The Last Vispo Anthology: Visual Poetry 1998-2008 features 148 contributors from 23 countries on five continents, and six of those contributors happen to be from Ohio: John M. Bennett, C. Mehrl Bennett, John Byrum, endwar, Bill Howe, Joel Lipman, and Reid Wood!

The Nelsonville Public Library recently launched an exhibition of 27 prints from Last Vispo! The exhibit was arranged locally by Athens visual poet endwar (Andrew Russ), who has been writing visual poetry since 1990 and publishing some via his IZEN imprint. The exhibit also includes seven large prints of minimalist visual poems originally created for exhibits at Neopolis Gallery in Cleveland from 2003-2005, some poetry in sculpture form created over the last five years, and a few other items.

The exhibit will be on display through Saturday, February 16th.  The Nelsonville Public Library is located at 95 W Washington Street.

Lotsa Fantagraphics luminaries will be at the upcoming L.A. Zine Fest on Sunday, February 17th!

From 11:00 AM to 5:00 PM, stop by tables manned by Jordan Crane, Esther Pearl Watson, and Mome veterans Jon Vermilyea and Malachi Ward.

The L.A. Zine Fest will be held at the Ukrainian Cultural Center at 4315 Melrose Avenue. 

And the night before, Saturday, February 16th, catch Esther Pearl Watson doing a comics reading at the L.A. Zine Fest Reading and Rock Spectacular at Footsies [ 2640 N Figueroa Street ]!

H/T to Kelly Froh of Short Run Seattle for bringing this to my attention!

Thursday, January 31st

•  Los Angeles, CA:  Do not miss Scrapbooks, Army Surplus, Comics and Other Stuff: A Conversation with Graphic Storyteller C. Tyler at the University of Southern California as C. Tyler makes a rare West Coast appearance to discuss You'll Never Know: A Graphic Memoir! Reservations are recommended, so click here to RSVP! (more info)

•  Los Angeles, CA: And you lucky Californians can also visit Esther Pearl Watson at the L.A. Art Book Fair, opening Thursday night and running through Sunday, February 3rd. (more info)

 • Seattle, WA:  The Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery presents a truly Super Sunday with Portland cartoonist Aron Nels Steinke, who will be signing and discussing his autobiographical mini-comics collection, Big Plans! (more info)

Fantagraphics is heading to New Delhi for the 3rd Annual Comic Con India!

Join us Friday, February 8th through Sunday, February 10th as we present some of the finest graphic novels alongside our fellow indie publishers Drawn & Quarterly and First Second.

So, come say hi to Jacq at the Dilli Haat open-air plaza!

Here's some more wisdom for ya: Don't miss the art show The Pen-Ultimate Arnold Roth: 60 Years (and Counting) As a Freelance, currently on display at the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art in New York City!

Over 45 original Arnold Roth cartoons are hanging now, highlighting his work from publications such as Sports Illustrated, Esquire, The New Yorker, Playboy, Punch, Southampton Review and many more.

For Roth, every drawing represents an artistic challenge as well as a narrative one. “I try to give myself little problems,” he said. “Brubeck, years ago, was on a symposium and somebody asked him, ‘Would you describe what playing jazz is?’ And he said, ‘It’s getting yourself into and out of trouble.’ “I thought that was a good way to put it. If you’re not doing that, you’re really hacking it, doing the same thing over and over. I always want to push it a little.”

The Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art is now housed in the Society of Illustrators [ 128 East 63rd St in Manhattan ]. This free exhibit can be found on the second floor of the Society’s historic headquarters through March 2nd, 2013.

Geneviève Castrée enchanted store visitors with a musical performance back in December, and now she'll be back to enchant us again with her graphic novel debut, Susceptible, on Saturday, March 9th!

Susceptible [out in February from our friends at Drawn & Quarterly] is a devastating graphic novel about the heartbreaking loss of innocence when a child is forced to be the adult among grownups. Goglu is a daydreamer with a young working mother, a disengaged stepfather, and a father who lives five thousand miles away. Drawing, punk rock, and the promise of true independence guide Goglu to adulthood while her home's daily chaos inevitably shapes her identity.

Join us at the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery from 6:00 to 9:00 PM as Geneviève signs and discusses this beautiful new book!

The Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery is located at 1201 S. Vale Street in Seattle's Georgetown district. Open daily 11:30 to 8:00 PM, Sundays until 5:00 PM. Phone: (206) 658-0110.

Co-editor Crag Hill brings his magnificent collection The Last Vispo Anthology: Visual Poetry 1998-2008 home to Moscow, Idaho for a signing on Wednesday, February 6th!

Join Crag at Bookpeople of Moscow [ 521 S Main Street ] at 7:00 PM for this launch celebration! There will be a no-host bar, and copies of the anthology will be available for sale and signing. 

It was a problem-free evening at the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery as Jim Woodring presented his brand-new book Problematic: Sketchbook Drawings 2004-2012 earlier this month!

One of the first people in line was this awesome little girl! Jim's wife Mary tells us: "That cute little girl, now 8, has been a fan since the age of 4. Her favorite book for a long time was Seeing Things." Smart girl!

Large-scale reprints of Jim's sketchbook drawings adorn our gallery wall...

... while the original Moleskines are in a case below, some featuring his amazing 3-D pop-outs!

Admittedly, I didn't take a ton of pictures that night since I was DJing before and after our Yo La Tengo debut, but as I was segueing into "This Here Giraffe" by the Flaming Lips, this woman walked in, dressed as a giraffe! Uncanny!

Jim's exhibit will continue to be on display at the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery through Thursday, February 7th. Drop by to see it in person at 1201 S. Vale Street in Seattle's Georgetown district. Open daily 11:30 to 8:00 PM, Sundays until 5:00 PM. Phone: (206) 658-0110.

If you live outside of the area, check out more photos on the Fantagraphics Flickr page, and get yourself a copy of Problematic: Sketchbook Drawings 2004-2012!

Thursday, January 24th

• Minneapolis, MN: Join Tom Kaczynski for the launch of Beta Testing the Apocalypse, with special guests Zak Sally and Derek Van Gieson, as well as Vincent Stall, Dan Wieken, and Peter Wartman! (more info)  

Friday, January 25th

• Paris, France: An exhibition of original artwork from Fuzz and Pluck makes its debut at the Librairie Les Super Héros, including a reception with Ted Stearn himself! (more info)  

• New York City, NY: And an exhibit of paintings by Gary Panter launches at the Fredericks & Freiser gallery in Chelsea. (more info)   

Saturday, January 26th

• Seattle, WA: The Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery proudly hosts the after-party for the Graphic Novel Panel 2013, featuring special guests Ellen Forney, Michel Gagné, and Jim Woodring, along with many more artists! (more info) 

THIS IS NOT A TEST: Tom Kaczynski presents the launch of his brave and brilliant collection Beta Testing the Apocalypse on Thursday, January 24th at Big Brain Comics in Minneapolis.

He will be joined by fellow Fantagraphics alumni Zak Sally and Derek Van Gieson, as well as Vincent Stall, Dan Wieken, and Peter Wartman.

Join them from 5:00 to 7:00 PM for this special celebration! Tom says a commemorative red ink will be used in authorizing your books. 

Big Brain Comics is located at 1027 Washington Avenue South. After the event, there will be mandatory fun at the Downtown Grumpy's.