The Twin Cities Rock Atlas in this Week's City Pages

If you're in the Twin Cities, do yourself a favor and don't miss this week's City Pages (December 19, 2007). Kevin Cannon has done an absolutely stunning spread on pages 50 and 55 titled The Twin Cities Rock Atlas that has to be seen to be believed. It highlights numerous music oriented locations around the Twin Cities. It isn't currently online, which is good, because only print could do this justice. The text for the piece is written by City Pages' Peter S. Scholtes (and written well, although it unavoidably and painfully covers the art!)

One of the most outstanding things about Kevin's work is his vast skill at distilling things down to the bare minimum of what they need to be effective. This has never been more evident than in this piece. If you think of icons of Minneapolis, you probably think of the big Grain Belt Bottle cap, the cherry in the spoon, and maybe First Ave. (pictured in the tiny excerpt above from the spread). This spread makes it seem like icons are everywhere, as Kevin beautifully distills the architectural souls of probably a minimum of 50 Twin Cities structures. Not many cartoonists could pull this off, and Kevin makes it look easy.

Happily, City Pages is apparently going to make it into a poster... I don't yet know how they will be making them available, but I sure want one.

I just got an update from Kevin on the posters:

I think CP is going to give away the posters for free.
Word is that they'll be available at the venues that
are on the poster. I'm working on a (Big Time Attic) blog post that
shows the process of making the poster, and there
you'll be able to see all the easter eggs hiding
behind the text (actually there aren't many easter
eggs, but I do have a little Conspiracy guy standing
next to diamond's)...

Soapy the Chicken is Back.

Click the image above to see the latest strip.

See the Soapy the Chicken archives here.

Far Arden Chapter 12!

The latest chapter of Kevin Cannon's epic story of arctic hero Armitage Shanks, Far Arden, is online... he has now passed the 288 pages in a year challenge I gave him late last year, and he is still going to do another chapter. Good thing I didn't say I would eat my shoe or something. Kevin has vastly exceeded all expectations for what could be done with this project... it is one of my favorite comics of the last year, easily. Kevin hasn't shopped this around to publishers yet, so if you are in the publishing game and looking for a future award winner, you may want to consider getting in line now.



Click here to start reading at chapter twelve.

Click here to start at the beginning.

Click here to read the 12-page bonus chapter, Eglinton Island.

Click here to read more about Kevin Cannon's mad, mad project.

Click here to cheer Kevin on in his comments.

Pre-Order Yourself an Alley Cat

We're taking pre-orders this Friday (today) only for the Alley Cat anthology we're putting out soon, featuring 92 pages of work by 50 cartoonists honoring our fallen comrade Eric Lappegard, who recently died from complications following an auto accident... they will be available at the Schmapples Tribute event September 8th, and will probably be pretty hard to come by after that. You can get all the details here. If you like cats, bikes, and/or ninjas you won't want to miss it. Funds sent will go towards printing more copies of the anthology, which we would really like to do, and all proceeds from the book will go to the family of Eric Lappegard.

The contributor list is:

Anthony
Ken Avidor (avidorstudios.com)
Bud Burgy (budburgy.com, musclesandfights.com)
Kevin Cannon (kevincannon.org, bigtimeattic.com)
Zander Cannon (bigtimeattic.com)
Chole
Chris Coffey
Cindy
Cyrus Cords
Danno (staplegenius.com)
Will Dinski (willdinski.com)
Doctor Popular (doctorpopular.com)
Ryan Dow (ryandow.com)
Cival Einstein
Andrey Feldshteyn (cartoonblues.com)
Michael Furious (michaelfurious.blogspot.com)
Naomi Johnson
Loki Kaspari
Max Konrardy (maxeem.com)
Matthew Kriske
Bob Lipski (uptowngirlcomic.com)
Vas Littlecrow (vaslittlecrow.com)
Roger Lootine (residuecomics.com)
Gypsy-Maria Lorimer
Earl Luckes
Kevin McCarthy (mccarthy-comics.blogspot.com)
MJ (Thepcstudio.tripod.com)
Sarah Morean (smorean.com)
Anders Nilsen (www.margomitchell.com/thc/an.htm)
Daniel Olson (bewilderedkid.com)
Rita Panton
Jeff Plotkin
Anna Pratt
Kraig Rasmussen
Connor Rice
Rio
Amado Rodriguez (musclesandfights.com)
Zak Sally (lamano21.com)
Jenny Schmid (Bikinipressinternational.com)
Damian Sheridan
Tim Sievert (timsievert.blogspot.com)
Mark Simonson (ms-studio.com)
Andy Singer (andysinger.com)
Jon Sloan (sa-bomjimcomic.com)
Bill Spears
David Steinlicht (cornercomic.com, allsmall.net)
David Strong
Andy Sturdevant
Steven Stwalley (stwallskull.com, soapythechicken.com)
Mike Toft (cartoonistconspiracy.com/brainfood)
Brett VonSchlosser (vonschlosser.com)
Jeff Walker
Kevin Wind (webcomicsnation.com/localhaunt/localhaunt)
Adam Wirtzfeld (wrenchintheworks.com)

