This April is Portland Comics Month, highlighted by the Stumptown Comics Fest which takes place April 24-25. I will be moderating two panels at the fest and our First Thursday event features guests from each of those panels.
FLOATING WORLD COMICS PRESENTS:
STUMPTOWN – THE ART OF MATTHEW SOUTHWORTH
First up is Seattle artist, Matthew Southworth. He and writer, Greg Rucka, are the creators of Stumptown, a missing persons crime noir set in Portland, OR. At the Stumptown fest we will discuss the use of photo reference in comics and also discuss the recognizable Portland locales and details that have made it into the book. Here at Floating World we will exhibit a display of original artwork from the series. Matthew will also debut a series of new archival prints made especially for this gallery show, featuring the Chinatown neighborhood where Floating World Comics is located. Matthew will attend the April 1st opening to sign books and prints.
YOUNG LIONS – BOOK RELEASE WITH BLAISE LARMEE
The other panel I’m hosting focuses on the new breed of independent comics makers. I remember when Blaise Larmee came into the shop years ago asking about avant garde comics and experimental artwork. Since then it’s been a joy to watch his artwork grow and improve as he consistently released new publications every few months. In the past year he’s been published in Fantagraphics’ Abstract Comics anthology and our own Diamond Comics newspaper. We are very proud to present Blaise’s debut graphic novel, the Xeric award winner, Young Lions.
LISTING INFORMATION:
WHO: Matthew Southworth & Blaise Larmee
WHAT: Stumptown art exhibit and Young Lions book release
WHEN: Thursday, April 1st, 6-10pm
WHERE: Floating World Comics, 20 NW 5th Ave #101
Show is on display until April 25th.
BIO INFORMATION:
Matthew Southworth was born and raised in Nashville, Tennessee. Since then he’s lived in Louisville, Pittsburgh, Los Angeles and Seattle, and has made a feature film, written screenplays, led a band, studied playwriting/directing and managed an apartment building. He has worked for DC Comics, Marvel Comics, Image Comics and now Oni Press, which publishes his one true love, Stumptown.
Although Matthew lives in Seattle, he has made numerous trips to Portland to research locations and details to make the book as realistic as possible. Readers will recognize the St. John’s bridge, the Ringside Steakhouse on Burnside, Union Station, the downtown Stumptown Coffee, Legacy Emanuel Hospital, the Heathman Hotel and other Portland neighborhoods.
Matthew will also produce a series of limited edition giclee prints exclusively for this show, depicting the Old Town Chinatown neighborhood where our shop is located.
http://www.onipress.com/display.php?type=se&id=41
Blaise Larmee has been published in Fantagraphics’ Abstract Comics anthology and our very own Diamond Comics newspaper. He is also a co-founder of the comics/art discussion blog, Comets Comets (http://cometscomets.blogspot.com/). We are proud to present Blaise’s debut graphic novel, the Xeric award recipient, Young Lions.
This remarkable book tells the story of a conceptual art group that is looking to shake up their own status quo. They meet a potential new candidate at a party. A road trip follows, as well as rituals and experiments to see if she is what their group is looking for. Meanwhile, one member of the group receives a mysterious text message from Yoko Ono, containing possible advice from beyond the veil.
http://blaiselarmee.blogspot.com/
