I'm Late, I'm Late

Certainly, my intention was to maintain this blog on a daily basis. A move from Wilmington, Delaware to Lindenhurst, New York was stressful and time consuming. Last minute eureka obligations and the challenges of selling a house in this market have conspired to make blogging a lower priority.

We have been here for about 4 months, settling in fairly well. I am teaching a Farmingdale State College and Lisa is working at an interactive ad agency. There are still some struggles ahead: the house still hasn't sold and the market continues to decline.

But we are off into a new and exciting chapter of our lives with ambitious plans for our professional and personal lives. I'll be back more consistently soon.

Out of the Ordinary

Occasionally, all of us are called upon to create a piece that falls outside of our "style" or thematic approach. Sometimes that can be frustrating, other times great fun. In this case it was a pleasure working with The Archer Group in Wilmington, Delaware to create a poster for an IMAX movie called "Wild Ocean". Timing was tight and there were many decision makers, common on high visibility projects like this. The Archer Group was great, working very closely with me to create the image the client wanted. Is it a masterpiece? I doubt it, but it was gratifying to see the image at the prestigious Franklin Institute in Philadelphia where the movie was being shown on the Institute's terrific IMAX theatre. Above are two images: The top image the client-approved version and my preference below. Click on the images for details. 

Orphan Works Update from Delaware

I just received a response from Tom Carper, a Democratic Senator from Delaware (The other being Joe Biden) and I found myself confused as to what exactly he's saying. His description of the Bill sounds wrong to me and I can't, for the life of me, understand if he supports it or not.

You be the judge:

July 8, 2008


Dear Mr. Harris:

Thank you for contacting me to express your opposition to the Shawn Bentley Orphan Works Act of 2008. I appreciate hearing your views on this matter.

As you know, S. 2913, the Shawn Bentley Orphan Works Act of 2008, was introduced by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) on April 24, 2008. This bill would allow orphan works - art work whose copyright owner cannot be traced - to be exhibited if no copyright owner was found after an extensive search. This bill also contains provisions to protect copyright owners of orphaned works and allows for monetary compensation to be given should they later emerge. This bill was referred to the Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Companion legislation was also introduced in the House of Representatives and has been referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.

As you know, hundreds of creative works that may be protected by copyright are not being viewed because their owners are unknown. While interest in displaying such works exists, fear of copyright infringement fines have prevented these works from being displayed. The sponsors of the legislation contend S. 2913 would help potential users find the owners of the orphan works and facilitate a way for the owners to receive compensation for their works. Moreover, the public would be able to view many creative and artistic works that are valuable to our national heritage.

On the other hand, I have heard from some constituents, like you, who are concerned that the legislation would make it easier for others to replicate their work and produce it cheaply in factories for personal gain. Moreover, while those in opposition to the bill agree that they would have copyright protection, they contend that most artists would not be able to afford the court costs associated with proving the ownership of the piece.

I certainly understand your concerns with this legislation. Artistic fields are very competitive and I appreciate the time commitment involved in learning a new craft. Should I have an opportunity to consider the Orphan Works Act of 2008 before the full Senate, I will be sure to keep your views in mind.

Thank you for contacting me, I appreciate hearing your views on this matter. Please do not hesitate to contact me in the future about other matters of importance to you.

With best personal regards, I am


Sincerely,

Tom Carper
United States Senator

All I can say is "Duh…" while I drool on my new Society of Illustrators t-shirt.

ICON Conference: Garbage with a Few Gems?

Just got back from ICON 5 in everybody's favorite Gotham City. I love New York and got to spend some time with my daughter. All very nice. But ICON itself was a staggering (is that too hyperbolic?) disappointment to me.

One example:"What do Children's Book Editors Want?" breakout session. Apparently, the answer is nothing. The speaker was a fine speaker and gave a very earnest presentation: a visual survey of children's illustration over the last decade. That's fine and dandy, but the expectation was the session would focus more on the mechanics of submitting work for publication and getting work within the area of children's book publishing. Unfortunately, I don't think the speaker was informed of this. He WAS available for a book signing. (Humor me and imagine that as irony and not cynicism)

Many of the workshops I was anticipating as valuable and/or fun ended up as boring and/or useless (hang on -- I've got some good things to say.) The James Jean workshop was fine if you are a 22 year old fanboy, but the lack of real world interaction (we sat and watched him manipulate the layers in one of his images) contradicted the ICON promotional materials that promised hands-on work, with our own image, under Jean's direction. For some reason this didn't happen. Mr. Jean seemed like a fine young man and I am a huge admirer of his work. I don't need his autograph, however.

Those aren't all of the things that were lacking, but the conference did have highlights for me. "Graphic Novels Workshop: A Closer Look with James Sturm" was well worth the time. I am an admirer of Mr. Sturm's work and the demonstration of his working process and some anecdotes of his experiences were enlightening and entertaining. His presentation was not some form of self-promotion as many of the others were. I suggest that learning more about The Center for Cartoon Studies (www.cartoonstudies.org) is worth the time. And his book on Satchel Paige is an example of a smart and entertaining graphic novel.

"Tall Tales & Simple Stories: Great Storytelling" with Ronnie Del Carmen and Enrico Casarosa was terrific and inspiring. The use of group participation demonstrated the simple human need and instinct for storytelling -- and how we all have stories to tell. Note to other presenters--the audience loves to play--get them involved.

"Making Fire, Inspirational Teaching" with Marshall Arisman and Rudy Gutierrez was downright spiritual. Both a performance art and a lesson in teaching and learning, these two gentlemen provided me with one of the single real practical pieces of advice that I managed to squeeze out of the conference. My revelation is a bit ephemeral, but long story short, I interpreted their approach to teaching as a journey where both instructor and the student learn who they are and apply it to the work in a collaborative dance. This was a direct challenge to my previous teaching experience that focussed on technique and little else. Art with a personal component is poetry. Art as technique is merely marks on paper. The preponderance of teaching out there is about marks on paper.

I have some other criticisms (surprised?) but I'll keep them to myself at this point.

By the way, it appears that they sold quite a few books and the bookstore was by far the best organized aspect of the conference.

I can suggest (as many have) that July 4 is a ridiculous date for the conference (and I know full well that the organizers knew this and made the decision based on information I didn't have) but that doesn't make the decision any better.

Luckily, ICON only comes around periodically. It would take a couple of years for the pain of this year to pass.

My suggestion is to attend San Diego Comic Con. I think it's more relevant, informative and fun. And the toys are better.