GO HERE TO FIND OUT HOW TO ORDER A COPY OF ALLEY CAT

Armitage Shanks in Eglinton Island Mini-Comic

As the previously mentioned graphic cliffhanger serial Far Arden approaches it's conclusion (2 chapters and an epilogue to go), Conspirator Kevin Cannon has given us a fantastic 12 page bonus chapter... including the secret origin of Shanks' pipe!



Go leave Kevin comments here.

Eric Lappegard's Final Transmission

The final week of my friend Eric Lappegard's semi-autobiographical comic strip Schmapples, drawn the week before his ultimately fatal car accident, can now be seen on his website (as can the comic strip he had in the Comix issue of City Pages the week he died). I recommend reading Schmapples starting from the beginning if you haven't already read them. You won't want to miss them. Eric gave himself one hell of a conclusion. Life can be terrible, but sometimes art can be perfect.

Please note that we'll have a complete Schmapples collection available at the benefit show for Eric's family on September 8th at Altered Esthetics.

City Pages: True Tales of the Twin Cities

We recently collaborated with the City Pages to put together a comics feature on the subject of True Tales of the Twin Cities. That issue is out today in coffee shops, bars and other fine establishments all over the Twin Cities, and online here (with 18 more comics than appear in the printed issue).

Some thanks:

Thanks much to all who participated and made this project a wonderful success!

Big special thanks to Kevin Cannon of Big Time Attic for organizing everything (and for drawing the most mind-blowingly beautiful comic of the lot)!

Thanks to City Pages for having us... let's do it again soon!

UPDATE: They have added an area where you can comment on the issue here. Please do!

Chapter 10 of Kevin Cannon's Far Arden is Online

Chapter ten of Kevin Cannon’s fantastic tale of arctic rapscallion Armitage Shanks, Far Arden, is online... only two chapters to go!



Click here to start reading at chapter ten.

Click here to start at the beginning.

Click here to read more about Kevin Cannon's mad, mad project.

Click here to cheer Kevin on in his comments.

Albert Lea gallery show for Midwest Comics

Hello!

In Albert Lea, MN I was offered a gallery room to organize a show. I think it would be quite the delight if some of us could contribute to it.

If you are in the Minneapolis NE area, Tim Sievert (www.timsievert.com) who has a book "That Salty Air" coming out with Top Shelf in November, has volunteered to be your convenient delivery-man to bring your comic art down to Max's Albert Lea Comics Show when he drives down on the 21st.

The show is open to the public and will last from August 2nd or so to August 30th, with an opening on the 5th. More information and a press release will appear soon. Bring two of your favorite black and white pages of comic art (as in, with panels in it, preferably) mounted or unmounted as your preference to Tim before the 21st, probably to Puny office/studio behind Diamond's coffee shop ... like early next Friday at the latest.

I might be mounting some of your stuff on black foamcore before the show if I have time, but probably not. If you miss Tim's drive and still can't find that darling page, you could just snail it to me. Let me know if you want to be in the show and I'll give you the "postal address!" But I think I want to make up little mini-comic style brochures or something, too. So ideally, I know you're contributing before the last week of July.

Oh, and please include information about yourself and the pages on some sort of paper! Everyone will be curious what your stuff is about and I want to label stuff correctly, including the name of the work, the page numbers, what the story is about or what magazine it was for, etc. An artist statement or something wouldn't be bad either for the little 'guide to the show' I'll be making.

