Theo Ellsworth's Blog, page 85

Reading for Sparkplug

I'm going to be reading from one of my comics at the Waypost tonight at 3120 N. Williams in Portland, Oregon as part of a fundraiser event for Sparkplug Comics, to help them to continue publishing awesome comics after the passing of our good friend and Sparkplug founder, Dylan Williams. They're raising money to print the next few books that Dylan had already planned to put out, and they're all books I've been excited about ever since Dylan first told me he wanted to publish them. Sean Christensen, Julia Gfrorer, and Aron Nels Steinke are also reading. All of them are great cartoonists and I'm looking forwards to seeing what they're going to read tonight. The event goes from 7-10pm.

facing facebook with my face

My Wife finally convinced me to get a facebook account. The above werewolf child combed his hair to celebrate. Do you want to "like" me? http://www.facebook.com/TheoEllsworth

giant comics and secret books

The Understanding Monster is the comics series I've been quietly working on for quite awhile now. If all goes well, the first installment will come out in October. Finishing it on time is my ultimate art goal this year. This book begins a story I'm hoping to tell for a long time to come. Making this comic has been the weirdest and most exciting artistic process I've experienced by far. I've been pretty secretive about it so far, but as I get closer to finishing it, I'll probably start talking about it more.

This is one small panel from a page in the book depicting some room mutation. There's a lot of room mutation going on.
This is a book of stream-of-conscious drawings and writings I made leading up to Griffin's birth. He was actually born the day after I finished the last page. Filling this book was a valuable process for me, and I feel like it mentally prepared me to become a dad. I haven't really shown it to anyone. I should probably make it into a little publication at some point, when I have time.
This is the back cover. The mummy and the library will also be seen in The Understanding Monster.

one page spread from My Thesis on Multi-Dimensional Brain Travel.

Logic Storm is another stream-of-conscious drawing book I made while trying to get my head around some of the concepts I've been working with in The Understanding Monster. It's a "Thinking" book, and making it helped me figure out a lot of things that I couldn't have figured out just by thinking. It's weird, my first instinct when I finish something like this is to put it away and not show it to anyone, but I'm also trying to make a living with my art so I can keep making art all the time. My desire to share my art with the world and my weirdo reclusive side are constantly at odds. Secret Acres offered to put this out as a pamphlet comic, and I'd like to take them up on it. I'll probably make a new cover if I do.
This is a 12 page comic I made for an upcoming End Of The World themed anthology that's going to be published in English and Spanish. I decided to fold and staple my drawing paper and work on both sides of each page so that the original became an actual book. I made a color cover, mostly just for myself, but if I can get around to it, I'd like to make it in to a little handmade mini comic as well.

Thanks for looking.

doorstep arrivals

It's been feeling like progress is slow on all the projects I've been juggling, so it's nice to suddenly get a bunch of things in the mail to remind me that I've actually been up to a lot. I just recieved the awesome publication that went with the group show I was in at 12Mail Gallery in Paris, France and it includes a big fold-out print of oe of my pieces from the show.

I also just got a nice stack of Space Cadets stickers in the mail. I'm planning on including them with orders from my Etsy shop until they're gone.
The newest release from Space Cadets just arrived as well. ASC TMA-1!

I captured a well dressed bat spirit just long enough to ...

I captured a well dressed bat spirit just long enough to take this picture before he escaped.

Oak,Escapist

I've been on a drawing spree for Space Cadets lately. This is the next release for Oak I just finished. It was fun drawing an escape artist in space. I was especially in the mood to draw this one because I've been reading an early seventies Jack Kirby comic called Mister Miracle, about a costumed escape artist from another world and his midget assistant. Amazing stuff. Also, I've decided that I really love drawing asteroids.

Griffin Report:

This morning he woke up and told us a long involved story that we were unable to translate. He loves his buck-toothed dinosaur on wheels, his smiling octopus, and his elephant stuffed animals the best so far. He gets his mind blown when I read him Dr. Suess. He likes looking at lamps, and he thinks I'm hilarious. Photo by his Mom.

ASC, Nether, Space Cadets!

I've been loving doing all the art for the Space Cadets record label. It's basically been the perfect side job for me. The music is great and I get to have fun drawing space imagery. Their newest rerelease by ASC is 2001 Space Odyssey inspired so I decided to imagine the monolith appearing on an alien planet and the inhabitants reaction. This record is officially out now and I can't wait to get my copy in the mail.
I also just finished this upcoming one for Nether. I'm not sure when it's coming out but it should be within the next couple of months. When I asked Nether if he had any imagery in mind, he said he wanted an enchanted forest, the moon, and an oracle. I was only planning on drawing one moon, but things got out of control.
This is a drawing that's going to get made into a sticker soon. As soon as I get mine in the mail, I'll be giving them away and sneakily putting them around town.

I've been loving doing all the art for the Space Cadets ...

I've been loving doing all the art for the Space Cadets record label. It's basically been the perfect side job for me. The music is great and I get to have fun drawing space imagery. Their newest rerelease by ASC is 2001 Space Odyssey inspired so I decided to imagine the monolith appearing on an alien planet and the inhabitants reaction. This record is officially out now and I can't wait to get my copy in the mail.
I also just finished this upcoming one for Nether. I'm not sure when it's coming out but it should be within the next couple of months. When I asked Nether if he had any imagery in mind, he said he wanted an enchanted forest, the moon, and an oracle. I was only planning on drawing one moon, but things got out of control.
This is a drawing that's going to get made into a sticker soon. As soon as I get mine in the mail, I'll be giving them away and sneakily putting them around town.

Happy to see you

I just put up another new woodcut on my Etsy shop. I had an especially nice time making this little guy. He's just so happy! A huge thanks to everyone who's been supporting my shop: www.theoellsworth.etsy.com