.  ‘Nuff of that.  Let’s instead remember that the new school year is nearly upon us.  My daughter is about to step out the door and start Kindergarten for the very first time.  As such, I’ve been watching the new Kindergarten books of 2016 with a closer eye than usual. And as luck would have it, the Chicago Tribune came ah-calling recently.  Check out my favorites of the season in their piece Bumper crop of first-day-of-school books.

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AND THE WINNER of the 2016 Society of Illustrators Gold Medal for Original Art goes to . . . . b.b. cronin for his book The Lost House (Penguin Random House/ Viking Children’s Books).  Hm?  What’s that?  You haven’t read it yet?  Well let me confess something to you . . . neither had I!  I’ve seen it in my To Be Read pile, but as God is my witness I thought it was a reprint of an older title.  Now it looks like I’m going to have to move it up in the ranks.  Whoops!  See the winners in full right here.

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Folks ask me, what do you miss the most about New York?  It’s been a year since I left The Big Apple, my home of approximately 13 years.  I miss a lot of things.  My friends.  That sense of satisfaction you get around 6 p.m. on a workday, just sitting in Bryant Park with a good book and an iced chai latte.  And, of course, the exhibits in town.  I just heard about the Pratt Manhattan Gallery’s The Picture Book Re-Imagined: The Children’s Book Legacy of Pratt Institute and the Bank Street College of Education.  There’s even some ACM (Anne Carroll Moore) on show!  Check out this explanation of the exhibit with photographs galore.  Envious.  So envious.

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Childhood Mystery Solved: I’m pretty sure I’ve zeroed in on the location of Hitler.  How’s that again?  Well, here’s the thing.  When I was a kid I was read a fair number of books.  Some stuck in my cranium.  Others didn’t.  One that did was a book that I recall because it was a collection of poems and nursery rhymes.  In one spread it showed the devil and some of his compatriots.  Amongst them was a bird with the head of Adolf Hitler.  I am not making this up.  My mother would sometimes show it to me and explain who it was and why Hitler was bad (or at least that’s my memory).  Years later I tracked down what I thought was the book (A Great Big Ugly Man Came Up and Tied His Horse to Me by Wally Tripp) only to find that while it did have a devil in it, there was no Hitler.  It was a pretty weird thing to make up, though, so I never lost hope.  Then, just the other day, I saw this:

Okay.  It isn’t Hitler. But I remember this image perfectly (turns out gigantic Napoleons also have a way of sticking in your brain).  I am now convinced that I have relocated the book with that weird Hitler bird.  Maybe.  In the meantime, I’m beginning to believe that Wally Tripp is one of the great forgotten gems of the American children’s literary world.  He did win a Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, after all.  That ain’t small potatoes.  Read more about him here.

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New Magazine Alert: And I owe Julie Danielson the credit for locating this one. Called Illustoria, a new periodical is said to be, “a magazine for children that embraces the same values as the current slow-food and maker-culture trends of today, ‘a return to craftsmanship, an appreciation of quality, a celebration of curiosity, creativity, and also the people behind the scenes’.”  This sounds interesting in and of itself, but it also sounds familiar on some level.  I’m reminded of the Arts & Craft movement that occurred in America and Europe between 1880 and 1910 as a direct response to the industrial revolution. We seem to be experiencing something similar in the face of the digital revolution.  Food for thought.  In any case, learn more about Illustoria here.

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I like Booklist.  Honest I do. But how long are they going to make us pay to read their articles online?  For example, in a recent edition I was very taken with Daniel Kraus’s funny, smart, and highly informative consideration of the Choose Your Own Adventure phenomenon.  In fact, I’ve never read such an interesting breakdown of the series, its popularity when I was a kid, and its fate.  Here’s the link to the article, but I hope you have a Booklist subscription ’cause that’s the only way you’ll be able to read it.

