Tag: National Cartoonists Society

Art Classes, Art Entries, and Art Shows – What’s Coming Up!

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Hey, gang-

Hope you’re all warm, dry, and not sitting in the dark. It’s been a couple crazy days here in the mid-south with all the ice blowing through the area over Ground Hog’s Day this week, but the sun has finally returned and the weather is warming back up…for now. Lots of art stuff coming up, so let’s not waste any time getting to it…

Up first, do you have, or know, a child who would be interested in learning all the ins-and-outs of creating comics?
Martheus Antone Wade (Shinobi: Ninja Princess; Jetta: Tales of the Toshigawa) leads masterclasses for kids in just that topic !
The Comic Studio are classes that teach the art of comic book and manga illustration and storytelling. Prices are right for your kids, or for kids you know if you want to create a scholarship for them!  Click the link below and check it out…
https://outschool.com/classes/93f2f472-7e1b-4080-9407-92eab9b442b7?usid=UxLChPgg&utm_source=qr&utm_campaign=2021-oct
 
From MSCA member and NCS Membership Chairman, Greg Cravens:

The National Cartoonists Society has begun its annual call for entries for consideration for the NCS Divisional Reuben Awards recognizing excellence in professional cartooning for work published in 2022.

● The Divisional Reuben Awards recognize individuals for their artistic excellence in cartoon arts.
● You do not have to be a member of the NCS to enter.
● There is no fee for submissions.
● All submissions must complete the online entry form and comply with division requirements. If you are unable to submit via the online form, please email us at ncs@nationalcartoonists.com
● Only work FIRST published between the dates of January 1, 2022 and December 31, 2022 can be considered. Submitted work must be accompanied by verification of the date of first publication or it will be disqualified–see detailed instructions below.
● Entries should represent professional cartooning, as demonstrated by publication, syndication, production, or distribution through a professional organization via a platform or manner widely available and consumed by the general public such as Amazon. For example, art created solely for a card mailed to family or self-published for a school assignment or posted on social media for fun or done as a hobby should not be submitted.
● The NCS always encourages the exploration of new ways technology enables our members to create their work. We do, however, oppose the commercial use of AI-generated images that have been trained on copyrighted works, and will not allow any artificially-generated art to be submitted for any category of our awards.

Your submissions must completed by February 15, 2023 for consideration for one or more of the following Division Awards:
-Comic Book
-Book Illustration
-Online Comics: Long Form
-On-line Comics: Short Form
-Gag Cartoon
-Newspaper Strip
-Greeting Card
-Newspaper Panel
-Advertising/ Product Illustration
-Graphic Novel
-Variety Entertainment
-Magazine/Newspaper Illustration
-Editorial Cartoon
-Art for Animated Media

In the interest of ensuring that the NCS Divisional Reuben Awards are representative of the very best work produced in each category, entries are juried by members of our regional chapters or by specialty juries. The results of nominations from jurors are compiled and the top 3 nominees in each division will be posted for online voting by the entire NCS voting membership. Winners will be announced at the Reuben Awards, Fall 2023.

You  can find more info at:
www.nationalcartoonists.com/awards/guidelines/

Our MSCA art show, “Spamalittle: Knights Of The Drawing Table” next month at Germantown Community Theatre. The deadline for art will be at the next MSCA monthly dinner meet-up this coming Tuesday, February 7th from 6-8pm at Garibaldi’s Pizza in the U of M area. The art show will be in conjunction with GCT’s production of “Spamalot“, and we will have an opening reception on Friday, February 24th from 5:30-8:00pm in the lobby area of the theater.

Here are some of MSCA member Dale Martin‘s art for the show.

If you mised our latest drawing event, we’ll be doing more Sketchy Saturdays at 901 Comics East. The next one is Saturday, February 25th, and the following will be on March 25th. Both Sat-Art-Days will be from 10am-2pm and free/open to the public. They aren’t art classes, but a chance for local artists to get together and draw with others. You can either work on your own project, or experiment with some of the art materials on-hand.

We will also be doing more MSCA Drink-N-Draw nights on March 15th and May 17th from 6-8pm at 901 Comics East.

The comic shop has a bar, gaming area, and gallery room where we can drink and draw.

