Friday, September 23, 2011

Upcoming art shows + appearances

Friends! I wanted to alert you to a bunch of art events I'm involved with in the next few weeks. Come see some art!

September 24 (TOMORROW): MICE (Massachusetts Independent Comics Expo) in Porter Square, 10-6. I will have copies of META and Miss Sequential.

October 1: Tangled group show at the Washington Street Art Center in Union Square, Somerville, MA. I have an embroidered piece in this show. The opening is from 7-10pm.

October 4:
I also have a piece in a taco-themed art show in honor of National Taco Day! At Cantina La Mexicana in Union Square, Somerville, MA at 6pm.

Thursday, September 15, 2011

wonder what i know now

Did I tell you about when I went to the Jejune Institute? What about the adventures that followed? If you read Miss Sequential #3, I mentioned a little bit about it in my stories of exploring San Francisco, but I didn't want to spoil the details for anyone else who might want to participate. Well, if you were curious about what I was talking about very mysteriously in that zine, or if you participated and were curious about other people's impressions of the whole thing, you will be happy to hear that I joined creative forces with Carolee and we made a beautiful zine about our experience.





From Carolee's description:

The Jejune Institute opened in 2008, running its covert third-space reclamation project until the spring of 2011, when the Games of Nonchalance culminated in a day-long Socio-Reengineering Seminar held at the Hyatt Regency in San Francisco. Part cult, part art project, and part Alternate Reality Game, the Jejune Institute defied categorization and definition, particularly for those who were its most deeply involved participants.

This zine is an amalgamation of experience and rumination. There is no way it can provide a comprehensive portrait of all the Games of Nonchalance were or tried to be. It merely scratches the surface of all the mystery and mind-fuckery that followed.






This zine was made in time for this year's San Francisco Zine Fest, and when I say "in time for," I really do mean "in the nick of time for" ... up until two days before I was sending Carolee bits and pieces and maps and my version of the cover (of which there are two: two front covers), and then she expertly assembled it, in record time, into this amazing, thoughtful artifact of our experience. I enjoyed seeing it for the first time as a reader would, which was a unique experience in itself.

At present, the zine is available through Carolee's website, superdilettante. While you are there, do take some time to peruse her other projects, all of which are thought-provoking, beautifully-made, and generally remarkable.

Monday, September 05, 2011

META

I hate to be an internet-tease, so I first want to say THANK YOU blog readers, for being so patient. I wasn't trying to be super-mysterious about my new zine in my post the other day, but a no-spoilers San Francisco debut was important for reasons that will become obvious in a paragraph or so.

I made a new zine! It is the culmination of months of note-taking and thinking and "This is a great idea but how do I DO it?" ruminations and talks with friends. Do you ever have an idea for a project but struggle with how to do it RIGHT? This was one of those for me, because of the subject matter and how dear it is not only to me, but to many other people. It turns out that it is a pretty big challenge when you mostly write zines about yourself, to then write a zine about someone who you really admire.





Margaret Kilgallen (1967-2001) was a painter and a graffiti artist, a member of the Mission School art movement in San Francisco in the late 1990s, along with her husband, painter Barry McGee. Kilgallen was prolific in her short career, which ended with her death in June 2001. This zine is about my search for more information and insight on Margaret and her work, and tells the story of my own artistic journey as well as thoughts on art in general.

I've been interested in Margaret's work for a long time, but this winter/spring some chance meetings and conversations kind of propelled me into thinking a zine might be a good idea. And then I couldn't stop thinking about it, so I was pretty sure it really was a good idea.

If you know of Margaret and her work, I'm sure you can see how this project was a little bit daunting at times. I felt that it was important to stay true to (what I understand to be) her vision and practices, as well as to my own vision of what this zine would become. And I think it came together very well, from my handmade, Margaret-inspired layouts to the block printed covers that came into existence on my kitchen table during a hurricane using a borrowed press, a borrowed blank lino block, and snacks of Doritos between prints.

If you are not familiar with Margaret and her work, that is all the more reason to check this zine out. I could say "If you like ____ then you'll like this zine," but chances are good that if you're reading this and/or have ever read/liked something I have written, you will appreciate reading this.

Copies are currently available from me via my etsy shop, or as always if you need to arrange ordering some other way, email me and we'll work something out.

Thursday, September 01, 2011

San Francisco Zine Fest: this weekend!

Readers, if you happen to be in the Bay Area this weekend, you should most certainly stop by the San Francisco Zine Fest, which is being held at the SF Fair Building in Golden Gate Park (near the botanical gardens! go wander around there, too! it is otherworldly!). I have been to this fair for the past two years and it is a fantastic, fun, and exceedingly well-run event with zines and comics for every (yes, every!) interest.

I will not be in attendance this year, but my latest project I alluded to in my previous post will debut at the zine fest. Yes, it's true! The topic of my latest zine is very much connected to San Francisco, and so my friend Carolee will have a limited number of copies available at her table. Do stop by!

If you, like me, will not be in SF this weekend, do not fret! I will make a blog post about my new zine with ordering info this coming Monday, also known as Labor Day, also known as a great day to lay on the couch and watch a Dirty Jobs and/or SVU marathon on tv.