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Tiny desk contest!  Not here, of course. There.  Where Marc Tyler Nobleman hangs out.  Seems he’s having a Guess the Kidlit Desk Contest.  The rules are simple.  You guess which author has which desk (and there are 18 in each subcontest).  Get ’em right, win a prize.  If nothing else, it’s a fascinating glimpse into the desk of the creative mind.  Most are far too clean and tidy, though.  I think I like this one the best:

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Snapchat.  It is a thing.  I do not know much (read: anything) about.  What I do know, though, is that Travis Jonker just used it for the best. thing. ever.  Doubt me if you dare.

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This just in, in the press release files from the Children’s Book Council:

We are thrilled to announce that acclaimed illustrator Christian Robinson has agreed to design the 2017 Children’s Book Week poster commemorating the 98^th annual Children’s Book Week, to take place on May 1-7, 2017. Robinson is the artist behind such beloved picture books as Gaston by Kelly DiPucchio and Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Peña, for which he received a Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor and a Caldecott Honor.

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Daily Image:

The representative from Illinois would like to raise an objection.  Behold, a brilliant book:

In this book, kids are encouraged to make their own dollhouses out of cardboard boxes.  There are even instructions placed under the dustjacket for that very purpose.  As the mother of a girl who is basically a human Maker Station, I recognized instantly the fact that this would be her kind of book.  I brought it home and I don’t think 20 minutes went by before she started construction on her own dollhouse.  After it was finished (after a fashion) I went online to find out if the publisher or author had a site where kids cold post pictures of their personalized dollhouses.  All I found was this promotional video.  It’s cute, but why is the mom doing so much of the work?  In any case, I would like to propose to either Giselle Potter or Schwartz & Wade that they create such a site.  In lieu of that, here’s my 5-year-old’s newest dollhouse.

And, might I note, crumpled up toilet paper really does look like popcorn.  Who knew?

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The 2016 edition of the MoCCA Arts Festival is upon us!  This Friday and Saturday, cartoonists from all over the world will gather to celebrate their favorite artform: comics!  MoCCA Fest is a unique con in the New York convention circuit thanks to its sizable attendance and indie focus, two things that don’t always go […]

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This exhibit of works from Craig Yoe’s original art collection has already garnered stellar accolades – tonight you can see why. And that’s not all …

I had the good fortune of seeing an early preview of Is That Art? at the Society of Illustrators a few weeks ago, and it’s a must-see for anyone who wants to connect with the magic and the power of creative design. The exhibit covers much of the first century of comics & cartoon art, and the work is displayed in ways that highlight deep connections and spark new ideas. A original Spark Plug parallel to a Peanuts strip where Snoopy is dismissed as a dog; a landmark portrait of Superman for Siegel-and-Shuster’s syndicate chief near a reflection on a woman’s dual identity by Fay King; the first Pogo newspaper strip; the original Fin-Fang-Foom-awakes page, signed by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, and Dick Ayers ….

I could go on, but I’ll leave you to discover all the wonders for yourself. The exhibit’s official opening is tonight from 5pm – 10pm at the Society of Illustrators, 128 E. 63rd St. in New York City. If you can’t make it this evening (or at all, alas), you can find some consolation in the extensive Yoe! Books library, which includes lavish and faithful restorations of material ranging from kitsch to classics. One place to start: the latest Yoe! Books/IDW publication, Milt Gross’ New York, which has been receiving impressive reviews.

If you can make it to the Society of Illustrators, don’t miss its other must-see exhibits. The original art from Little Nemo: Dream Another Dream is up through tomorrow (April 9), and seeing it at full size reminded me of seeing the original art for Robert Crumb’s Book of Genesis at the Hammer Museum – a revelation. As for the exhibit on Alt-Weekly Comics curated by Warren Bernard and Bill Kartalopoulos, well, that too deserves a book of its own – this exhibit is important not just for chronicling an influential, if under-appreciated genre within North American comics, but for helping us understand the world today.