At the last Drink-N-Draw in January we had to deal with thunderstorms and a power outage, but that didn’t stop the artsits there from drawing- even in the dark! The events are free to attend, but if you’d like to order from the bar (local and domestic beer on tap and in cans- plus sodas, water, pizza or snacks) then bring a few bucks with ya.

One of the artists who participated in our Sketchy Saturday was Katie Jones. She shared her recent Mitsui Lecture Series online lecture with us and I hope you get an opportunity to see it and enjoy!

I wanted to share this with you and the group from the recent lecture I did with the Japan Society of TN if anyone wants to watch it. It’s about bringing Japanese culture in the classroom and I am the only artist and art teacher in the entire lecture and I talk about comics and anime if anyone is interested.

https://youtu.be/T7-boyZUmAs

The 2nd Midtown Con is coming up this April 8th at Black Lodge Video (near Crosstown Concourse).

Here’s some info on the first Memphis Libraries Comic Con on the first Saturday in May (Free Comic Book Day) at the main library on Poplar Avenue.

Hello, and I, hope all is well. 

My  name is Jody Callahan, and I’m a librarian at the Central Library here in Memphis. We have formed a committee to put on the first Memphis Libraries Comic Con, planned for May 6, 2023. We hope to make it a quality con, and to that end, we’ve gotten backing from our foundation. The plan right now is to offer tables to local artists and sellers to sell their wares. We expect to use the main library foyer as well as the meeting rooms. The tables would be free to artists and vendors. Those selling would have to donate 10 percent of the day’s proceeds to the Friends of The Library nonprofit charity (It’s a condition the library has set for commercial activity on the site).

We are hoping the Mid-South Cartoonists would be interested in joining us!

The event is free and open to the public. We already have members signed up to set up at the show, and I’ve heard the comic legend John Ostrander (writer- Suicide Squad, The Specter, Star Wars: Legacy, Grim Jack)…

…and comic creator and former MSCA member Mike Norton (Gravity, Spider-Man, Battlepug, The Rock Gods Of Jackson, Tennessee) will be there as guests. If you’re interested give Jody Callahan a yell at Jody(dot)Callahan(at)memphistn(dot)gov. Table space is limited and available on a  first come basis.

All the local comic shops in Memphis participate in FCBD and each have different ways they celebrate it including in-store guests, cosplayers, sales, contrests, free merch, and more. To find them or a comic retailer nearest to you check out the FCBD site’s Store Locator page- www.freecomicbookday.com/StoreLocator.

Hope you can make it out to join us at the dinner meet-up or any of the other upcoming events, like our next dinner meeting this Tuesday, February 7th from 6-8pm at Garibaldi’s Pizza on Walker Ave, near the U of M and Highland Strip- rignt across the street from Tiger Bookstore. Dinner meet-ups are free and open to the public, but like the Drink-N-Draw events, be sure to bring something to draw with and/or a few bucks to order off the menu. We meet in the big dining room on the right on the first Tuesday of each month.

Lin

“There once was a man named John Lotshaw.” – NCS Member And Friend Of The MSCA Has Passed Away

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Hey, gang-

Unfortunately this time I have some very sad news to pass along….MSCA prez Kevin Williams has informed me that longtime National Cartoonists Society member and friend of the MSCA , John Lotshaw, has passed away while visiting family in South Carolina for Thanksgiving.

John was a familiar face at the NCS events I got to attend, including the NCS’s Annual Rueben’s Awards meeting her at St. Jude, the Southeast Chapter of The National Cartoonists Society‘s meeting here at the U of M, and their meetings in Gainesville and Nashville. He could be seen working the A/V equipment and/or recording the events, and was a champion of cartooning and other cartoonists. His cartooning  collogues and friends in Atlanta had just given him a Bon Voyage sendoff party only days before his passing.

While looking at his Facebook page today, I realized John was 6 days younger than me. These days I may feel old and my grey hair makes me look old, but 56 is way too young to die.


The MSCA and SEC/NCS having dinner at The Rendezvous in Memphis, 2005.

 

From MSCA President, Kevin L. Williams–

I will always have a fond memory of John Lotshaw. He was fun and funny, and I enjoyed talking Peanuts with him. Not news I expected to see today, but I’m thankful to have made his acquaintance. 

