TR!CKSTER / San Diego

In case you haven't already heard the news, I'm curating a small gallery show in San Diego this weekend. Criterion is partnering with the TR!CKSTER crew to present this one-night-only show at the TR!CKSTER space. I think you'll agree it's a pretty stellar pool of talent: Mike Allred, Scott C., Josh Cochran, Francesco Francavilla, Robert Goodin, Victor Kerlow, Ted Mathot, Scott Morse, Sho Murase, Bill Presing, Jim Rugg, Yuko Shimizu, Bill Sienkiewicz, and Connor Willumsen have all generously donated their time and talent to pay tribute to the films of Akira Kurosawa. The show starts at 7:00 PM this Friday night and runs until 1:00 AM. It's free to enter, but proceeds from the sale of the artworks will go to benefit the Japan Society Earthquake Relief Fund.

There's also going to be Criterion DVD and swag available at TR!CKSTER throughout the weekend, and Kent Williams may be stopping by at some point to sign Rashomon posters. For those not already on the bandwagon, TR!CKSTER is the spot across the street from Comic-con where all the "cool kids" are going to be hanging out all week. With talks and "symposia" and rock shows and specialty cocktails, not to mention lots of cool exclusive stuff to buy, TR!CKSTER is the place to be in San Diego. And when I say "across the street"…



…I really mean it!

So if you're one of the 125,000 people descending on that city for Comic-con, hop across the street Friday night for what should be one hell of a great show--and hopefully a pretty good party, too!

(Below: a sneak preview of Josh Cochran's Throne of Blood piece and Victor Kerlow's I Live in Fear.)



Also: just a reminder that I'll be in San Diego myself this Friday and Saturday, splitting my time between TR!CKSTER and the Top Shelf table at SDCC proper, hawking Liar's Kiss. I'll try to update the tweetymachine with my location at any given moment if you want to try to track me down. Hope to see you there!

Tweet, tweet

Two (?) years behind the curve as usual, I gave in and signed up for the Twitter. I don't promise to have all that much to say, and anyone who follows this blog will know that limiting myself to 160 characters is going to be difficult, to say the least. But if you're interested: @EricSkillman.

Lots of irons in the fire at the moment, but I've got a couple of good design process posts cooking. I hope to find the time to write them up properly soon. (Cul-de-sac should be first on deck, I think...)

Solaris by Sam Smith

You guys all have Sam Smith's blog bookmarked by now, right? So you don't need me to tell you about his awesome process posts, like this one for Solaris? I didn't think so.

In Toronto this weekend

Come by and see me at the Toronto Comic Arts Festival this Saturday and Sunday. This will actually be my very first convention outside of NYC, and I hear it's a good one. Free to the public, too, so if you're in the Toronto area you've got no excuse! I'll be at the Top Shelf table all weekend, along with a killer line-up that includes Jeff Lemire, Kathryn & Stuart Immonen, Nate Powell, Ludovic Debeurme, and Jess Fink. You'd be forgiven for noting (correctly) that I'm the least exciting thing going on at that table, but come on by and say hi anyway.

In related news, here's a Q&A with me on the National Post website.

More Senso!

I did add just add this to the original post also, but it's worth highlighting on it's own: For those who were interested in the Senso process, F. Ron Miller just posted his half of the story (taking that cover illustration and rippling it out into a fantastic package) on his own blog. Well worth a read!

Interview with me

I talk about Liar's Kiss and the similarities between writing comics and art directing over at MTV Geek.

um...

...eek. Almost three full months without a post. Um. Sorry.

Working up something for tomorrow now, but in the meantime, has everyone noticed F. Ron Miller's fine process post on the America Lost and Found box set? A very nice post on a FANTASTIC design.

Also worth noting: Bill Sienkiewicz's Robinson Crusoe on Mars art prints are currently on sale at the Criterion store, through the end of this month. Use promo code "MONA50" to get fifty bucks off the regular price. Can't beat that deal!

And again... design post coming tomorrow. I promise.

Hallowe'en with the Criterion diaspora

Lots of seasonally appropriate design-blogging going on!

First up, designer/rock star Sam Smith has been picking up a lot of my slack on the Criterion-design-process-blogging front: check out his excellent posts on the poster for the Janus release of the creepy Kuroneko and the DVD/blu-ray design for the bats**t insane House.