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If you’re going to sit down and study the history of children’s literature, you cannot skip the Little Nemo section of your textbook.  Maurice Sendak’s wild imaginings, for example, would not have had their distinctive flavor if a certain little boy had been able to keep his dreamlife under control.  Cartoonist Winsor McCay kicked off the twentieth century in fine style when he penned the wildly imaginative comic known best as Little Nemo in Slumberland.  So for those of you who count yourselves as Little Nemo fans I have fantastic news.  Currently showing at The Society of Illustrators is the show Little Nemo: Dream Another Dream. It’s up until March 28th.  If you’ve spare time in NYC in the next 11 days, I highly recommend a visit.  Here’s the description:

In an exhibit based on Locust Moon Press’ anthology LITTLE NEMO: DREAM ANOTHER DREAM, many of the world’s finest cartoonists pay tribute to the master and his masterpiece by creating 118 new Little Nemo strips, following their own voices down paths lit by McCay. Contributors to the exhibit include Paul Pope, Gregory Benton, Dean Haspiel, Yuko Shimizu, Jim Rugg, Ronald Winberly, Andrea Tsurumi, Raul Gonzalez III, and more!

Naturally I had to see it myself.

Attending any kind of an event with a 3-year-old and 10-month-old is a harrowing experience but I was lucky enough to have relatives in town who were willing to (A) visit this exhibit and (B) run interference on the aforementioned preschooler.  On the bottom and first floor of the Society is a show called Alt-Weekly Comics.  And since I have only a single lens that I see the world through, I zeroed in on all the children’s author/illustrators who were also alt-weekly comic creators at one time or another.  Mark Alan Stamaty (Shake, Rattle and Turn That Noise Down: How Elvis Shook of Music, Me, and Mom). Mark Newgarden (Bow-Wow Bugs a Bug).  Jules Feiffer (Bark, George).  And so on and such.

Up where the actual Nemo exhibit was taking place there was a television playing the 1989 film Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland.  The three-year-old was immediately entranced by the wiles of Flip, as voiced by (and I am not making this up) Mickey Rooney.  The screenplay was by Chris Columbus and the soundtrack by the Sherman Brothers. It’s actually not that bad. Then again, I only watched about 20 minutes of it.

As for the exhibit itself, it was just wonderful.  Using the constraints set by the original strip, various cartoonists tried their hand at a range of Nemo inspired art.  There was a Charles Vess that was heavily influenced by his connection to Neil Gaiman and The Graveyard Book.  There was a Paul Pope, whom you might kn0w best from his Battling Boy graphic novel series.  Raul Gonzalez, better known to us as Raul the Third, created some art that definitely brought to mind last year’s Lowriders in Space. There was also a Jill Thompson with art that was looking not all that different from her Magic Trixie series.

Here’s the format that all the strips had to follow, roughly:

For an interview with the Publisher and Creative Director behind the book that inspired the exhibit, head on over to Bleeding Cool.

Note: I have been searching and searching in vain for a Little Nemo comic that eludes me. It’s the one where all the characters start dancing, one by one. The image of Flip doing this funny little dance where he lifts his feet and then plants them firmly is fixed in my mind.  I’ve never found it in any of the collections.  If anyone knows of its existence and can confirm it for me, I’d be obligated to you.

And now, the Tom Petty video you’ve all been waiting for.

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The jury for next year’s MoCCA Arts Festival Awards of Excellence — a prize for cartoonists has been announced and it’s stellar:  Charles Burns, Annie Koyama, David Plunkert, Andrea Tsurumi, and Alexandra Zsigmond. The awards recognize the most outstanding work on view at the festival and will be the subject of a show at the Society of Illustrators from May 12 – June 13, 2015. The  rest of the announcement below:

Society of Illustrators Executive Director Anelle Miller says, “The exhibitors at the MoCCA Arts Festival are among the most daring and inventive voices in comics and illustration working today, and we are pleased to celebrate their importantwork and advance the Society’s long heritage of recognizing the finest artists in all fields of illustration with the MoCCA.

Judging of the MoCCA Arts Festival will happen Saturday, April 11th in the afternoon. Judges will convene and discuss each of their favorites based on submissions they will have received in February, ultimately deciding on 5 “Awards of Excellence” to be named that evening. All materials chosen in the jury’s initial survey will be acquired by Columbia University’s Rare Book and Manuscript Library for a newly-established MoCCA Arts Festival collection, to be expanded Guidelines for submitting work will be posted on the Society’s website after applications are approved and tables are confirmed in mid December. The deadline to apply to the MoCCA Arts Festival is December 5th, and applications are available to download from the website at www.societyillustrators.org.

