(not final cover)

News has broken over the last few days via The Guardian and now The A.V. Club about our impending publication of Flannery O'Connor: The Cartoons, collecting the author's seldom-seen visual work from her student days. The Guardian's Peter Wild writes:

"Cut from linoleum with oil-based ink applied to the ridges, the drawings are rudimentary but charming, a stripped down version of what Marjane Satrapi did in Persepolis. What's clear, though, is the perspective of the outsider, which O'Connor refined in her debut novel Wise Blood and stories such as 'A Good Man is Hard to Find.' ... Even though the cartoons are largely comic, and lack the richness of detail that a short story affords, it would be wrong to dismiss them as juvenilia…. The darkness she would make her own is already showing its teeth…. The cartoons, then, remain a glimpse of what might have been. And for fans, this is that all-too-rare commodity: a 'new' Flannery O'Connor book to slip on the shelf besides the scant few books she left us with."

The A.V. Club's Nathan Rabin says:

"O’Connor’s funny drawings are distinguished both by the author’s morbid sense of humor and surprisingly sharp and memorable visual sense. Nearly a half-century after her death, O’Connor continues to surprise."

See our page for the book for more information.

In 1946 Al Capp held the now infamous contest to see who could conjure the true image of the world's ugliest woman, Lena Hyena from Lower Slobbovia. Amongst the 500,000 + submissions was this ghastly beaut by Carl Barks.

The, ahem, judges for this contest were three of the worlds ugliest men: Salvador Dali, Boris Karloff and Frank Sinatra and as you may know, they aptly awarded Basil Wolverton's warped rendering "The Champ."

Here we have Lena by Basil Wolverton as colored by Jim Woodring from Wolvertoons.

I think it's worth noting and more than a coincidence that Carl Barks, Basil Wolverton and Jim Woodring all hail from the great pacific northwest, a region rife with grotesque power drawers, past and present.

Side note: It's rumored that Jack Cole sent in a drawing of the wonderful Lena. What I'd give to see that!

On Saturday, July 9th, the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery debuts our exhibit The Quiet Rrriot: Visual Artists from the Riot Grrrl Movement.  We're celebrating the long-awaited reissue of Megan Kelso's incredible collection Queen of the Black Black, and we're also featuring two of her contemporaries from the '90s Olympia-scene, Nikki McClure and Stella Marrs. Yesterday, we took a closer look at Stella's art, and today, we're gonna talk about Nikki!

Nikki and Megan were in the same year at the infamous Evergreen State College, and you can see the Olympia-influence in both of their work.  Nikki's artwork graced the covers of releases from local labels K Records, Kill Rock Stars, and Yo Yo Recordings.  She even did set design for the rock opera "The Tranfused."  The program credits read like a Who's-Who of Oly artists:

Click here for a larger version on our Flickr page

By the way, look who played the role of "Corpse XY"!

Click here for a larger version on our Flickr page

Why, yes, that would be the Zack Carlson, editor of Destroy All Movies!!!: The Complete Guide to Punks on Film!!!

Nikki also produced zines in the '90s, such as Super Secret and The Great Chicken Escape. 

You can get a better sense of Nikki's signature style in The Great Chicken Escape: intricate scenes that she depicts using an X-acto knife and black and white paper. Her images capture the beauty of Northwest nature, in painstakingly-crafted silhouettes.

Nowadays, her work adorns journals and calendars, t-shirts and tote bags.  But you can see where it all began this Saturday at the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery!  We'll have some of Nikki's originals on display, alongside originals from Megan and Stella.  Plus, Megan and Nikki will give a brief talk at 7:00 pm, discussing the lasting legacy of Riot Grrrls, before their signing!

