When I’m picking  colors for an image sometimes I run out of ideas.   Recently I’ve been playing around on this site :  colourlovers.com and trying to store up some good color palettes for future use.  I like to make palettes based on things I see in the world, especially the outfits of people I pass on the street.  Here are some palettes I created on the colourlovers site:   

this came from an illustration I was doing

This was inspired by a neighborhood woman who was wearing a sari

This was also a woman in a sari, with a winter coat on top and a black purse

Another page from the comic I’m drawing using Brian Russo’s photo stills.

Here’s something I was working on this summer: a comics rendering of my friend Brian Russo’s photographs. Usually Brian makes films, among other things, but he wanted to try taking a series of still photos to create a story.  He had the photos arranged in a photoshop file and I asked him if I could draw them just as he had arranged them.  It was all set up so nicely, with actors and lighting and costumes and props, I couldn’t resist drawing the images.   In this sequence the character is waking up and heading to the kitchen.  There are no words.  I’ve only done two pages so far but the story is eleven pages long.  This is Brian’s site: http://www.thecompoundeye.com/brian.html

The East Village Comix Sampler #2 is now available for sale in the following places:

comixpress.com (they also sell the elusive EVCS #1)

Forbidden Planet, 840 Broadway in Manhattan

Jim Hanley’s Universe, 4 West 33rd Street in Manhattan

Julius Klein Gallery, 44 East 1st Avenue in Manhattan

Bluestockings, 172 Allen Street in Manhattan

Bergen Street Comics, 470 Bergen Street in Brooklyn

Cosmic Monkey, 5335 NE Sandy Blvd. in Portland, OR

It’s so great that all these cool stores are interested.. it makes me start scheming about doing another issue…

It’s a smwall woild, as we say in Queens.  Turns out one of the cartoonists whose comic I liked at Mocca is designing the t-shirt for Parade of One.     Here’s the design, by Katie Turner.  It’s sold online at: http://www.cafepress.com/paradeofone and has my logo on the back.

art by Katie Turner

This is the logo I did for Rwanda 15 Parade of One, I’m volunteering my work to this non-profit project. The organizer of the project is my good friend Jeremy Danneman and one of the goals is to send him to Rwanda on a musical ambassadorship.  I also designed the website (I’m doing more of that these days).  More information can be found at http://www.paradeofone.org

Logo for the Parade of One

Part 1 of what I bought/traded at the Mocca festival.

Best scores from this batch:  Beryl Chung,     Corinne Mucha,    Ken Applebaum,    Marion Vitus,     Katie Turner,     Jon Mangini,    Too Negative, Miriam Libicki

Even though it was hot n sweaty in the convention center, the Mocca comics festival had a energetic and hopeful vibe. There was a line around the block to get in and see this year’s batch of independent comics.  Many thanks to artists Itziar Barrio, Jon Mangini, Juggernut, Azita Houshiar and Moonshine who all took a turn working at the East Village Comix Sampler table with me and Jennifer Blowdryer.  These pictures were taken by Azita and there are more on her flickr page.  

Picking up the mannequin

Setting up our table

Moonshine, one of the East Village Sampler artists, brought t-shirts, framed art and his illustrated self

Selling comics at table #512

Here’s the lovely flyer for the MOCCA comics festival, drawn by Molly Crabapple.  

This year the East Village Comix Sampler (edited by me and Jennifer Blowdryer) will be at table #512.

 Please come and say hello!  

It’s near 25th street in Manhattan.  You can find more details here: http://www.moccany.org/.