Charles Burns is an American cartoonist and illustrator whose dark and thrilling comics have received wide praise and multiple awards. Burns came to prominence in the 1980s with his work for RAW, and later went on to publish several books through Fantagraphics including El Borbah (1999), Big Baby (2000), and Skin Deep (2001). In 2005, Burns published  a single volume of his hit Black Hole (Pantheon).

Annie Koyama is the publisher behind Toronto-based Koyama Press. Founded in 2007, Koyama Press is known for their  alternative edge and diverse range of titles including Michael DeForge’s Very Casual, Julia Wertz’s The Infinite Wait and  Other Stories, Walter Scott’s Wendy, and many more.

David Plunkert’s client list includes Capitol Records, Gatorade, NPR, Nickelodeon, Nike, Rolling Stone, The New York  Times, to name a few. In 1995, he co-founded Spur Design, a design studio located in Baltimore, MD. He has been  recognized by numerous organizations including Communication Arts, Graphis, and the Society of Illustrators. In 2014,  he premiered his self-published comic Heroical, which received a 2014 MoCCA Arts Festival Award of Excellence.

Andrea Tsurumi is an illustrator and cartoonist whose comic Andrew Jackson Throws a Punch won the 2013 MoCCA  Arts Festival Award of Excellence. She earned her BA from Harvard and an MFA from the School of Visual Arts, and her  notable client list includes The New York Times, The Boston Globe, Ballantine Books, The New York Academy of Medicine,  and many more. Her work also appears in several anthologies including Little Nemo: Dream Another Dream (Locust

Alexandra Zsigmond is the Deputy Art Director for The Opinion Section at The New York Times where she curates illustration and comics. Since graduating from Stanford University in 2004, she has worked as program coordinator and designer for several organizations including Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco and the National Endowment for the Arts in Washington, D.C.

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Last year the Society of Illustrators inaugurated a comics art competition similar to the one for illustrators they’ve been running for many years. (Disclosure: I was a judge.)  The Comics and Cartoon Art Annual offered a printed guide to the best comics of the year in a succinct form. The competition is back in 2015, chaired by Steven Guarnaccia, with Co-Chair: R. Sikoryak. The above art is by Bendik Kaltenborn. I had a great time with my fellow judged and absorbing a great many new cartoonists and established one in a new guise. I’m sure this year will be an even better compeition. Entry guidelines are below. Last year’s winners are here. 

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ABOUT THE COMIC AND CARTOON ART ANNUAL

The Society of Illustrators is proud to announce the second annual Comic and Cartoon Art Competition.
Open to artists worldwide, entries are considered by a jury of professionals, including renowned cartoonists, illustrators, publishers, and editors. The competition will result in an exhibition that will showcase the most outstanding works created in this genre throughout each year.

The original works will be exhibited in the MoCCA Gallery at the Society of Illustrators from June 16 through August 15th, 2015.

Opening Award Galas will be scheduled where Medals and Certificates will be presented to the artists whose works are judged best in each category.

All accepted entries will be reproduced in a full color catalog.

A selection of 40 works from each Exhibition will then tour colleges throughout the country in an educational traveling show, a tradition that we have had at the Society for over 30 years.

CATEGORIES

Long Form: A work that is longer than 40 pages. Includes graphic novels, comic books, etc. An anthology is eligible in this category if it is created by one person, and the individual stories form a cohesive whole. If stories should be judged independently, please submit an entry form per person.

Short Form: A work that is more than two pages but shorter than 40 pages. Includes stand-alone work, zines, comic books and work that has been published in anthologies. Work appearing in anthologies may be entered in this category if the individual story is shorter than 40 pages. If stories should be judged independently please submit an entry form per story.

Special Format: Work that is design-driven and created with special attention to production values, including limited edition, small press, hand-made and artist’s books.