 

From NCS Membership Chairman and former MSCA President, Greg Cravens–

John Lotshaw.
There once was a man who was diligent, educated, fun, silly, scattered, and knew about how to do the kinds of things that tied up the loose ends that cartoonists usually leave hanging.  His name was John.  His initials were JPL and that was good, since he wore a jacket that sported more NASA patches than you knew existed, and he could tell you all about all the missions they represented.  He gleefully created cartoons, and video, and printed books, and internet content- mostly for other cartoonists, and he rarely charged us enough for the value he created.  He also chased several projects ‘round and ‘round that cost him time and energy… just like most of us do, I guess.  But on top of that, he coded computers- lots of them.  He had a collection of computers that stretched back to Texas Instrument equipment his father insisted that John learn to code for before he’d be allowed to “play with it”.  John made other cartoonists’ projects sing and dance, and left himself very little time to make his own projects sing and dance.  A lot of us owe him a lot.

John built a career, which included plenty of television production early on- and he owned his own production company at one point.  He freelanced all kinds of projects to do with video and audio. He created a webcomic called ‘Accidental Centaurs’.  He published books under the business name ‘Moonbase Press’, and would happily help you to do the same if he thought you didn’t need him doing it all for you.  He was generous to a fault like that.

He lived in Atlanta (or at least in the insane sprawl that’s centered on Atlanta) and he knew more trivia about Star Trek, Science Fiction in general, and Television at large than people could keep up with.  He had just started (finally) dabbling in a stand-up comedy career, and that’s good.  His weight was the subject of some of his humor, and that’s to be expected.  His weight was also the subject of a lot of his friends’ concern about him.  But lately, we were worried because one of his beloved Shelty dogs had passed away, then his mother passed away, and then of course he had to deal with selling her house and getting all that in order.  On the other hand, he’d landed a regular job that played to his strengths, and even though he said it’d still leave him time to pursue all the projects his friends and clients needed him to pursue, we knew it’d give him a chance to let some of the more irritating small jobs slip past him now.  So things were looking up.  He was moving to a new town to do the kind of work he was trained to do best for a good yearly pay that was probably half of what he would be worth to the company- which is AT&T, in case you’re wondering.  

Yep.  There once was that man.  And now, just before he moved, and just before he began his new job, and just before he did a little more stand-up, and just before he volunteered to run AV for the National Cartoonists Society or it’s Southeastern Chapter again… he’s gone.  My friend has gone to where deadlines, and the vagaries of the business climate, and the Sisyphean uphill struggle of the cartooning industry are not an issue.  

He was John Lotshaw, and he made the world a better place for those of us who knew him. It would have been better still for us if he could have stayed longer.
Greg

 

From his sister, Ana–

Many of you have heard but others not of the unexpectedly passing of my brother John yesterday as he was spending the Thanksgiving holiday with me in Greenville SC. Thanks to everyone for your kind messages and calls during this very painful time, your thoughts, prayers and wonderful memories are comforting. Time can be cruel to end friendships deepening as we grew older and all the new chapters and experiences waiting for him just around the corner but, I know he is at peace in heaven and once gain reunited with our parents and family who have gone on before.

There are no specific arrangements as of yet but I will update this page when we work out a way to honor the life of my brother until then…

When NASA does something spectacular.. think of John
When you hear Star Trek trivia… think of John
When you pass the Varsity or your favorite BBQ.. think of John
When you see your favorite cartoon strip.. think of John
When you hear a wacky joke… think of John

John. I love and miss you more than you will ever know. Give Mom and Dad a big hug for me and don’t worry I will love and take good care of your Jessie.
Love ya- Ana

Accidental Centaurs’

On the worst Thursday ever, an experimental teleporter under development by Alex and Sam explodes, opening a wormhole that propels them into an alternate dimension and transforming them into creatures of legend. Then, things really start to get weird…

www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/accidental-centaurs/

www.amazon.com/John-Lotshaw/

 

John videoing cartoonist Mike Peters at the NSC dinner at St. Jude in Memphis, 2016.

John Lotshaw (back center) at the SEC/NCS fall meeting in Nashville, 2012.

Roy Doty (L) and John Lotshaw (R) in Memphis, 2005.

Godspeed, John.

