Legendary comics "herstorian," Trina Robbins, is bringing a chunk of her astounding collection of women's comics to the Women’s History Museum of California in San Diego this summer!

(The entire collection has NEVER been shown, she notes!)

Wonder Women: On Paper and Off explores the avenues women have made in the comic and graphic industry.  This exhibition follows the history of women in comics starting in the 20th century — as artists and characters — through today’s cartoon and graphic illustrations.

The exhibit, which opened this past Friday, June 7th, also features contributions from contributions from Joyce Farmer, Mary Fleener, Carol Lay, Ron May (collector), Peiter Ortiz (collector), Mimi Pond, and Andrea Tsurumi.

On Thursday, July 18th at 7:30 PM, Trina will be joined by Mary, Carol, and Ramona Fradon, for a panel discussion of their experiences of working in the comic industry, followed by a signing of her upcoming collection Pretty in Ink: American Women Cartoonists 1896-2013!

The Women's Museum of California is located at 2730 Historic Decatur Road, Barracks 16. The exhibit runs through Sunday, September 1st, 2013.

The Adam Baumgold Gallery in New York City is hosting an exhibition of portraits by Charles Burns that were published on the cover of The Believer magazine between 2003 and 2013, and that's cool, but y'know what's even cooler? The accompanying exhibit: Before & After Portraits from Black Hole!

In these comic grotesque portraits, themes of adolescent alienation and sexual awakening mingle with imagery of mutation, disease, and violence. Each smiling, yearbook-style portrait is accompanied by a Dorian Gray-like counterpart, picturing the same teenager with some troubling facial alteration.

Go, and take in all the exquisite work of the master Charles Burns! The Adam Baumgold Gallery is located at 60 E. 66th Street in New York City. The exhibit runs through July 26th, 2013.

Chicago hosts some hometown love for their prodigal son Daniel Clowes with the exhibit Modern Cartoonist: The Art of Daniel Clowes, opening June 29th at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago!

This retrospective of Clowes's work presents more than 125 original drawings and artifacts. You might remember when the exhibition first appeared at the Oakland Museum of California Art -- the city that Chicago-born Clowes now calls home -- but, the show will be expanded significantly for its MCA Chicago presentation!

The Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago is located at 220 E Chicago Avenue, just one block east of Michigan Avenue, in the heart of the Magnificent Mile in downtown Chicago. The exhibit runs through October 13, 2013.

The king of erotic, creator of Lann, Ghita of Alizar, Moonshine McJuggs (Playboy), plus The Iron Devil and Devil's Angel is having an art show in New Jersey. Frank Thorne, all of 82 years, graciously invites you to see his new mixed media and pantings this Sunday, June 2nd from 2 to 5pm at the deCret School of the Arts. From the press release:

Thorne began his comics career in 1948, penciling romance comics for Standard Comics. He turned out a multitude of stories for Flash Gordon, Jungle Jim, The Green Hornet, and many more. For Marvel, he continued the Red Sonia character through most of her 1977-79 solo series, where he established her characteristic image as a ferocious and beautiful female barbarian wearing a chain mail bikini, which later became a popular fantasy literature archetype. Free admission, parking in the back. For more information contact Mark Romanoski. 

So come one, come all to see the latest Frank Thorne work at the deCret School of the Arts (1030 Central Ave, Plainfield NJ) this Sunday!

We've mentioned before how our own Johnny Ryan is a frequent contributor to VICE Magazine. Why, he can sometimes be found drawing chipmunks blasting Ted Nugent with semen, for example!

This Friday, May 17th, at the appropriately named Pure Evil Gallery, VICE will be holding an exhibition of work from some of their favorite illustrators, including Johnny --  "just so we can stick all their drawings up on a wall and show everybody else how great they are," they say.

The exhibition is going to include a selection of new prints, work that's been featured in VICE and original drawings especially for the show, which are designed to give an insight into how the people who do drawings for them go about doing their drawings. 

The Pure Evil Gallery is located at 108 Leonard Street in London. The show runs through Sunday, June 2nd.

Come one, come all and bring your ale mugs! Thursday, May 16 is the OFFICIAL ODDLAND RELEASE - BEER AND ART TOUR

Join Fantagraphics and Elysian Brewing in celebrating Oddland Peppercorn Saison - the first beer release in our Oddland Series - a creative venture from the warped minds of Elysian Brewing and Seattle artist, Jim Woodring. Start with an Elysian brewery tour and continue to CoCA Georgetown Gallery for beer, bites and art, including handpicked works from Jim Woodring, who will also be in attendance. 

4-5PM - Brewery tours at Elysian Airport Way: 5510 Airport Way S., 98108
5:30-9PM - Art, Beer and Bites at CoCA Gallery Georgetown: 5701 6th Ave. S., 98108

For those who must know more about the beer, Oddland Saison is a Belgian farmhouse-style ale brewed with four varieties of peppercorns: The fire of black and green, the sparkle of white and the pungent fruitiness of pink create a playful landscape of taste and aromatics. Brewed with Pale, Munich, Cara-Munich and wheat malts, bittered with German Northern Brewer and finished with Czech Saaz hops. 7% ABV so don't forget to eat.

The ODDLAND SERIES is a journey through the strange ingredients and imaginations of Elysian brewers and Seattle cartoonist, Jim Woodring. Invite your friends via our Facebook event.