Digital Media: Work that is native to a digital format. Includes web comics, online comic strips, and other digitally driven works. Up to 20 images accepted per entry.

Comic Strip: A short-form work published in newspapers, magazines, books, online, etc. featuring four or more panels. Must be one page or less.

Single Image: Work featuring a self-contained narrative image with or without caption. Includes gag cartoons, political cartoons, single-panel cartoons, etc.

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HOW TO ENTER LONG FORM & SHORT FORM BOOK SUBMISSIONS

Eligibility: Any book that was created from January 2014 – January 2015. Both published or self-published are accepted. International entries are welcome. Each submission will receive consideration by every member of the jury for its category.

How to enter: Mail 6 copies of the publication to the Society of Illustrators: 128 East 63 Street, New York, NY, 10065. Attn: Comic and Cartoon Art Competition. Must include the official entry form with each copy.

DEADLINE: Monday, January 5, 2015.

Entry Fees For Book Submissions:
$30 per entry (includes all six copies) for non-members of the Society of Illustrators.
$20 per entry (includes all six copies) for members of the Society of Illustrators.
Include a check with the entry. Checks made out to Society of Illustrators.

CLICK TO DOWNLOAD ENTRY FORM

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by Nicky Wheeler-Nicholson

Just before the mad crush of New York Comic Con a crowd of comic book royalty gathered at the Society of Illustrators in Manhattan to hear a stellar panel talk about Heroes of the Comics, Drew Friedman’s wonderful book featuring some of the best and least known artists, publishers and writers who brought the comics alive.

The Society of Illustrators was established in 1901 to promote the art of illustration. From the very beginning the monthly dinners were attended by some of the most well-known artists of the time like N.C. Wyeth, Charles Dana Gibson and Maxfield Parrish. The Society also includes the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art in a beautiful old building on the upper eastside that was originally a carriage house for J.P. Morgan’s secretary. Since New York is the birthplace of American comic books what could be more perfect?

Every single person who attended had some connection large or small to the event and there is no way to name all the prominent illustrators and comic book people who came out to celebrate this event. A few of the cognoscenti spotted were Carl and Nancy Gropper of the Will and Anne Eisner Family Foundation and Will Eisner Studios, Jim Salicrup of Papercutz, Paul Levitz, past president of DC Comics and comic book scholar and author and David Kasakove who co-wrote the article on Feldstein and Krigstein’s Master Race. The crowd was enthusiastic and there was a palpable sense of excitement. This is a credit to Drew’s beautiful portraits and the care he took with his biographies of each person. Heroes of the Comics is published by Fantagraphics and features a large full page drawing of each person with a one-page biography. The portraits are a genuine insight and reflection of the person and their contribution. Special kudos to Drew for his careful research so that the bios are accurate and help to add to the ongoing study of how it all began in comics.

Danny Fingeroth did the honors as Master of Ceremonies and in his usual cheerful and astute manner kept things moving along. Danny introduced the comic book royalty in audience including the artist Will Elder’s family—daughter Nancy Vanderbergh and her husband Gary and their children. Gary is the instigator of Drew’s book as he commissioned a portrait of Will Elder for Nancy and the whole project took off from there. Publisher Max Gaines and his son Bill who took over the business were represented by Cathy Gaines Misfud and her sister Wendy Gaines Bucci with some of their children. Chelle Meyer represented her grandfather Sheldon Meyer, a long time editor at DC and comic book artist and me, Nicky Wheeler-Nicholson representing my grandfather, “the Major” Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson, the first publisher of comics with original art and scripts were all part of the comic book families present.

 

Several of the portraits from the book were shown on a large screen and commented upon by Drew, Al Jaffee, Sean Howe who recently published Marvel Comics the Untold Story and Karen Green, fresh from her triumph as the instigator for the new Comics at Columbia exhibition and collection opening from the evening before. We could have stayed all night listening to the group talk about the people involved in comic book history. It was a special treat to have Al Jaffee speak about so many of the people he knew and had worked with.

