Hey, this month I’ll be at the Latinx Comic Arts Festival in Modesto Ca at Modesto Jr College. At the event there are panels, workshops, lowriders, food, families, educators, and lots of vendors. The vendors make kids books, art, merch, and stories for all ages. See this LINK for more info.
These are a few fotos from two years ago. I grabbed a few from the LCAF Facebook and the last one is of my cousins who came to visit me-a big surprise.
Here’s a group shot of most of the participants last year.
Dig this? Check out some photos fromthe Latino Comix Expo which was held at the same location.
I nervously met Steenz while walking around the Toronto Comics & Arts Fest and their work is amazing. I believe they identify as both she and they but I’ll use they. Steenz is a comics writer, cartoonist, and editor from St. Louis (My Grandma’s hometown). Not only that but they teach it which is so freaking cool!
Hey folks, I’m going to be a virtual vendor at the third “Virtuous Con“. I’m excited to participate, check out the panels, and to interact with attendees. Once you register for this event you’ll be able to virtually interact with the different creators and vendors. More info and registration here.
What is this? Virtuous Con is a company created by Cerece Rennie Murphy that produces and hosts virtual events, as a vehicle for independent science fiction, fantasy, and comics creators to grow an audience for their work. Each event venue creates an authentic experience for attendees including virtual “booths” for vendors to interact live with attendees about their products and live panel rooms to interact in real-time discussions. Murphy created Virtuous Con out of a need to help many of her BIPOC creative colleagues and friends whose businesses were disproportionally impacted by the COVID-19 shutdowns.
Victoria Ying is an incredible artist and author from the LA area who I came across when she was working at Disney many years ago. I remember seeing a project she lead called “Extra Curricular Activities”. Then I saw her in the “Lovely” book with women working in animation. I have been a big fan ever since and I loved her books “City of Secrets” and “Meow”. Check out some of her beautiful paintings and drawings.
Yo, if you’re new: This is where I share artists that have been inspiring to me in my work sometimes directly and other times indirectly. Do yourself a favor and check out Victoria’s site here. There you can catch some of the amazing books she’s created such as “City of Secrets” and hear some interviews such as this one where she talks about her process for creating her graphic novel.
If you missed the last inspiring artist I posted, check out Ami Thompson or Elizabeth Catlett‘s work! And if you’re still looking for more inspiration peep inspiration board 41 I made because everybody gets stuck.
PS: Victoria teaches!! You can take a class she teaches on visual development here :)
Hey everyone its been awhile since I did one of these and I’m excited to share it. The aim of these is to inspire you, inspire artists, young readers, and more. Art books to me arebooks using visual art, photography, design, collage, and words to highlight a topic, art form, person, place, genre, discipline, or medium.
They are a great way to unplug when you’ve been staring at screens too long. They’re great for traveling, road trips, flights, etc. They’re great for getting inspired and they’re a great way to get young people reading; as long as its about a topic they LOVE. Please watch and share.
I discuss 13 books in the video including my own art book:
“The Art of Tekkenkinkreet / Black & White” – Shinji Kimura
“Supreme Glamour”- Mary Wilson
“The Art of Juanjo Guarnido” – Juanjo Guarnido
“Shelter in Place” – Avy Jetter
“Dinotopia” – James Gurney
“Painting The Streets-Oakland Uprising in the Time of Rebellion”- Nomadic Press
“Creations Vol. 1” – Derek Laufman
“Iguana Bay” – Claire Wendling
“Black Champions in Cycling” – Marlon Lee Moncrieffe
“Maestrapiece- San Francisco’s Monumental Feminist Mural” –Heyday Books
“Art of Rob” – Robert Liu-Trujillo
“Prince of Cats” – Ronald Wimberly
Dig this? Check out “My Favorite Art Books 2” the second video in this series. And if your local bookstore or library doesn’t have any of the art books you’re looking for, politely request them 🙂
If you’d like to purchase some of them I suggest ordering them from your local bookstore, Bookshop.org, or StuartNg Books in LA.