Guy Peellaert: The Adventures of Jodelle and Fragments of the French Pop Years at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery.

The late French artist Guy Peellaert was among the most influential figures in European pop culture throughout his career. His collaborations with personalities like Serge Gainsbourg, Yves Saint Laurent, Mick Jagger, Wim Wenders, David Bowie, Martin Scorsese, and others left an indelible mark on contemporary culture. The legacy of this important artist is celebrated in a new book and exhibition, Guy Peellaert: The Adventures of Jodelle and Fragments of the French Pop Years at Fantagraphics Bookstore opening May 11, 2013.

The book begins with Peellaert’s stunning 1965 comic album The Adventures of Jodelle, newly translated by Fantagraphics co-publisher Kim Thompson. The deluxe volume then examines the breadth of the artist’s work in comics, illustration, graphic design, dance, film, and fashion, including his infamous 1967 “Happening” at the Passage Saint André des Arts that culminated with models fully disrobing – resulting in sensational headlines worldwide while raising the bar for avant garde fashion.

The opening at Fantagraphics Bookstore on Saturday, May 11 from 6:00 to 9:00 PM includes musical entertainment by K recording artists Angelo Spencer performing lyrical French language songs. Pop Art aficionados, Francophiles, and music fans alike will appreciate this event, which coincides with the festive Georgetown Art Attack.

Listing Information

Guy Peellaert: The Adventures of Jodelle and Fragments of the French Pop Years

Opening Saturday, May 11, 6:00 to 9:00 PM
Musical entertainment by Angelo Spencer
Exhibition continues through July 9, 2013

Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery
1201 S. Vale Street. Seattle, WA 98108
206.658.0110 | www.fantagraphics.com
Open daily 11:30 to 8:00 PM, Sundays until 5:00 PM

We're still keeping tabs on our Mome-veteran Andrice Arp, and tonight, Thursday, May 2nd, she has some original artwork debuting at the SoHiTek Gallery in Portland, OR!

To celebrate the gallery's birthday, they have curated a show dedicated to our astrological sign, the Taurus. Dig In Your Heels: A Taurus Art Show features work from Sean Christensen ABT, Cameron Hawkey, Graham Kahler, Marsuplala, Mark Quemada, Amber Smith, Daria Tessler, Rebecca Urias, as well as Andrice! She explains on her blog:

So maybe I've been looking at too many sci-fi paperback covers from the '70s lately. Whatever, I think maybe it's OK. I'm also super excited to be OIL PAINTING again! I've been thinking about it for quite a while, and this show seemed like a good opportunity to pull out my box of oil paints that I haven't opened since I moved to Portland.

Nice! SoHiTek Gallery is located at 625 NW Everett St #102, in the Everett Station Lofts in downtown Portland.

Make hotel reservations now for the alternative music event of the decade. Sub Pop celebrates 25 years of rockin' the world with a free concert featuring 15 bands right outside our Georgetown bookstore on July 13. The official line-up as announced by Tad Doyle, Kim Thayil, Mark Arm, and Jack Endino will be complemented by some amazing guests. (We'll leave it to your imagination, but read Tad's lips at the end of the video for a clue.) 

While serving as director of Seattle's Center on Contemporary Art in 1989, I somehow coerced Sub Pop moguls Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman into programming a weekend of music at our downtown space. The show featured Nirvana, Mudhoney, Gwar, TAD, Dwarves, Dickless, Supersuckers, and other awesome acts. CoCA intern Owen Connell created this memorable poster and wheat pasted them all over town. These shows seemed cathartic somehow. Maybe you had to be there. If you weren't, you're in luck...

I'm reviving this concept for an exhibit at Fantagraphics Bookstore coinciding with Sub Pop's Silver Jubilee on July 13. Focusing on the formative years of Sub Pop, the show examines the intersection of comix and music in Seattle beginning with the birth of Sub Pop in 1980. It includes art and artifacts by Charles Burns, Lynda Barry, Peter Bagge, Art Spiegelman, Charles Peterson, Daniel Clowes, and many more. Danny Bland will read from his new novel In Case We Die set in Seattle's grunge era. This'll rock hard! More details will be revealed later, but schedule your summer vacation accordingly.

You don't have to wait until summer to enjoy Sub Pop's contribution to modern music. This Saturday is Record Store Day and our retail partners Georgetown Records will have the special Sub Pop 1000 vinyl LP, as well as exclusive Record Store Day offerings from local label Light in the Attic including Roky Erickson, PiL, and Mercury Rev. Please come by, and wherever you are -- support your local record store!

Our exhibit of Dash Shaw's artwork launched at the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery this past weekend, and boy, is it a beauty! 

If you live in Seattle, you should definitely drop by and see his original artwork in person. I'm especially in love with the piece drawn on polka-dot fabric! If you live too far away, you can also check out photos on the Fantagraphics Flickr.

And don't forget: Dash Shaw will appear in person on Saturday, May 4 from 6:00 to 8:00 PM. He’ll be discussing his work with a screening of his animated shorts, followed by a book signing featuring the debut of his latest graphic novel New School. May 4th also marks Free Comic Book Day, so drop by the store for a free mini-comic created by local cartoonists exclusively for us!

Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery is located at 1201 S. Vale Street in the heart of Seattle’s historic Georgetown arts community, only minutes south of downtown. Open daily 11:30 to 8:00 PM, Sundays until 5:00 PM. Phone 206.658.0110.