Afterwards we enjoyed a lovely meal out on the terrace and were able to talk and catch up with old friends on a beautiful fall evening in New York. What more do you want for comic book heaven?

[Nicky Wheeler-Nicholson is writing a biography of her grandfather, Major Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson, military intelligence officer, prolific pulp writer, inventor and founder of DC Comics, with Gerard Jones (Men of Tomorrow) entitled Lost Hero. Her most recent publication is co-editing and writing an Introduction to a reprint of some of the Major’s adventure tales from the pulps entitled The Texas-Siberia Trail published by Off-Trail Publications. Nicky is a writer, editor and audio publisher and holds a Master’s in Classical Greek Mythology. She was featured in Women’s Enews with an article on Wonder Woman and San Diego Comic Con and appears frequently at Comics Conventions throughout the US speaking about early comic book history.]

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Tonight it’s a shindig for the Society of Illustrators first Comic and Cartoon Art Annual. Winners from the Long Form and Comic Strip categories will be on the walls (up until the 21st) and there will be a cash bar a buffet. Tickets are $15, but winners get two free tickets.

As we strive to expand our mission of promoting the understanding and  appreciation of comic and cartoon art, we are proud to announce a celebration of the first Comic and Cartoon Art Annual! Please join us for an Opening Reception and Awards Presentation.

 Friday, June 13, 2014

Doors open at 6:00pm

Awards Ceremony at 7:00pm

Complimentary refreshments until 7:00pm

Cash bar following the ceremony.

Complimentary small plates buffet in the Third Floor Hall of Fame Gallery.

Artists on display include Tom Gauld, Gilbert Hernandez,  Alex Shubert, Robun Bolling and more.

 

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Tonight in New York City, two artists who need little introduction—Bill Plympton and Peter de Sève—will discuss their work and artistic process in a discussion moderated by animation director J. J. Sedelmaier.

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All we really want in life is to be appreciated. That’s basically it.

I’m not talking about authors or illustrators. I’m talking . . . everybody.

A word of recognition, a note of thanks.

We saw what you did.

We want it from our children, our spouses, our friends & co-workers.

So I was very glad to see that Iacopo Bruno was recognized by the Society of Illustrators for his brilliant work on the first book in the SCARY TALES series: Home Sweet Horror.

His illustrations will be included in — and I quote — “an annual exhibit created to showcase illustrations from the year’s best children’s books published in the U.S.”

The exhibit, titled “The Original Art,” will be in NYC from October 23 through December 21, 2013. After it closes, select pieces will travel to galleries, museums, and exhibit halls across the country for a year.

I can’t take any credit for this, the honor is Iacopo’s alone. But I’m grateful to have our book bask in that warm light. It is a great feeling to be well-published. An honor and a privilege.

I’m feeling blessed.

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The Studio of Wendy Watson

 

 

 

 

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Book publisher Denis Kitchen forwarded exciting news this morning: “The Art of Harvey Kurtzman”, a comprehensive retrospective of MAD creator Harvey Kurtzman, will open in New York City next month. The show will take place at the Society of Illustrators (128 East 63rd St., NY, NY).

Kurtzman’s influence in the animation sphere is well known, and especially strong in the work of Spumco principals like John Kricfalusi and Bill Wray. Another Spumco vet, Vincent Waller, even directed a short based on Kurtzman’s comic Hey Look!:

Here are details about the show, which opens on March 8th:

The Museum of American Illustration at the Society of Illustrators is proud to present “The Art of Harvey Kurtzman,” a diverse exhibition spanning the career of the man who created MAD and who had a broad and profound influence on American popular culture. This eight-week exhibit showcasing over 120 works will be on display March 8th through May 11th in the museum’s two-floor gallery in New York City’s Upper East Side.

