Monster Mondays

Curios Of Creativity

Patch — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 00:01:00 +0000

I am a product of my childhood pure and simple. When I put together my book I went through dozens of sketchbooks dating as far back as the second grade. I have a wonderful memory of Melissa and I sitting in my living room looking through a bunch of them. Not much has changed since the second grade – my sketchbooks are still filled with Monsters, Masks and Men in Tights.
Two facts about the panels above :
1. Those are all my toys featured in panels 1 through 3.
2. The events pictured in panel 4 are depicted as they actually happened.
(Thanks Kyle for the toy gun!)

Panels About A Panel

Patch — Mon, 27 May 2013 00:01:00 +0000

Melissa and I are giddy with excitement as we prepare for this year’s SPX. In years past we have gone as vagabonds, sharing space with friends (Thanks James!) but this year we have an entire table. This means we need to get cracking on new books, new prints and whatever else we can load into the car! As I post this we are both doodling away in the studio, can’t wait until September!
In anticipation of the event I combed my sketchbooks looking for some inspiration and found some drawings from a panel we both attended. My good buddy and fellow cartoonist Rich Marcej suggested that I attend panels and draw what I saw and heard. Rich keeps a daily comic called the Blabbing Baboon, you can check it out here. Lomax and I were running around so much at the con we only had time to attend this one panel about “Drawing about Childhood”. It was a lot of fun! Will be posting more as SPX draws nearer! Cheers!
Above: (from left to right): Marinoami (Kiss and Tell), Julia Wertz (The Infinite Wait and Other Stories), Derf Backderf (My Friend Dahmer) and John Porcellino (Perfect Example).

Call To Action

Patch — Fri, 17 May 2013 00:01:00 +0000

Call to Action: (noun) - Words that urge the reader, listener, or viewer of a sales promotion message to take an immediate action, such as “Write Now,” “Call Now,” or (on Internet) “Click Here.” A retail advertisement or commercial without a call-to-action is considered incomplete and ineffective.

A little while ago I put up an appearance in this comic in an auction to raise money for a charity near and dear to my heart, an Oral Cancer Walk in Nashville, TN. I posted about it briefly and moments after hitting “share” John Hayden, President of Antonelli, responded “How do we bid?” That’s John, first one to congratulate you, first one to lend support, first one to ask you if you need a hand…
Well John was the first bid (and the highest) so I asked him what would he like me to make his comic about? His e-mail response simply stated “…focus on the graduates.” That’s another thing you need to know about John, he’s all about the students.
Included in the comic above are the 27 second year Graphic Design students that I have had the amazing honor of teaching for the last two years. The school couldn’t be prouder of them and we wish them the absolute best in all that they will accomplish. On a personal note, they have been a really creative bunch and I really don’t have the words to thank them for not only all their hard work but for their support, laughter, creativity and honesty.
This strip is entitled “Call to Action”. It is a marketing term used to describe an element in an advertisement that encourages the audience to participate in some way, shape or form. It is also an invitation, one for all the students, to take action and push themselves to do amazing things. You will be missed. Good talk.
A GREAT BIG THANK YOU TO MR. JOHN HAYDEN for his generous donation!
(You can read a little about John in a previous strip here.)

Verbal Constipation

Patch — Mon, 13 May 2013 00:01:00 +0000

When I started this strip I thought “Yeah no problem, I love drawing comics and cartoons.” Plus I felt an overwhelming desire to continue some of the stories I told in my book. Drawing is easy, writing on the other hand is an entirely different beast. Being a teacher it is seldom that I am at a lost for words, my students keep me on my toes and I really appreciate the back and forth that is afforded me in the classroom. If you have ever met me, you know I like to talk, love chatting with people. But sitting in front of a blank piece of paper or computer screen and I am solely responsible for the words, by deadline? I have a new appreciation for writing, more importantly the process of writing, even for something that appears quite simple on the surface like a comic strip. I have researched, read and developed my own way of working over this last year. (WOW! Has it been almost a year already?)
Not surprisingly, it is a lot like my other creative processes; jot an idea down as soon as you think of it, let it simmer and tweak it some and edit the crap outta it. Once I focus in on an idea it usually comes to fruition one of three ways; 1. Complete love – must draw, 2. Complete frustration – must throw on the heap for later date, 3. Glimmer of hope – must rework. No. 3. is the norm, with equal doses of numbers 1. and 2. throughout any given month. (The pun is not lot on me considering the title of the above comic.) I will say this it pays to stick with it, sticking with a theme or a concept even when you butt up against problems can often make an idea stronger. It can also make you a stronger as a writer/artist. You can’t shine a turd but you can pull something outta the heap of mediocrity or average and put your own twist or spin on it and maybe make it fresh and interesting.
Guess I am confronting some of these writing issues as I prepare for teaching a new class this summer. “Words + Pictures” is a 5 day workshop for high school students where we will tackle some of the very topics listed above. The works created by the students of this class will be later interpreted by students in my Illustration class. I am equal parts excited and nervous, this being the first class I will ever be teaching where I cannot draw my way out of it. You can bet there will be more about this class here in this blog and definitely in the strip above. Cheers!

The Devil You Know

Patch — Mon, 06 May 2013 00:01:00 +0000

Two of the things I absolutely love about teaching go hand in hand. The first is that for as long as I have been teaching (more than 15 years) I never have stopped being a student. I love to learn about topics I adore and at the same time I really appreciate learning something new. The second thing is I really dig going to lectures. I enjoy hearing an artist or writer talk about their work and seeing the process of another creative. On this particular lecture I got to see a good friend, Mark A. Robinson, talk about some of his work in comics. I have known Mark since High School and have been a fan of his work since our days sitting in the back of Mr. Cohen’s class creating kooky, comic characters. I was also introduced to the work of Terry LaBan. Really, reintroduced, I have seen Terry’s work for years, I just never knew he was a local. Although the panels above relay what appears to be a more negative talk about the world of comics I found it to be super-informative. I love it when guests don’t sugarcoat what is actually happening in the industry.
Below are the bios of both artists with links to their work.

