World Without Fish by Mark Kurlansky

Earlier this year, my first "children's" book was released by Workman Publishing. Mark Kurlansky, famed food writer and oceans expert, wrote World Without Fish for (and with) his 10 year-old daughter, Talia.

The book is written for kids aged 9-12, about ocean conservation. It's a very well-written book explaining a serious subject to kids, and what they can to do help counter-act overfishing, among other things, that are adversely affecting our environment.

This book was really fun to work on, partly because it brought back a lot of memories for me of going deep-sea fishing with my grandfather while growing up. We lived off the coast of Southern California, and would often take his boat, the Sea Lion, out towards Catalina Island to spend the weekend

fishing.

All in all, I did a front cover, an inside jacket cover, seven full-page illustrations, and 11 single-page comics chronicling the story of "Kram & Ailat," that introduce each chapter. Kram & Ailat was written by Mark, and adapted to comic form by me.

The book looks very beautiful, to which I credit the Design Director, Raquel Jaramillo. From day one, she had a real passion for this project, and her vision really paid off. Though there's been a lot of praise in the press for myself and for Mark, there's been almost none for her significant contribution.

If you have a kid in your life who's 9-12 that you think might be interested in science, the ocean, or sea life of any kind, you should consider getting him or her this book. LINK to Amazon

Thanks for reading,

Frank

Black Metal's "Wolves," Sam Weber's Nightmares, and an Open Studio

Black Metal's "Wolves"

A couple of weeks ago, art director (and illustrator extraordinaire) Jordan Awan from the New Yorker called to ask if I was interested in illustrating something for the music review about a subgenre of heavy metal music known as black metal.

The subjects of the review were to be two bands: Absu and Wolves. For the sketches, I focused two out of the three on Absu, as they are a lot more theatrical in their wardrobe than Wolves, who tend to be a little understated.

Jordan requested that I do the piece in

a style similar to my Dark Knight piece from a few years ago. It's always fun to play with media, so I was glad to oblige.

The end result is something a little more quiet and raw than a lot of work I've been doing recently, but I think it fits the band well.

Sam Weber's Nightmares

Last night, I was fortunate enough to have been a part of illustration sensation Sam Weber's WSVA Radio show, Your Dreams My Nightmares.

Every week on Your Dreams My Nightmares, Sam interviews someone connected to the creative arts industry. I had a great time talking about art school, teaching, abstract art, personal work, comics, Darth Vader, and finding your "style." It's definitely worth a listen. Check out the show Wednesdays at 8pm, and download past episodes here.

Open Studio and Artwalk

This Saturday and Sunday from 12-6pm, I'm opening my studio to the public as part of the Annual Gowanus Artist Studio Tour.

This year, there will be well over 130 artists opening their studios to the public within walking distance of my place. I'm going to be displaying a bunch of personal paintings and drawings that I've been working on over the past year.

If you're in the New York City/Brooklyn region, I'd love to have you stop by and see what I've been up to.

Thanks for reading,

Frank