Co-curators Monte Beauchamp (founder, editor, and designer of the comic art/illustration anthologies Blab! and Blabworld), and publisher/cartoonist Denis Kitchen (co-author of The Art of Harvey Kurtzman and representative of the estate) have assembled the most comprehensive assemblage of Kurtzman art to date, culled from select private and family collections. Highlights include: Kurtzman life drawings from 1941; rarely-seen late ’40s strips done for the New York Herald-Tribune and well as for Marvel’s Stan Lee; key covers, strips and full stories Kurtzman created for MAD, Frontline Combat, Two-Fisted Tales, Humbug and Help!, sometimes in collaboration with fellow comics geniuses Will Elder and Jack Davis. In addition, “Kurtzmania,” numerous rare artifacts and publications never seen by the public, will be on display.

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Tonight is the Opening Reception for the Society of Illustrators Original Art Exhibit and we are proud to announce that two of our illustrators, Beth Lo and R. Gregory Christie, will have art from their Spring 2012 titles on display in the show. Below, Beth Lo shares a few shots of how her unique illustrations from Auntie Yang’s Great Soybean Picnic came to life, from a simple sketch to a ceramic plate.

Beth started with a black and white sketch and then formed the plates. She put a “hump” mold or an inverse shape of the plate on a potters wheel. It was then dried and ”bisque” fired to 1850°F, forming a porous mold. To make each plate, she rolled out a slab of porcelain clay about 1/2″ thick over the mold and cut around it to make the edge.

After being shaped into a squared form and slowly dried to avoid warping or cracking, Beth drew a pencil sketch of the the original image. Then the drawing was painted with black underglaze.

The colored underglazes were then painted on and each plate fired in an electric kiln at 1850°F to set the underglaze and burn the pencil off. The illustrations from Auntie Yang’s Great Soybean Picnic were photographed during this state. Finally, a light coat of glaze was sprayed on and the pieces fired again to form a glossy surface.

Filed under: Art Tagged: Auntie Yang's Great Soybean Picnic, Beth Lo, ceramics, illustration, Original Art Exhibit, pottery, Society of Illustrators

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   2011 OA CALL FOR ENTRIES  

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This week I interviewed an amazing illustrator, Joe Cepeda.  You will find my questions and Joe’s answers amongst the illustrations.  I think you will find it interesting and helpful.  Joe received his BFA in Illustration from California State University, Long Beach in 1992 and also studied Engineering at Cornell University.  He is the illustrator of award-winning picture books such as What a Truly Cool World (Scholastic), Nappy Hair (Knopf), Mice and Beans (Scholastic) including The Swing (Arthur A. Levine Books), which he wrote as well as illustrated.  Mr. Cepeda has illustrated books written by numerous notable authors including Gary Soto, Pam Muñoz Ryan, Arnold Adoff, Monica Brown, Julius Lester and most recently, Toni Morrison.  He has also illustrated book jackets for many titles, including Esperanza Rising.

He was selected to illustrate the cover of Shaquille O’Neal and Reading is Fundamental’s Biggest Book in the World.  Mr. Cepeda received an ALA 2002 Pura Belpre’ Honor Award and the Recognition of Merit Award for 2000 from the George G. Stone Center for Children’s Books.  His work has been accepted to the Society of Illustrators shows in New York and Los Angeles. In addition to his illustrative work, Mr. Cepeda is sought after as a public speaker to schools and other groups. He is the current president of the Society of Illustrators of Los Angeles.  He lives in Southern California with his wife and son.

I asked Joe if he had a studio in his house or if he messed up the family kitchen.  Joes said, “For the last twelve years I’ve kept a studio about two miles away from home.  The picture is below.  Joe  went to Home Depot and bought a cheap door ($28).  He placed it over an existing easel.  It makes a great expansive drawing board.

Question for Joe: I notice you wrote and illustrated “The Swing.” Is this the first book you have written and illustrated?
Answer: Yes, as a matter of fact, I probably got my first book to illustrate because I had a couple of finished illustrations to a story I had an idea for in that initial portfolio. Arthur told me if I finished it, he would publish it. Of course, I still haven’t finished it… although, after too many years, I finally did give him The Swing. Even though I told everyone I wanted to write more, I don’t think I acted like it. I was very busy illustrating in those years and probably defaulted to just making pictures. I’ve changed that now, trying to put it all together. I’m a late bloomer.