Then check out Jesse Marinoff Reyes' fantastic blast-from-the-past post on the cover to Equinox, which he art directed and was illustrated by Tavis Coburn. (The link is to his Facebook page but I don't *think* you need to be facebooked to see the post.) It's part of his always interesting "cover-of-the-day" feature--that's right "of the day." Not "of the quarter-year" like some slacker bloggers...

Top Shelf sale

In case anyone isn't already aware, Top Shelf Productions is having an amazing sale this week, with some books as low as $3! Perfect chance to pick up such Skillman-designed editions as ALEC, The Playwright, or AX... (or dozens of other great Top Shelf books!)

My phone

I've had this on the back of my phone for over a year now, but for whatever reason everyone's just noticing it now. Apparently I've been more discreet about checking email during meetings that I would've thought...

Sam's Myth

We just put up a link to his Everlasting Moments post over at the Criterion Current, which reminded me that I've been meaning to link to newly-minted Criterion designer (and helluva nice guy) Sam Smith's excellent blog for a while now. (In my defense, I've hardly posted anything at all, so it's not like I was specifically neglecting Sam.) If you've been frustrated by the lack of updates over here, Sam's blog should help fill that design-process-blog-shaped hole in your life...

MoCCA Post-game

Just as busy coming out of MoCCA as I was going in, but I thought I should take a quick stab at the traditional "wrap-up" post. I had a great time, as always, and the cool April weather was a definite improvement over last year's swelterfest. Met plenty of interesting people, old friends and new acquaintances (and new friends and old acquaintances). I had prior engagements at non-MoCCA parties Friday and Saturday nights so I missed that whole scene, but I hear Frank Miller knows how to party.

By the way, apologies to anyone who read my little restaurant guide and got psyched for Vietnamese sandwiches only to discover that Baoguette are apparently closed on Sundays now. If it helps, I was similarly caught unawares and sorely disappointed. (And between DeFonte's and Saravanaas I still ate pretty well.)

Having a table to myself this year (rather than splitting it as I did last year) gave me a little less time to peruse the rest of the show--the lovely Mariel Isaacson was gracious enough to man the table for a while, but I felt bad leaving her alone for too long and the show is just so damn big! For example, I never did find the Partyka table, which means I apparently missed a new Matt Weigle mini... grrr. But sales were decent: I even sold out of both issues of EGG on Sunday. (Admittedly, that's partially because I accidentally left half my stock of EGG #2 at home.)

I did still manage to get some great stuff, most of which I haven't had a chance to read yet, but early favorites include the gorgeous newsprint anthology "POOD" (featuring what might be Connor Willumsen's best story yet, in my humble opinion); "Beard" by Pranas, "Little Wolves" by James Hindle, and "Big Empty Space" by Victor Kerlow.

ANYway. Proper design post coming soon.

MoCCA 2010 Restaurant Guide

My good deed for the day: since MoCCA moved up to the armory last year, folks seemed a little lost when it came time for lunch. But actually, that neighborhood has some of the best food in the city! So let a local give you the lowdown:

--My personal favorite eatery in the area is DeFonte's of Brooklyn, just a short walk away at 3rd ave and 21st street. Their hot roast beef sandwich, which comes with fresh mozzerella, wafer-thin fried eggplant, and beef jus, is just about the most delicious sandwich you'll ever eat, with the possible exception of their "Nicky's Special" (ham, capicola, salami, fried eggplant, provolone, hot salad, marinated mushrooms, lettuce, tomato, oil & vinegar). One sandwich is probably enough to feed two people, but you're not going to want to have to share.

--Just across the street from the armory is Baoguette, (Lexington between 25th and 26th), a banh mi (Vietnamese sandwich) place that seemed to be the big hit of last year's show. I've only had the classic banh mi there, (pork, ham, pate), but I hear good things about their catfish sandwich, too.

--If you want a quick sit-down place, I'd recommend Saravanaas, katty corner to the armory at Lexington Ave and 26th. Great vegetarian South Indian food, dosas, etc. One of their Thalis, which are kind of like the world's greatest sampler platter (and not for the faint of heart, spice-wise), will MORE than fill you up for dinner, but are cheap enough that you don't need to feel too bad even if you can't finish everything.