Mark A. Robinson: has been published in various titles by various publishers, some of which include: MARVEL COMICS, DC COMICS, VERTIGO BOOKS, IDW, DEVIL’S DUE PUBLISHING,TOP COW, and is currently publishing thru IMAGE COMICS. He lives in Philadelphia, likes orange soda and survives. You can see more of his work here and here.

Terry LaBan: is the co-creator of Edge City with his wife Patty. Edge City is the daily comic strip nationally syndicated by King Features. Terry is a cartoonist and illustrator whose work has been published by Fantagraphics Books, Dark Horse Comics, DC Comics, Nickelodeon Magazine, Mad Magazine and many others. He and his wife have two kids, live in suburban Philadelphia and constantly tell people that not everything that happens in their comic strip actually occurred in real life. Find out more about Terry’s other work at his website www.labanarama.com.

The Bard Of Bacon

Patch — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 00:01:00 +0000

That’s right a strip dedicated to my love of breakfast. Future strip ideas include;
1.) My love of lasagna and hatred of Mondays.
2.) How I detest shopping for a bathing suit and my chocolate addiction (ACK!).
3.) Cubicle life and my constant fear that my dog is way smarter than I am.
(I kid, I kid, but not about bacon, NEVER about bacon.)
Below: A pic of my CMYK comic promos taken by one of the amazing students at UArts. Thanks Kelly! You can see her artwork here.

Ware With All

Patch — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 00:01:00 +0000

This strip is a collaboration of sorts. Some time ago my good friend Concetta came by the studio to help me with my book. I needed a bunch of photos for the interior and she was gracious enough to lend me her expertise. During the process I discovered that collaboration is a key component to any creative process. Concetta’s photos not only added a new dimension to the layout of the book they also inspired the design of the cover. Concetta and I have collaborated on a bunch of projects and exhibitions since. As we speak we are putting together an Art Show inspired by ephemera with the Library Company of Philadelphia. While working together we take pictures and almost always draw in our sketchbooks, she even gave Melissa and I the gift of one of her old cameras. I can honestly say I wouldn’t have thought of a strip like this prior to our friendship. Friendship – the best kind of collaboration.
The photos for this strip are of sketches of upcoming Monster Mondays stories. You can expect bacon, pigeons, comic conventions, obsessive compulsive disorder and the drinking of Scotch in the weeks ahead.

Lucky Boy

Patch — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 00:01:00 +0000

If you have been following this strip you know I am a cancer survivor. I recently celebrated a milestone, five years cancer free. To say this is a big deal is an understatement. To say I’m a ‘lucky boy’ just scratches the surface. I have met and spoke with a lot of patients, care-givers and fellow survivors, and there is common thread – strength. There seems to be two kinds of survivors; the ones that push through and want to move on and those that are so profoundly changed by the experience they feel the need to share and inform. Though I totally respect the former I am too shaped by my experiences to let them go entirely. I often wonder if it is the healthy choice? But then I will meet a patient or survivor, chat, exchange a glance or an embrace, and I realize I cannot do anything else. So many hands reached out to me in my time of need that I think I may have to spend the rest of my life reaching out to others, just to begin to pay back the debt of gratitude I feel on the daily basis.
At my very first book event I met a fellow survivor. We were from entirely different backgrounds, worlds away from one another with the exception of having to fight our battles against cancer. I remarked that when I got sick I knew I had a large family, both through blood and the bonds of friendship, but I confided in him that I never ever imagined that my family was so big and so strong. At the mention of this we both had to fight back a few tears, he told me he had an almost identical experience, that his ‘work’ family had been just as strong, helpful and supportive as his blood relatives.
It is easy in our day to day lives to see how different we all are, but it is much more worth while to look for and seek out the similarities. You might surprise yourself, better yet the world might surprise you.
Thank you to everyone that lent an ear, lent a hand and gave of their heart. Not a day goes by that I am not thankful for knowing you. And thank YOU for taking the time to read this strip – it helps me to see the similarities.

Joke Time With Jerr And Burb

Patch — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 00:01:00 +0000

The comic strip above was created by one of my design students, Joe, currently enrolled at Antonelli. Every semester I give first year students the assignment of making a comic about anything they want as long as it tells a story.

Here’s a little about the Artist:
I am a student currently studying Graphic Design in hopes of someday making a career in the Video Gaming industry. I would really like to design packaging or even possibly environments for games. Most of my time that isn’t spent dedicated to art goes to video games and to my part time job at Gamestop.

Philosophy on Art and Design:
”Anything created that evokes any emotion is art, be it love or disgust.”

Note from the Teacher:
I think some of the best comics online are based on inside jokes ad real people we don’t even know, but through the medium and following the strip we get to know those characters and they let us in on the joke. I have built the basis of Monster Mondays on just that sentiment. This comic is based on Joe and Bob, you need to get to KNOW Joe and Bob!

Every Morning

Patch — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 00:01:00 +0000

The comic strip above was created by one of my design students at Antonelli. Every semester I give first year students the assignment of making a comic about anything they want as long as it tells a story.

Here’s a little about the Artist:
“I’m Jes. I don’t draw, or paint, or doodle – I create. That’s all there is to it.”

Note from the Teacher:
I always like to emphasize “world building” when creating a narrative. It feels like this particular strip is just a little glimpse of a larger, more exotic place inhabited by all kinds of creatures.