Question for Joe: What do you sketch on?
Answer: I sketch my dummies on regular bond. I usually create a template for thumbnails, second drafts and final drafts. My favorite pencil for this kind of drawing is a cretacolor nero #4 or #5 (li

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March 23 - April 30, 2011
Opening Reception: Friday, March 25, 7:00pm, VIP Reception 6:00 - 7:00pm

The Museum of American Illustration at the Society of Illustrators is proud to present “R. Crumb: Lines Drawn On Paper,” a diverse exhibition of work spanning the past four decades by the inimitable R. Crumb. This 90-piece exhibit showcases rare and seminal examples of original art including covers and interior pages from ZAP, San Francisco Comic Book, Head Comix, Bijou Funnies, The East Village Other, Snatch Comics, Motor City Comics, Your Hytone Comix, Big Ass Comics, The People’s Comics, Despair, Black & White Comics, Arcade, Hup and Weirdo. This exhibit features such counter-culture icons as Fritz the Cat, Mr. Natural, Shuman the Human, Bo Bo Bolinski, Lenore Goldberg and Her Girl Commandos, Horny Harriet Hotpants, Boingy Baxter, Angelfood McSpade and a special guest appearance by the ol’ pooperoo himself—R. Crumb. Works will be on display for six weeks, beginning March 23rd through April 30th in the Museum’s galleries in New York City’s Upper East Side.


Robert Crumb (b. 1943) is considered the premiere underground comix artist of his generation. Beginning with the launch of Zap Comics in 1967, Crumb deconstructed the American comic book, revolutionizing the form forever. Over four decades later, his impact continues to be felt worldwide.

“God bless Crumb. I’ve always been happy that there was someone as sick and twisted as I am.” —George Carlin

This retrospective, curated by BLAB! magazine founder Monte Beauchamp, editor of The Life and Times of R. Crumb (St. Martin’s Press), presents key pieces culled from the underground art collection of Eric Sack, with contributions from Paul Morris and John Lautemann. R. Crumb: Lines Drawn on Paper is made possible in part with public funds from the Fund for Creative Communities, supported by New York State Council on the Arts and administered by Lower Manhattan Cultural Council.



About the Museum of American Illustration at the Society of Illustrators
The Society of Illustrators, founded in 1901, is the oldest nonprofit organization solely dedicated to the art and apprecia

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Society of Illustrators Video Archive:

Did you know the Society of Illustrators has an archive of videos on its site featuring filmed presentations of lectures and presentations from the likes of Jules Feiffer, Gary baseman, Anita Kunz, Milton Glaser, and more?

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As I mentioned, I already attended the Society of Illustrators’ Original Art Show during its opening, but the hustle and bustle of the event kept me from really getting a good look at all the pieces and reading the actual books.  So the Putnam art and editorial crew took a field trip last Friday to spend a few hours there in relative quiet and share our likes/dislikes.

All of the books are obviously winners, and of course, there were plenty that I already knew I loved: Peter Brown’s Children Make Terrible Pets, Jan Jutte’s Sleepover At Grandma’s House, Lane Smith’s It’s A Book!. But I wanted to mention a few new titles that I discovered along the way.  Here are my favorites:

1. Tao Nyeu – Bunny Days (Dial)

I was literally cooing and gasping with laughter aloud when I read this, as I couldn’t believe that a single book could be so adorable and disturbing at once!  In three parts, Mr. and Mrs. Goat find various ways to accidentally muddy/trap/maim a group of baby bunnies, and Bear comes to the rescue… with, um, interesting solutions.  Well-meaning Bear subjects the bunnies to the washing machine (and hangs them to dry!), a high-powered fan, and a sewing machine. AND THE BUNNIES ARE STILL CUTE! AND NOT DEAD!  Hilarious.

2.  Carmen Segovia – Brownie Groundhog and February Fox (Sterling)

This was one of my favorite designed books at the show.  I just love the wintery limited color palette with pops of red… reminds me of a modern version of classics like Mary Wore Her Red Dress. Plus, predator (Fox) and prey (Groundhog) become friends and share toast.  Aw.

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