--The justly world famous Shake Shack is also a short walk away in Madison Square Park, but be prepared to wait in line for an hour if it's even a slightly nice day. (Seriously. Check the "Shack Cam" if you don't believe me.) If you do go, order two burgers (or a Shack Stack--deep fried cheese-stuffed portobella atop a cheeseburger) rather than bothering with fries--one won't quite fill you up and you certainly won't want to wait in line a second time!

--On the opposite end of the burger spectrum (i.e. giant burgers in a dark pub), you could do worse than a short jog over to Molly's Pub and Shabeen, at 287 3rd ave between 22nd and 23rd. Fair warning: shield your eyes when exiting or the shock of the sun may just blind you.

--Finally, if you're really looking to splurge, I've yet to be disappointed by Gramercy Tavern on 20th between Broadway and Park Ave south. You can probably get out of there for lunch for around $40 if you don't go crazy on wine.

Feel free to show your appreciation for these fine suggestions by buying some of my comics. ;)


View MoCCA lunch options in a larger map

A Correction

I was just looking over that interview I linked to yesterday (because I'm vain, apparently), and realized that I unintentionally dodged one of Rob's questions: he was asking about the bands I claimed to design logos for in high school and I misinterpreted that as a question about the bands I've done posters for recently. So, lest anyone think that I'm trying to hide my sordid musical/design history, the "logos" I was referring to were doodles in my sketchbook for Pearl Jam, Nirvana, etc--I remember being particularly happy with a Stone Temple Pilots logo where all the letters connected to each other in complicated ways--and of course my own high school band, Truman's Kitten. (Not to mention it's earlier incarnation, The Two Lips, or spin-off, Stogieman & the Inbreds.) Maybe I'll see if I can't find some of those old flyers or something to post up here, just for giggles...

Good times.

Another interview

....over at Light & Shadow, Boston University's film and culture review blog. In case you don't get enough of me on this blog.

Empty Kingdom

There's another little Q&A with me up today, this one at emptykingdom.com. Go on over, give it a read.

What type are you?

Some on-topic design-related fun!

Apparently this was Pentagram's "Christmas card" this year (I'm not on their list, I got the link from VSL): a quick video questionaire to determine what "type" you are. Meaning typeface, of course!

The question bit is well executed, but the real fun comes at the end, when you get a short little video history of your font and how it relates to your personality. (You can also browse through the rest of the 16 available font options.)

If you're curious, I got Bifur the first time, but that didn't feel right to me so I changed one of my answers ("Are you traditional or progressive," which I originally misinterpreted as a question of politics rather than temperment), and got Expanded Antique, seen above, which seems more accurate.

Try it yourself! The password is "character".

Forgetless #2!

Hey, somehow I almost missed the fact that FORGETLESS #2 is hitting stores today--don't you make the same mistake! I was lucky enough to have another chance to color over Jorge Coelho's great artwork, and hopefully do it justice.

The story, by newly-omnipresent writer Nick Spencer (of Existence 2.0 fame), is split up among multiple artists: Jorge and I are doing the main story in #2 and #4, with Scott Forbes doing the main story in #1, #3, and #5, and Marley Zarcone doing a backup in all five issues. There's an interview with Nick, Jorge, Marley, and Scott here if you want more info on the project, or better yet, swing by your local comic shop and pick up a copy!

The cover up top is by Marley, and here's a sample of Jorge's work (with my colors):

Lost & Found

Speaking of my new blogging gig, I just posted, as part of a mini-profile on Ming Doyle, the entire 8-page "Lost & Found" story we did together. I sold a few at King Con but it hasn't been available to read online before now... head on over and check it out!

For those who just can't get enough

So, I seem to have been flattered into guest-blogging over at Geekweek, a new site just launched by Jeff Katz and Rob Levin and aimed at the omnivorous nerd audience (i.e. it covers topics from movies to comics to sports to whatever.) I'm told there's still a proper rollout yet to come, with publicity and a final site design, etc, but it's basically up and running now if you want to get in on the ground floor.

That doesn't mean Cozy Lummox is shutting down--if anything, I hope it'll help this blog regain some of the design-centric focus it's been meandering away from recently, and most of the Criterion-related stuff will still live here. But if you're curious to read my thoughts on a wider variety of topics, stop by Geekweek and check out my periodic ramblings.