The Quiet Rrriot: Visual Artists from the Riot Grrrl movement by Megan Kelso, Nikki McClure, Stella Marrs

Opening Saturday, July 9th from 6:00 to 9:00 PM
Artists talk with Megan Kelso and Nikki McClure at 7:00 PM, followed by a book signing.
Exhibition continues through August 31, 2011

Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery
1201 S. Vale Street (at Airport Way S.)
Seattle, WA 98108
206.658.0110
Open daily 11:30 to 8:00 PM, Sundays until 5:00 PM
This event is free and all ages

Jim Woodring's Congress of the Animals by gavlees

For those who couldn't make it to Jim Woodring's slideshow talk about his new graphic novel Congress of the Animals at Elliott Bay Book Company last week, here's video of the whole presentation, shot by our own Ian Burns and hosted by our good pal Gavin Lees. (Pardon the brief commercial message.) Gavin provides some thoughtful comments on the talk over at his Graphic Eye blog. The insight Jim provides into his work is fascinating, there are some previously-unseen preparatory sketches included in the slideshow, and Jim left us all wanting more by strictly limiting his talk to 40 minutes (timed by his lovely wife Mary). Believe me, it's 40 minutes very well spent, so get comfy.

From the ol' mailbag.

Join us this Saturday, July 9 from 6:00 to 9:00 PM for "The Quiet Rrriot," an examination of the Riot Grrrl zine scene featuring original art, prints, and products by Megan Kelso, Nikki McClure and Stella Marrs. This exhibition marks the debut of the new edition of Queen of the Black Black, short stories from Kelso’s seminal comix zine Girlhero.

Kelso and McClure will discuss their work in the context of Olympia’s Riot Grrrl movement at 7:00 PM, followed by a book signing and reception. Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery is located at 1201 S, Vale Street (at Airport Way S.) in the heart of Seattle’s historic Georgetown arts community. Phone 206.658.0110. The event on Saturday evening coincides with the colorful Georgetown Art Attack featuring visual and performing arts presentations throughout the neighborhood. Don’t miss it.

For those wondering whether there would be a follow-up to our well-received 2010 anthology Newave! The Underground Mini-Comix of the 1980s, good news! Editor Michael Dowers is now seeking submissions for two more volumes with a wider chronological reach. Here's the announcement, as posted at the mini-comics community site Poopsheet Foundation:

This series will cover mini comics from the dawn of time (early 70's) to the present. Since Newave has already been covered, the main focus will be on the 1990's to the present although earlier minis will be covered too. The books will be the same size (only more like 700 pages each) but will only reproduce mini comics that are 5 1/2 X 4 1/4 or smaller just like the Newave book. The two volumes are to be simply titled "Treasury of Mini Comics" Volumes one & two.

I am looking for contributors. I am looking for the best of the best. Any creator can send me their mini comics, disks, or photocopies to be considered for publication for this project. Or email me and send low-res jpegs to: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Please send titles to: Michael Dowers, 361 E. Birnie Slough Rd., Cathlamet, WA 98612.

If they want their material returned it is important to enclose return postage. Any mini comics that are kept will be placed in the Fantagraphics collection after the books are published. Also anybody sending actual mini comics will receive comics in trade from Brownfield press.

Nate Neal presents two stories related to his graphic novel The Sanctuary in the "Comix-O-Matic" video format: the one-pager "Lor Mok Kuri," and "Cha-Ul Nu Mon-Mon," the prequel story which appears in Mome Vol. 21.

Lor Mok Kuri from Nate Neal on Vimeo.

Cha-Ul Nu Mon Mon from Nate Neal on Vimeo.

And here's a pretty fantastic piece of fan art drawn for Nate by fellow Mome contributor Eleanor Davis!

