Comic Art at ALA 2011, New Orleans

The presence of comics in libraries, museums, and library conventions is now taken for granted. But it wasn't always so accepted.

Here's some of the comic art related photos I captured at the 130th American Library Association Conference in New Orleans a few days ago. I was too busy with my job assignment to attend any of the comic related presentations, but I did get a chance to briefly chat with most of the exhibitors.

Alexis Fajardo

Carla Speed McNeil

Neither one of these nice people is David Hutchinson.
I believe the gentleman is Brian Denham.

Rod Espinosa

Darren Gendron

Jim Ottaviani
Jim was the only cartoonist I met there who seemed aware of the role of the Newave comix movement in comic art history. Perhaps Michael Dowers needs to start showing up at ALA.

Ben Hatke

NBM

Image

John Jackson Miller signs books
at the Dark Horse booth



Zenescope

Comic Book Legal Defense Fund


Ryan Sias

Raina Telgemeier

Below: Some oddball visuals I captured at and around the Conference

One dummy meets another


Orson Scott Card was one of many authors at the Conference

University of Washington library school alum gathering. Note librarian action figure Nancy Pearl in the crowd.

At one point the convention center foyer filled with a hazy smoke and the New Orleans Fire Department came in force. Not sure what that was all about since no fire alarm was sounded.

L. Ron Hubbard was one creepy guy

Phone photo 505

Tumwater, Washington

Outside In # 6

1st edition, 1983, 150 copies on white cardstock.

2nd edition, January 1984, 20 copies on white cardstock.

3rd edition, 1984. Seattle, Washington : Starhead Comix, regular stock white paper.

Chet Darmstaedter "XNO," Larry Weir, Scott Stevens, Larry Nadolsky, George R. Eddy (also known as G. Raymond Eddy), Scott Phillips "Scooter," Ron Vicens II "Gato."

It's been a long time since I've been in touch with any of these artists. Hawaiian artist Gato had a brief but very memorable career in the Newave comix movement, producing a spate of high energy original books. Then he suddenly vanished from the scene leaving an audience hungry for more.

Phone photo 504

Outside In # 5

1st edition, 1983, 150 copies on white cardstock.

2nd edition, January 1984, 20 copies on white cardstock.

3rd edition, 1984. Seattle, Washington : Starhead Comix, regular stock white paper.

Max Haynes, Rollin Marquis, Julian Ross, Bob X, Marc Myers, Lynn Hansen, Kevin Wildermuth.

Rollin and mail-artist Julian have both vanished from the comix network radar, but I always enjoyed their work. Marc's self-portrait as an Easter Island carving is one of my favorite pieces by him. Haynes, Bob X, and Wildermuth produced images that are classic examples of their styles. Non-artist Hansen surprised me by participating and his self-port has contributed to the enigma he behind.

Phone photo 503

Olympia, Washington

Morty the Blog Hiatus

Morty the Dog Blog will be slowing down or even hibernating for a few days as I attend to other business. In the meantime, please feel free to enjoy this music as much as you want until my next post.

Phone photo 502

Outside In # 4

1st edition, 1983, 150 copies on white cardstock.

2nd edition, December 1983, 20 copies on white cardstock.

3rd edition, 1984. Seattle, Washington : Starhead Comix, regular stock white paper.

Jean Francois Duval, Roldo, Mike Cody, Jim Thompson, Dan Florian, Richard Wayne, Petrina L. Walker.

Richard Wayne died in 1998 while in his early 40s. He was a very funny correspondent and minicomix creator and I have no doubt he'd be an entertaining commenter on this blog if he was still with us.

Dan Florian was an occasional comix artist who used to order my books in bulk. Occasionally I've seen his name resurface in recent years offering comix at online auctions.

Phone photo 501

Olympia, Washington

Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules Illustrated

I picked up this old dog-eared copy and found a couple drawings in it I probably made about 1982. This book was my occupational Bible throughout the 1980s.

Phone photo 500

Outside In # 3

1st edition, 1983, 150 copies on white cardstock.

2nd edition, December 1983, 20 copies on white cardstock.

3rd edition, 1984. Seattle, Washington : Starhead Comix, regular stock white paper.

J.R. Williams, George Erling, Par Holman, Jim Ryan, John Mobbs II, Bruce Chrislip, Matt Feazell.

A lineup of the classics in their classic poses, almost all of them part of the central core of the Newave comix movement. I got to meet Matt Feazell in person for the first time at SPACE last March, and I can't really explain it, but he actually does look like the self-portrait he contributed here! I'm impressed.

Phone photo 499

Olympia, Washington

Outside In # 2

1st edition, 1983, 150 copies on white cardstock.

2nd edition, December 1983, 20 copies on white cardstock.

3rd edition, 1984. Seattle, Washington : Starhead Comix, regular stock white paper.

Doug Holverson, John Howard, David Miller, Robert Stump, Robin Coder-Willis, Steve Willis, Clay Geerdes.

That great cover shows Holverson in, I believe, his beloved Studebaker. David Miller's self-portrait looks like it could've been drawn during the Renaissance and it remains one of my favorites in the series. Robin's demonstrates just how provincial we native Washingtonians can be, tucked up here in this corner, walled off by water, mountains and rain. Morty obviously has little patience for T.S. Eliot.

Howard and Stump were two prolific Newave regulars during the early-mid 1980s. John produced some of the funniest wage slave comix I've encountered, and Robert was very active in publishing, including reprinting my Sasquatch Comix series.

I met Geerdes and Miller in 1989 on a visit to the Bay Area. As you can see by the photos in the Clay Geerdes Scrapbook post, David looks pretty much like the way he portrayed himself, but Clay had a more creative self-image I must say. Oddly, to me Clay's self-portrait matched his voice, but not his face.

Phone photo 498

A very disturbing sight

Outside In # 1

1st edition, 1983, 150 copies on white cardstock.

2nd edition, December 1983, 20 copies on white cardstock.

3rd edition, 1984. Seattle, Washington : Starhead Comix, regular stock white paper.

Created with the intention of starting a visual directory of self-portraits.

The first issue featured Hank Arakelian, Clint Hollingsworth, Brad Foster, Tucker Petertil, Jean Turnbow, Mark Hopkins, and Jon Turnbow (now known as Strongbow)

The cover was an accident. I loved Hank's drawing and thought he sent this as his self-portrait right after I sounded the call. But it turned out he sent the graphic to me just to do it and didn't consider this a self-portrait. Yet it works and was the perfect illustration to kick off the series.



Hank's original still adorns my studio wall. My poor studio. Right now it looks like the Tasmanian Devil has paid it a visit.


Mark Hopkins is someone I've known since the third grade. He is one of the greatest natural born artists I've ever seen. While the other kids were drawing crude figures during art time in school, Mark would be creating an image that looked like a lost Van Gogh painting. Here's a photo of Mark and I in Santa Barbara, California, April 1, 1976 as we hitchhiked together down the West Coast. Mark's on the right. A lot of people thought we were brothers.

Phone photo 497