Abra-Ka-Deborah!

May 26 was the 2nd Annual Mini Comics Day, where cartoonists come to the Minneapolis Center for Book Arts and write, draw and print a mini-comic from 10:00-5:00.  It was also my Mother's Birthday, so I dedicated my mini comic to her as a gift.

Read on to see scans of "Abra-Ka-Deborah - The Marvelous Misadventures of My Mom!":

SpringCon 2012

May 19th and 20th I had a table (for the first time ever!) at the Midwest Comic Book Association's SpringCon! I was seated next to Sarah Kopitske and across from The Black Hat Collective and surrounded all about by Cartoonist Conspirators. Linkara was there doing... something. As were the Ghostbusters.  It was a lovely crowd!


I set up the table with homemade book stands and sold posters and prints of my portfolio pieces and several comic booklets.  I also wore my Hedorah Fedora.

I still have plenty of inventory, too, so if you want to order something drop me a line.

Read on to hear stories about how the con went, and to see some pictures I made while I was there.

The Tale of Turnip Head - In Color

You've heard of Christmas in July, but what about Halloween in May?

You might remember The Tale of Turnip Head from when I posted inks for it in November.  Part of, "one of my ongoing, long-term projects... a graphic novel about the history of Halloween," The Tale of Turnip Head is "a wordless fantasy illustrating the evolution of the Jack-o-Lantern" that begins with a Celtic warrior on the battlefield.

This Spring I bring you the colored version of the story, and the news that I'm selling booklets of Turnip Head.

Enjoy!

MN Opera Adapts The Giver for Young Singers

The MN Opera has a habit of inviting The Black Hat Collective to dress rehearsals for new performances of classic operas, but this April we were blessed with a very special opportunity to see an brand-new opera, written specifically for young voice students (between the ages of 8 and 18) based on the enormously popular children's novel The Giver by Lois Lowry.

MN Opera: Madame Butterfly

For each new show it opens, the Minnesota Opera invites local bloggers to a full dress rehearsal.  The Black Hat Collective of cartoonists and I make it our mission to interpret each show in cartoons and drawings, then post them online.

Last Thursday's show was the immortal:

Madame Butterfly

Part of the reason I didn't do a blog for the MN Opera's last production, Lucia Di Lammermoore, is because I was often too interested in what was happening onstage to draw!  That's a good problem to have.  The same problem came up a lot on Madame Butterfly.  It has a very rich story, complex and expressive characters, and lots of background info to deal with.  I'll be walking you through Madame Butterfly in the most enlightening way I can  —with words, videos, jokes, drawings, and photos.

St Paul Jam Comic - April 2012

The Saint Paul chapter of the International Cartoonist Conspiracy convened to bring you:

"Skin 20% Off 

and 

Join Us for an Upcoming Event"

Minneapolis Cartoonist Conspiracy - April 2012 - Moebius Tribute

In March 2012, French bandes dessinées artist Jean Giraud, better known as Moebius, passed away.  Moebius' science-fiction work, often in collaboration with writer-filmmaker-guru-psychomagician-artist Alejandro Jodorowsky, influenced feature films such as the Fifth Element, and Moebius created pre-production storyboard art for films such as Tron, Alien and most heavily, Blade Runner.

This April, the Minneapolis chapter of the International Cartoonist Conspiracy convened to bring to you a Moebius tribute jam comic:

Moebius is Dead

Fun Math Games - Monty Hall and Nim

You unlock this door with the key of imagination.  Behind it is another dimension.  A dimension of goats.  A dimension of cars.  A dimension of counter-intuitive probability tricks with which you can astound your friends.    You're moving into a land of both shadow and substance, of things and ideas.  You've just crossed over into:  The Math Games Zone.

Blair Thomas - Hard Headed Heart

I got the chance to see the amazing Blair Thomas perform Hard Headed Heart at In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre. 

Heard Headed Heart is made up of three of the artist's solo pieces.

First, Mr. Thomas performed "The Puppet Show of Don Cristobal" which is a raunchy and violent throwback to Punch and Judy-style puppet shows.  He makes a lot of innovative choices in the technical and poetic front.  For example, he wears a façade/costume that can transform from one character to another with a single spin.

Second, he performs his interpretation of "Saint James Infirmary" —which features unique marionettes, a story scroll, and live jazz orchestration which Thomas provides as a one-man-band with the help of a loop pedal.

Werther —or— A Dark Knight at the Opera

Last Thursday I went along with the Black Hat Collective to another preview at the Minnesota Opera.  Our mission:  To draw comics, enjoy the show, and have a fun time —then blog about it!

Tonight's show: 
Werther

Read on to learn about history, tragedy, romance and Batman in this fully-illustrated article featuring cartoons and comedy.