SukoshiCON'

So, I should've posted about this earlier, but there's an anime convention happening in Birmingham tomorrow. SukoshiCON' {prime}  Are any of you Salty 'Hams involved?  Or at least attending?

Staedtler Brush pen tip

 I saw in comments online where some guy talked about extending the life of his Staedtler Mars Graphic Duo 2000 brush pen ("The brush pen with more names than any other") by removing the plain tip with a pliers and somehow switching the ink supplies. He gave no details so I wasn't sure how that would work. But I pulled of the plain tip end (the pens have a plain tip on one end and a brush tip on the other) with pliers and, indeed, it had a little foam ink supply, fat and juicy with ink.

The brush tip end pulled off easily as well, and it was bone dry of course since that's mainly all I use. It's a simple matter then to switch the foam stick things. And re-insert the tips. It worked brilliantly, the brush tip was instantly back in fine fettle. What a boon this will be to humanity (or at least cartoonists.)

ps. Chris Garrison put me onto these great pens. Thanks Chris!

Rimmer Rimmer

Here's yet another new addition to the roles, folks.  Welcome, Marye Rimmer!

84 Lumber

The Salty 'Ham Cartooneestas website now has 84 entries, with the addition of very talented Huntsvillian Susan Knowles.  Welcome, Sooz!  (We don't have enough Huntsville cartoonists, so if you meet any up there who aren't already members, spread the word!)

... and another'n

Here's ANOTHER new Salty 'Ham for the roles: Welcome Melissa Shultz-Jones!

Kingdom Art Attack!

Kingdom Comics, in Vestavia, is having an event tomorrow, called Kingdom Art Attack.  Local cartoonists and comickers will be there throughout the day to sell comics, prints, take commissions, and do caricatures.  Some artists might arrive as early as 10am.

Then at 6pm, the artists will be challenged to create an original piece of art, based on a wacky, randomly-generated sentence.  They're allowed 90 minutes to work on it, and they can use any medium they like.  (Although probably not digital, because there aren't enough plugs to go 'round.)

Some of our fellow Salty 'Ham Cartooneestas will be rockin' it: Chris Fason, Chris Garrison, Andy Gray, Alison Marceau, and Chris Rosko . . . as well as these talented non-joiners: Bryan Crowson, Patrick Giles, Geoffrey Gwin, James Hill, and Lysa Shin.

Peyton's call to arms

Hey, Salty 'Hams,

Our fellow SHC Peyton Knight wants to form a super-group!  Want to get in on it?  Here's a note from him:

===

I'm looking to put together a comic book team. I want to pitch some ideas to some of the smaller companies. I can use any help I can get. Writers, inks, pencils, colors, layout designers, anything really. Send me a message on facebook if you're interested. If I'm not on your friend list, you can add me...

https://www.facebook.com/peyton.knight.39

Thanks

Peyton Knight

Past Medical History

Our fellow SHC Don Stewart has a new venture.  Here's a note from him:

Hello, Everyone -

Once upon a time, I wrote a book. 

Not a picture book. 

A book of stories – stories about a young man who worked hard to fulfill a dream, then left it behind to follow a different, more creative path.

When I walked out of the hospital (27 years ago, this month), I had no idea I was going to be a full-time artist. I thought I might teach, or write magazine articles, or get a job running a small business. Yes, I had finished two drawings, sold a few copies here and there, but not nearly enough to pay rent, much less keep up with my medical school payments. Art was a hobby, a warm, solitary retreat from five years of constant stress. It fit in nicely with my chief priority: Fishing, every day, until the river froze over. I'd had little formal training, and very little practice at it. That my art grew into a vocation, then into business that has lasted a quarter of a century is more of a surprise to me than anyone.

Where did they come from, these creative tendencies? How did they emerge so suddenly, powerful enough to move my lifelong dream of being a doctor so completely out of the picture? Perhaps I had been an artist all along, and just didn't know it.

Just as I once drew pictures in medical school, over the years I have been writing stories, too. Dim recollections of childhood, mostly, short paragraphs and outlines that have accumulated and grown in spare moments along the way. Before I knew it, these stories began to tell a larger tale, at the same time revealing the roots of my art – roots that tunnel as far back as I can remember.

Now these stories have been arranged in order, and trimmed to fit neatly into a single volume called Past Medical History. Read a sample story here: http://pulsemagazine.org/Archive_Index.cfm?content_id=163

The book will be published later this summer, with help from our friends, family, fans, and generous supporters. As we did six years ago with the DS Art Coffee Table Book, we are funding the process through advance orders – only this time we've teamed up with Indiegogo, an organization that lets us build a more professional marketing program, and manage the process with less chance of misplacing our customer's addresses and order details.