Yo, heres a snippet of a longer interview I did with Oakland Creates founder Avy Jetter! Stay tuned for the whole ting soon and come to the Oakland Creates Art, Comics, and Zine fests happening Dec 4th in Oakland Ca.
I’m excited to be one of many artists tabling at this year’s Oakland Creates show. It will be my first time attending but I have been hearing about the show through its creator Avy Jetter for many years. Starting several years ago, this show gives artists, artisans, comics & zine makers a way to showcase their work with the people of Oakland. Most of the creators are Oakland based and I’m excited to be there. Check out the drawing I did for this year’s merch.
Oakland Creates Art, Comics and Zine Fest began as a vision about bringing folks together through art and giving them an opportunity to present their best selves, learn how to make a living while both interacting and serving their community with positive action. A vision to help empower folks to learn about themselves and develop themselves in multiple areas of the lives whether it’s education, healing, leadership or fulfilling their own art vision.
Oakland Creates prioritizes women of color, Queer, Disabled, Black artists and or any underrepresented artists whether they be new or emerging artists just starting out or artists that just have not been given proper promotion or marketing. Oakland Creates holds space and gives opportunities to amazing creative folk who have something awesome to say to the world and our local community. Oakland Creates celebrates storytelling and positive engagement. Let’s keep the conversation going. Because if we don’t tell our own stories, then who will?
I came across Lorena Alvarez work with her graphic novel “Nightlights” in 2016. Ever since then I have been eagerly awaiting any new work from the Colombiana. Originally from Bogotá she studied there and here in the states.
One of the things I love most about her work besides its incredible sense of imagination, is her use of color. It is delicious to look at. Listen to this interview with her on the Children’s Book Podcast.
OK, thats some of her illustration work which is both digital and traditional. You can follow her on IG here. Her portfolio is here, and you can cop her comics Hicotea and Nightlights at most book stores. She’s worked on some other books too, but I don’t know them as well.
If you liked this check out some of the other ladies I’ve shared:
Fam, here’s a new published piece! “Time”. It’s 8 pages long and I completed it in a few days. It’s a mini comic and a zine of sorts. I started working on my first zine in 2007 and did quite a few until the early 2010’s which is when I started getting work as a kids book illustrator and self publishing my own kids books. I ‘m trying to strengthen my comics muscle so I decided to make this mini as I work on other comic shorts. Its much looser than I would even draw, but the goal was to finish it. Which I failed at before. And I got to debut it at TCAF (Toronto Comics and Arts Fest).
Its about a theoretical crush and is very nostalgic as I was thinking of the days of jr high and high school when I would get dressed hoping to sit next to my crush in class. Its a PG comic so most kids can read it.
Yo, several years ago I got to work on my first comics anthology for Jeff Yang and Keith Chow who were putting together “NEW FRONTIERS” -The Many Worlds of George Takei! I was recently reminded of it somehow and I forgot to post it. Jeff and Keith did the Secret Identities anthology which is a ground breaking book of Asian American comics artists. Check out some process art.
Looking at my piece now although I feel like I can do so much better, I’m glad for the opportunity to contribute to the book and to talk about being taken and forcefully separated from ones family as George Takei experienced during world war 2. This book came at a time when the forced separations of families was being expanded by both the Obama and the Trump administration. And I hope it serves as a way for young readers to understand the horrors and triumphs of it. Props to all the Japanese Americans who stood with Muslim and Latinx immigrants. Here’s my piece.
There are so many great artists in the book such as Ming Dolye, David Walker, Edgardo Miranda-Rodriguez, Cory Thomas, Ron Chan, Chris Visions, and so many more. Real talk, when this first dropped there were some accusations of sexual assault against George, so I paused as a lot of folks did. But I believe those charges have been proven to be false. I’m not a trekkie, but I’ve always appreciated George’s stance on family separations, using his platform to speak out against injustice, and for being a proud gay Asian man. And shout out to Keith and Jeff for giving me chance.
.jpg)
