The latest issue of Book Palace Books brilliant illustrators quarterly magazine – Issue 46 – is on sale now, and another terrific compendium of art in focus it is, too.
Mark Stafford, London Cartoon Museum’s cartoonist-in-residence, is interviewed this issue, a cartoonist/illustrator who emerged from the British small press scene to create and co-create a bunch of graphic novels: gothic adaptations, original horrors and tales of unease, generally located somewhere on the creepy/funny axis of the comics graph. His work includes Cherubs! (with Bryan Talbot), The Man Who Laughs, Lip Hook and The Bad Bad Place (with David Hine), and Salmonella Smorgasbord, a recent collection of solo works. The interview offers a great insight into his career and work to date.
Also interviewed this issue is American indie cartoonist (and this issue’s cover artist) Bob Fingerman, who Harvey Kurtzman discovered amongst his students and realised here was someone who actually knew how to draw. Fingerman has worked for just-about every major and minor comics and magazine publication in the US, and while artists like Dan Clowes and Peter Bagge achieved greater visibility, Fingerman’s work is of equal merit. (If you order this issue early, you can get your hands on a free limited edition print by Bob, while stocks last).
One of the best things about illustrators is discovering artists you may never have heard of and, to my shame, that’s certainly the case with Hans Kresse, although in my defence, it seems I’m not alone in being unaware of this great comic strip artist from The Netherlands. Although he was published all over the world, during the 1950s and 1960s, working through to the 1990s, it seems he remains little known outside of his home country, even though his work made it to British shores. It’s fascinating to learn more about him and his work, surely up there with Hal Foster and others in terms of style and quality.
More like a book than a magazine, illustrators is the art quarterly devoted to the finest illustration art ever published. With its unique blend of art and insight, it guides you through the stories behind the artists and their art, with features written by some of the leading authorities on this important art form.
As well as building into an indispensable reference library, illustrators gives readers an insight into the creative process, from the initial idea to the image potentially seen by millions.
Definitely a magazine you should be reading – and learning from! – illustrators 46 is on sale now.
• Check out a preview of illustrators 46 here | Order a copy of illustrators 46 here from Book Palace Books | Subscribe here
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John is the founder of downthetubes, launched in 1998. He is a comics and magazine editor, writer, and Press Officer for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He also runs Crucible Comic Press.
Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine and Overkill for Marvel UK, Babylon 5 Magazine, Star Trek Magazine, and its successor, Star Trek Explorer, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics; and has edited several comic collections and graphic novels, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”, and Hancock: The Lad Himself, by Stephen Walsh and Keith Page.
He’s the writer of comics such as Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs”, with Dave Hailwood.
Categories: British Comics, Comics, Creating Comics, downthetubes Comics News, downthetubes News, Other Worlds
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