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| Me and Casey Silver from 80% Studios. |
Event News
I had a blast at the BLICK Artist Alley event on July 16th. The event was organized by Ladykiller with fabulous comics artist Rhodora Jacob and organizer extraordinaire Danielle Davis on point.
I sold enough minicomics to buy a replacement laserjet printer and got to goof off with my table mates Casey Silver of 80% Studios and cartoonist/illustrator Robert Tritthardt.
Also, I was accepted to be one of the curated comics exhibitors for the 2016 Short Run Comix and Arts Festival! The festival happens at Seattle Center on November, 5th of this year. I am REALLY happy that my application was accepted, as I am planning to debut some new work there, including my collaboration with Anne Bean, Coyote and Butterfly Woman.
Coyote and Butterfly Woman
I've only just met comics writer, cultural critic and raconteur, Anne Bean, in the past year. In 2015, she was awarded an Artist Trust GAP grant, in support of the creation of four comics based on fairy tales from around the world, and a coyote tale that originated in Nez Pierce tribal mythology.
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| Magpie with a human eye. That guy sees everything. |
The coyote tale, Coyote and Butterfly Woman, centers around Coyote needing to subdue the powers of Butterfly Woman, who is standing in the way of his travels. Anne revised the story to reflect modern power relations between genders.
We discussed the possibility of me taking the story on as it's illustrator.
I
have had experience updating the Bohemian folk tale, Jezinkas, and have
ties to Indian country through both relations and through my work with Daybreak Star Indian
Cultural Center. Anne's story is heavy on content, and I was attracted
to the magical realism element of the project, so I here I am, illustrating a coyote tale.
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| Coyote hitches a ride in Eastern Washington. |
I'll be honest - this has not been an easy comic to climb into. I usually draw my own stories, so I automatically feel strongly about the ones I'm compelled to surface in my art. Anne's writing is visceral, and I had to spend some time with it and process a handful of issues before I got to the mechanics of the drawings.
There is a character sporting a confederate flag hat. There are on-page depictions of violence. The google image searches alone were daunting.
First, I had the idea to experiment in making ugly drawings to reflect the ugliness of some of the story elements. No, no and no. I drew pages of work that will never see the light of day. I think, ultimately, it's a good thing. I had to work through that as part of the process.
First, I had the idea to experiment in making ugly drawings to reflect the ugliness of some of the story elements. No, no and no. I drew pages of work that will never see the light of day. I think, ultimately, it's a good thing. I had to work through that as part of the process.
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| Butterfly Woman in the works. |
Luckily, we have until mid-October to get the story done. I'm a third of the way through, have worked through the major issues and drafted the main characters. Now I'm working on the fun part - the inking.
In November, you will be able to pick up a copy of the story, along with other work by Anne Bean and me, during Coyote and Butterfly Woman's debut at Short Run 2016.
In November, you will be able to pick up a copy of the story, along with other work by Anne Bean and me, during Coyote and Butterfly Woman's debut at Short Run 2016.
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