 

 

www.nationalcartoonists.com

Dinner And Drawing – Our Latest MSCA Get Together At Garibaldi’s

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Hey, gang- we recently got together for our monthly dinner meet-up at Garibaldi’s Pizza over in the U of M area off Walker and Highland near Southern.

We had a good turnout again this month, and had a good time discussing what everyone has been u to lately and sharing some art.

 

 

More freebies were available for folks who attended. Kevin brought some more MSCA postcards, Jack Chapman brought some art books to give away, and I brought along some Free Comic Book Day comics from my day job at 901 Comics East, more MSCA sketchcard blanks, and a few of the promo trading cards (featuring my art) from the upcoming Nosferatu Series Two card set produced by 4 different publishers: RRParksCARDS, Attic Cards, Leg Day Cards, and RJF.

I’ll bring a few more freebies to the next meeting in October including the Nosferatu promo cards, and some new MANOS trading cards I just received in the mail.

Oh, don’t forget that  if you stop by any of our local Memphis area comic shops- Comics & Collectibles, The Cellar, and 901 Comics, or The Art Center you can snag some free MSCA and Drawing Funny podcast swag.

We discussed a lot of the recent events like the Zine Fest, and upcoming events like Monster Market, Memphis Comic Expo/DonnieCon, MidTownCon, annual NCS Fest/Reuben Awards, and the ongoing MSCA display at the Hernando Public Library.

annual

The Monster Market is an on-line store which features original art, prints, and other monstrous merch. There will be an in-person open house on October 1st at Marshall Arts. I’ll have some of my “Scared Silly” prints, canvases, buttons, stickers, magnets, and more available for sale there, as well as some of my hand drawn sketchcards. Dale Martin will also be a part of the artist line-up for this year’s market.

The Memphis Comic Expo (AKA “DonnieCon“) is back in the M-Town with over 70,000 square feet of expo space featuring comics, artists & writers, a cosplay contest, panels, vendors, voice actors, food, drinks, and more!

Agricenter International
(Entrance in Wing C)
7777 Walnut Grove Road (near Germantown Pkwy.)
Memphis, TN 38120
FREE PARKING on premise.

Expo Hours:
Saturday 10:00 am – 6:00 pm
Sunday 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
VIP Ticket holders will have early entry privileges at 9:30am both days.

Tickets are now on-sale, but VIP tickets have sold out.

Our own Greg Cravens is the Membership Chairman for the National Cartoonists Society and will be in attendance for the NCS’s annual meeting and awards. This year it’s being held in Kansas City, MO. If you’d like to find out more about becoming an NCS member, be sure to ask Greg about it, or check out the NCS website at www.nationalcartoonists.com.

When I got home from the MSCA dinner I had some NCS Icons pins waiting for me in my mailbox. You can order some here. I also recommend checking out the NCSFest online. Lots of great interview, panels, and other cartooning videos to check out.

And speaking of checking out some cartooning, the Hernando Library display cases are full of original art, printed comics and zines, newsletters, promotional materials. art show invitations, and more from the club’s 35 year existence in the Memphis area.

 

We showcased some production art and tools of the trade from back when art was literally cut and paste, like some examples of  our early logo and original promo flyer.

 

We tried to include some original art and notes next to the finished printed materials to show a peek of the  process of creating the art.

It was fun to be art archaeologists and MSCA historians as we dug though the club’s archive box and history scrapbooks. There was so much we had forgotten about or didn’t know about. Definitely a learning experience for Kevin and me. Soooooo much more we wanted to display, but just ran out of room.

 

We’ll see about adding in other items next time. We’d love to do a future  one  featuring original comic art and final printed pages/covers by MSCA members.

If you get a chance to stop by the library it will be up for the rest of September, and will be followed by a Ghostbusters display by the Memphis Ghostbusters. Oh, and for the holidays a LEGO display by Kevin Thorn is coming up in December..!If you can’t make it by, you can see more pics on the MSCA Facebook page, and a few more will be added as soon as I get the pics Kevin took while we were there.

