One of my older illustrations is now the cover of a new book by Dutch researcher, Lannie Ligthart.

Left my glasses on my book last night and then saw this.

Just got back from a couple weeks in Europe. I was in Sweden for the Swedish launch of Ojingogo at the Gothenburg Book Fair. The Swedish edition is published by Ordbilder Media and can be purchased online at the popular Science Fiction Bokhandeln which has stores in Stockholm, Malmo and Gothenburg.

I’ll post photos from the book fair shortly. Here are some sketches I did while on the trip. Many more after the jump…

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As usual, Chris and Peter and an army of volunteers put on a spectacularly organized show. It was really great meeting so many Ojingogo-readers and drawing in people’s books. Also, great catching up wtih Aaron Costain, John Martz, Zack Worton, Jillian and Mariko Tamaki, Jay Stephens and so many other amazing artists.

Ojingogo Won an Award

This is the Pigskin Peters Award – which I won at the Doug Wright Awards ceremony on Saturday. The award is beautiful – designed Seth himself – Brad Mackay has a longer description of the award on his blog. The hat hangs on a little peg on the plaque.

Photo by Peggy Burns from D&Q. More on her Flickr feed…

Chester Brown presented the award and said some ridiculously nice things. At one point I think I heard him say I was a “rock, solid cartoonist” and then everything went blurry…

First printing of Ojingogo is sold out… Second on the way.

I signed the last copy of the first print run of Ojingogo at the festival.

I’m going to make a few corrections to the pages from the first edition and send them out this week to the publisher. The second printing should be along in June.

Swedish Edition

I am also working to get updated cover design out for the Swedish edition of the book which will be published by Ordbilder Media and launched September 24 at the Goteborg Book Fair in Sweden.

Working only in red, black and white ink. Forces me to think about contrast and composition a lot more. Another reason why restrictions are good – they simplify for the creator and the viewer. And now when I walk down the street all I see are the different contrasts, patterns and striations in the houses and the trees.

Suddenly feels like the only thing that matters in illustration now is clarity, code and purpose. And then as if on cue, Jillian gets back to the basics today with an article about tonal studies, saying:

It’s one of those exercises, much like colour theory studies, that seem kind of stupid at the time but, as you get a little older and a little wiser, you eventually see the value in.

Also, I’ve been taken by the beautiful patterns in the handmade Indian book, The Nightlife of Trees.