Would anyone be able to get something of Eric's and his permission if he is interested?

Schmapples

While you're sending good thoughts Eric's way, you should also check out his excellent recent comics... he's been doing a daily on his site this year, and it is just great (go to the Schmapples Archive to see them).

Kevin Cannon's Far Arden Chapter Nine

Chapter nine of Kevin Cannon’s fantastic tale of arctic rapscallion Armitage Shanks, Far Arden, is online... only three chapters to go!



Click here to start reading at chapter nine.

Click here to start at the beginning.

Click here to read more about Kevin Cannon's mad, mad project.

Click here to cheer Kevin on in his comments.

Kevin Cannon's Far Arden Chapter Eight

Chapter eight of Kevin Cannon’s fabulous epic 288 hour comic serial, Far Arden, is online, with more ripping polar bear action!



Click here to start reading at chapter eight.

Click here to start at the beginning.

Click here to read more about Kevin Cannon's mad, mad project.

Click here to cheer Kevin on in his comments.

Far Arden Chapter Seven

Chapter seven of Kevin Cannon's epic 288 hour comic, Far Arden, is online, and continues to get better and better... Kevin is blowing me away with this stuff every month. You would think, producing this stuff under such time constraints (all chapters drawn in 24 hours) that something would suffer... art, storytelling, plot, composition, layouts, design... hell, lettering! Kevin continues to make it all flow perfectly and beautifully, and make it look deceptively easy.



Click here to start reading at chapter seven.

Click here to start at the beginning.

Click here to read more about Kevin Cannon's mad, mad project.

Click here to cheer Kevin on in his comments.

Far Arden Chapter Six

Huzzah! This month's chapter of Kevin Cannon's epic 288 hour comic, Far Arden, is online! With this chapter, we reach the halfway mark in our narrative.



Click here to start reading at chapter six.

Click here to start at the beginning.

Click here to read more about Kevin Cannon's mad, mad project.

Click here to cheer Kevin on in his comments.

Raised By Squirrels: Los Alamos now available

Reluctantly reunited, Tyler and Rose have rejoined the S.Q.R.L., the covert agency that nearly destroyed them. Now, in Los Alamos, the discoveries they make about the organization's history will lead to even more mystery — and greater danger.

This book collects issues 8 through 11 of Raised By Squirrels, a gallery of new art, and the first four Squirrel Tales.

Available, along with volume 1, at the Raised By Squirrels site.

Chapter Five of Kevin Cannon's 288 Hour Comic Far Arden

Chapter five of Far Arden, Kevin Cannon's 288 Hour comic featuring Armitage Shanks, Arctic Pirate (which you can read more about here) has been posted! You can start at the beginning here, or click on the image below to start at chapter four if you already read the first three.



I recommend starting at the beginning even if you've already read it, as even in its incomplete state (currently one third completed!), the story is complex and layered, and already greatly rewards rereading.

Make sure to leave comments and encouragement for Kevin on the Big Time Attic blog here!

Stwalley's New Blog

I've altered my personal website at Stwallskull.com to be a blog. You can subscribe to it here, if you're inclined. It will talk a lot about comics and cartooning, as well as a multitude of other topics that interest me (old music, weirdness, animation, technology, etc, etc, etc).



In addition to the mail feed on the site, there is a feed on the right side of the page that is also "Stwallskull's Interesting Links" a very frequently updated list of choice articles that I run across on the web on a wide variety of topics of interest, including, of course, comics and cartooning. You can subscribe to that here.

Chapter Four of Kevin Cannon's 288 Hour Comic "Far Arden"

Hooray! Chapter four of Far Arden, Kevin Cannon's 288 Hour cliffhanger serial of a comic featuring Armitage Shanks, Arctic Pirate (which you can read more about here) has been posted! You can start at the beginning here, or click on the image below to start at chapter four if you already read the first three.



I recommend starting at the beginning even if you've already read it, as even in its incomplete state (currently one third completed!), the story is complex and layered, and already greatly rewards rereading.

Make sure to leave comments and encouragement for Kevin on the Big Time Attic blog here!

Danger Duck

David Steinlicht just posted his hilarious 24 hour comic Danger Duck from the 24 hour event we had in Minneapolis a little while ago... in color yet! Here it is for your reading pleasure.