Today's Online Commentary & Diversions:

• Review: "...Wilfred Santiago... has done something very extraordinary and that's create a graphic novel that will eventually stand the test of time. If there was ever a novel that every Latino/Latina (baseball fan or not), comic book fan, family or anyone who volunteers/works in nonprofit must own in their library, it's 21: The Story of Roberto Clemente. Am I exaggerating? No, being the comic book nerd that I am, I haven't been this moved from a novel since I read Frank Miller's Batman: The Dark Knight Returns.... While Roberto Clemente was a fantastic baseball player, it was his humanity in this graphic novel that shone brightly. And I thank Wilfred Santiago for creating his masterpiece and Fantagraphics for publishing it. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" – Cesar Diaz, Latino Sports

• Review: "[Megan Kelso's] interest in open-ended narrative is apparent and, while occasionally frustrating, important, and her gouache work in the title story [in Queen of the Black Black] is lovely and subtle..." – Hillary Brown, Paste

• Reviews (Audio): The June 26 episode of Easy Rider, the radio show for "rock, punk rock, country, power pop, garage and comics" from Radio PFM out of Arras in northern France, features Johnny Ryan's Take a Joke among their Comics of the Week and Taking Punk to the Masses as their Book of the Week; on their July 3 episode, the Comics of the Week include Yeah! by Peter Bagge & Gilbert Hernandez and Gilbert's Love from the Shadows

• Scene: The New Yorker's Vanna Le reports from Lou Reed's reading of The Raven at the Strand bookstore in NYC last week: "Mattotti's illustrations, which were projected in a slide show, saturated the room with a kind of terror and despair. There was also something about the sound and sudden fits of fury in Reed's voice that seemed to mirror Poe's tormented vision." From the accompanying slideshow of images of the book: "Lorenzo Mattotti skillfully brings out the terror and elegance of Reed and Poe’s joint masterwork…. The book is an aesthetically stunning treat — but it isn’t only for the coffee table. Mattotti’s artwork is as enigmatic and suspenseful as the poetry itself."

• Interview (Audio): Bob Fingerman is the guest on the new episode of The Comics Journal's TCJ Talkies podcast with host Mike Dawson

This coming Saturday, July 9th, the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery unveils our latest exhibit The Quiet Rrriot: Visual Artists from the Riot Grrrl Movement, celebrating the release of Megan Kelso's recently reissued Queen of the Black Black, and also spotlighting two other rad DIY ladies of the Northwest, Nikki McClure and Stella Marrs.  

We all know how awesome Megan is, but lemme introduce you to how equally-cool Nikki and Stella are, starting with the mysterious Ms. Stella Marrs.

Anyone who's stepped into a bookstore in the last thirty years has surely seen her distinctive postcards in a rack near the registers: kitschy vintage images transposed with sharp, smart phrases. In a rare interview with Fanta-friend Everett True, Stella explains, "Why postcards?"

After college, I made hundreds of different paintings, products, and events. I never put my name on anything during that period. I preferred to think of it all as some sort of warm-up exercise for what I was really going to do. I finally settled on using my name on the back of postcards because I realized I better accept this medium by the default since I could afford to start manufacturing it. It could be educational, and I could travel and sell it on public transportation, because it was small and I didn't have a car.

Stella's work pre-dates the Riot Grrrl-era, but her bold feminist statements were echoed in the music, comics and zines coming out of her Olympia, WA neighborhood during the '90s.

In that aforementioned interview, Stella also states: If girls could just make things and see themselves reflected in what they made, and then trade it for money, that could be a window to empowerment about alternatives for economic survival. Because if you get to live outside the normal system, you just might have a chance for a different vision, which could mean ultimately an alternative voice.

An old Stella Marrs mail order catalog, from the Megan Kelso collection.

We celebrate that unique vision and alternative voice this Saturday at the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery with original artwork on display from Stella, as well as Megan and Nikki!

The Quiet Rrriot: Visual Artists from the Riot Grrrl movement by Megan Kelso, Nikki McClure, Stella Marrs

Opening Saturday, July 9th from 6:00 to 9:00 PM
Artists talk with Megan Kelso and Nikki McClure at 7:00 PM, followed by a book signing.
Exhibition continues through August 31, 2011

Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery
1201 S. Vale Street (at Airport Way S.)
Seattle, WA 98108
206.658.0110
Open daily 11:30 to 8:00 PM, Sundays until 5:00 PM
This event is free and all ages