First Regional Library (Hernando Public Library – established 1950)
370 W Commerce St
Hernando, MS 38632
www.firstregional.org

HOURS:
MONDAY  9:30-7:00
TUESDAY 9:30-7:00
WEDNESDAY 9:30-7:00
THURSDAY 9:30-7:00
FRIDAY 9:30-5:30
SATURDAY 9:30-5:00
SUNDAY CLOSED

The dinner meetings are casual and open to the public. Bring whatever art you’ve been working on, favorite art book/comic or recent art tool purchase to show, or some promo swag to hand out- and any art questions you may need answers to.

Please be sure to introduce yourself and let us know you’re there to hang out with the MSCA.

The room is reserved, but occasionally some folks don’t realize it and unintentionally join us.

 

 

This month there was some drawing done during dinner…go figure! There has been talk about trying to get back together to do more zines, and we will have another art show at the Germantown Community Theatre in spring 2033.

Dinner gatherings are always the first Tuesday of the month  starting at 6:30pm (or a bit earlier if you’d like) at Garibaldi’s Pizza, 3530 Walker Ave..Our next one is Tuesday, October 4th.

Feel free to bring a friend or family member, and be sure to bring a few bucks to order off the menu. You and your stomach will be glad you did- lots of great pasta, sandwiches, and pizza to choose from!

Hope you can make it out and join us for dinner…and some cartooning conversation.

Lin

Garibaldi’s Pizza

3530 Walker Ave
Memphis, TN 38111
(901) 327-6111
www.garibaldispizza.com

^Additional photos by Kevin L. Williams.

National News- NCSFEST & Reuben Awards

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From Greg Cravens (MSCA member and NCS Membership Chairman) and the National Cartoonists Society: SECNCS Annual Meeting Reminders…

Don’t forget the Annual Meeting, being held in Salisbury, NC on Saturday, August 28, 2021!

We’ll be gathering during the day on Friday, and head out for an informal dinner that night. Saturday morning, we’ll have our business meeting at 11:00am at the Waterworks Arts Center. All NCS members and SECNCS members are welcome to attend (I know you folks are in a gray area regarding membership right now, but we’ve extended memberships until things are settled with the NCS.)

At 1:00pm, we’ll have Eddie Pittman speak about his career and art. If you’re not familiar with Eddie’s work, you’re in for a real treat! Eddie’s had an amazing career, having worked for Disney Animation on features and television, and is the creator of the delightful series Red’s Planet. Of course, if you are familiar with Eddie, you already know how great this is going to be..

About 2:00pm, Marcus Hamilton will take us on a guided tour of the exhibit of his art at Waterworks. Marcus is, in addition to being an artist for Dennis The Menace, is an illustrator and fine artist of incredible talent and skill. You won’t be able to take this tour and not be inspired by his art. Plus, Marcus is one of the nicest folks in the whole NCS, so it’s a win-win!

We do have a special rate at the Salisbury, NC Hampton Inn of $129 a night. Reserve your room TODAY!

We will be having goodie bags for all members. If you’d like to have a premium related to your work or property, email John Lotshaw at chair(at)secncs(dot)org to make arrangements to have it included. Don’t delay! We need to finalize this.

Charity Auction

As is traditional, we’ll be having a silent art auction on Saturday. Proceeds from the auction will benefit the Chapter and the Waterworks Arts Center. If you’d like to have art included in the auction, email John Lotshaw at chair(at)secncs(dot) for details and arrangements.

75th Reuben Weekend

The 75th Annual Reuben Awards will be done virtually again this year. The NCS has just announced the on-line meeting, although at this writing, specifics are still forthcoming. The shenanigans will be October 15-17, so mark your calendar.

If you missed last year’s NCSFEST online, it’s back again…plus a bit more! ✏️

TWO GREAT COMICS FESTIVALS JOIN FORCES

October 15-17, 2021

NCSFEST & THE LAKES INTERNATIONAL COMIC ART

Streamin LIVE online @ NCSFEST.COM AND COMICARTFESTIVAL.COM

The NCS was born in 1946 when groups of cartoonists got together to entertain the troops. They found that they enjoyed each other’s company and decided to get together on a regular basis. Today, the NCS membership roster includes over 500 of the world’s major cartoonists, working in many branches of the profession.

 

Also in local art news- there’s an upcoming art show at the Memphis Botanic Garden.

Artists’ Link, formed in 1989, is a volunteer organization, a resource and support group for Memphis Area visual artists, and a link between artists and the community.

That’s all for this update…stay tooned!

Lin