The end result is still the same: 

Once we reach our funding goal, we publish the book.

We're already one fifth of the way toward achieving our goal, which is amazing, since we only started the process a few days ago. We hope you will stop by our Indiegogo Campaign Page (http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/past-medical-history/x/3036358) and watch our video, browse the list of bonus "perks", then consider joining us in our quest to make Past Medical History a part of our collective future.

If you would prefer to order the book directly from our web site, that option will become available at the end of July. Or send a reply to this e-mail, and we'll add you to the Book Order list, and catch up with you in August. Meanwhile, follow along with us on our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/PastMedicalHistory.  

Have a great summer!

- Don 

... and another'n

Here's ANOTHER new Salty 'Ham for the roles: Welcome Brian Brasher!

Sketch Card Update

Here’s a look at my first set of sketch cards for 2013, “Civil War Chronicles” for Cult-Stuff  (+Cult Stuff ); 19 cards spanning Apr. 12, 1961 - July 1963.

You can get a closer look at the cards on my ‘art page’ on Facebook.
Next on the agenda will be Island Dreams 2013 and a number of psc’s.

Alabama Phoenix Festival

I should have posted about this earlier, but I'm sure most of y'all know about it already.  Several Salty 'Ham Cartooneestas, including myself, will have tables at the Alabama Phoenix Festival -- which starts today and goes throughout this weekend.  Come visit!  And buy our comics, prints, doodles-on-demand, and caricatures.

Don Stewart's blog

Our fellow SHC Don Stewart has been keeping up his blog, lately.  Here's a recent post he wanted to share with everybody: So your kid wants to be an artist.

The Art of Riverside

By now you've hopefully seen this music video I animated: Riverside, by 13ghosts.

Well, here's a bunch of art, from the finished film, and from the making of!  Backgrounds painted by A. Vernon.

Shiny and New

Yet again, more to explore!  Two more new entries to the Salty 'Ham roles: indy publisher Red Crow Comics, from waaay up beyond Huntsville.

. . . and Red Crow writer Julian "Jay" Burton!  Check out both pages.

Daniel, Our Brother

The new recruits keep trickling in.  Say hello to the latest: Daniel Lawson!

Riverside by 13ghosts - music video

I just completed work on an animated music video, with lots of help from Andrew Vernon and Tim Rocks.  Please go and watch it here!

Third Friday at Naked Art: Homegrown Comics and Cartoon Art!

Hey, check out this event, and please attend!

http://www.facebook.com/events/425576740865609/

... and another'n

Here's ANOTHER new Salty 'Ham for the roles: Welcome Kevin Van Hyning!  (I call him Vin-Van.)

Knight No Longer Errant

Adding another new Salty 'Ham to the mix: Peyton Knight!

Mini Comics program in the Vestavia Hills Library Teen Department

Looks like I'm gonna be using the letter size fold em up mini comic idea for a Teen Art program at the library later this month. If you know kids grade 7-12 who would groove on it, point em towards the Vestavia Hills Library.

KoronisFest Contest

Every year, the UAB School of Public Health has this contest, and here it is again.

For more info, visit their website.  By the way, I'll be one of the judges this year, in the animation category.

Comics Distro Update

Derek Anderson just commented on the "Modest Proposal" post below (and posted a cool lizard drawing just below) so I thought I'd take the opportunity to update that idea.

It's been a while...

I haven't posted here in a while but thought I'd share some stuff I worked on recently. As fellow Salty Hammers may recall, old Cheese Wiz here does design work from time to time for the Library in the Forest in Vestavia Hills. For the last few years I've been depicting the kid's department mascot in various forms for their summer reading programs. This summer will be no exception as Herman the Bearded Dragon goes searching for buried treasure! Namely, knowledge gleaned through reading: the most valuable of all treasures. 

New Herman Logo for Library

Two New Recruits

The number of entries on SaltyHam.org just went up to 76, with the addition of two talented new Salty 'Hams.  Check 'em out!

Jedidiah Alford, of Birmingham

Stephanie Celeste Chateau, of Birmingham

But, believe it or not, there are still a huge number of Alabama cartoonists who HAVEN'T joined the Salty 'Ham Cartooneestas!  What's up with that?

More Caricatures

I've been doing more caricatures, at the Birmingham Feline Fanciers Cat Show and at Hospicelink.  I started drawing them on clear plastic cels, and using paint markers and colored-paper backgrounds.  Here are 12 of my favorites.

What do you think of this technique?