My friend Jesse Reklaw just started curating the art shows at Guapo Comics and coffee on 6350 Foster road here in Portland. This first show is a presidents themed show and has contributions from over 25 local artists. There's an opening reception on Saturday the 31st of January from 7-10 pm. There will be things to eat and drink, art, and people to talk to. If you haven't been to Guapo, it's a great shop in a beautiful space, and run by a couple of the nicest folks in town.
http://www.guapocomicsandbooks.com/

Barry and Leon at Secret Acres asked me to make a cut-out paper mask to go with review copies of my book, so this is what I made. I've been meaning to make a bunch of copies for myself so I can give them to friends to wear. The text in the left hand corner says: cut along dotted lines and wear for good luck!

It made me really happy to come across this write-up by Mike Baehr on the Fantagraphics blog, not just because Fantagraphics puts out some of the best comics around, but because it's exciting to know that I officially pull off not coming across like a crazy person!

" Capacity by Theo Ellsworth (Secret Acres) - A warm, cleverly constructed, visually stunning tour through the artist's amazingly fertile creative imagination. Ellsworth synthesizes his mind-bogglingly detailed fantastical world-building with autobiography in a really natural and satisfying way without seeming like a crazy person, which is quite a feat."

Here are 3 places that you can get Capacity online:
-Secret acres
http://www.secretacres.com/store/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=52
-Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/Capacity-Theo-Ellsworth/dp/0979960924/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1225079163&sr=1-1
Lasp Gasp
http://www.lastgasp.com/d/34102/

Capacity, my first published book , has been out in the world for 3 1/2 months now. Here are a few reviews that have come out recently:

The Village Voice:
http://blogs.villagevoice.com/music/archives/2008/12/pulp_fictions_t.php
PopMatters:
http://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/69071-capacity/
Sean T. Collins:
http://www.alltooflat.com/about/personal/sean/2008/12/comics_time_capacity.html
Rob Clough:
http://highlowcomics.blogspot.com/2008/12/nesting-egg-capacity.html

The big 18x24" limited edition, signed and numbered poster I made to celebrate my first book being published is still available through my publisher, Secret Acres. It was a lot of fun to make.
http://www.secretacres.com/store/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=53

My good friend Sam Kulla and I got to hang out a lot over the holiday break and we ended up making 5 small interconnecting collaborative books. At some point I'd like to put them all together in a zine, but for now you can check them out on the site that Sam made for them: http://picasaweb.google.com/sam.kulla/OneThing#slideshow
We'll hopefully be doing some even more involved collaborations in the coming year.

I started putting huge pieces of paper on top of my drawing table to reduce the glare from my desk lamp. It turned out to be a great vehicle for getting the ink flowing in my pens, testing out colors, jotting down numbers and ideas, or doodling while I'm on the phone. Over time it begins to slowly fill with images. This is a small section of the one that's on my table right now.

It's already been a busy year so far:

1. I've left Pony Club Gallery to focus more on making comics and art. The gallery is still going strong though and has some exciting things in store for '09. I'll still be contributing to shows and selling work in their awesome loft store space! If you're in Portland, check out their First Thursday opening events! http://www.ponyclubgallery.com/

2. I just finished a 6 page art piece for an upcoming installment of Unicorn Mountain. It's and anthology of comics, art, writing, and music. This next volume is in full color and has a number of artists I really admire. I'm not completely sure when it's coming out yet, but the above image is a sneak peek at my contribution. http://www.unicornmountain.com/

3. I've been doing a monthly 1 page comic for a free comics newspaper in Washington DC called Bash Magazine. I'll probably eventually collect them all into a comic, but in the meantime, you can check out my contributions on their website: http://www.bashmagazine.com/

4. I'm very nearly done with 3 new pieces for the February show at Grass Hut Gallery here in Portland. The show is called Sasquachtenial and features some of my favorite local artists. The show opens Friday evening, Feb 6th. http://www.grasshutcorp.com/

Welcome! This is my very first attempt at being a blogger. I will use this space to show you pictures and tell you things on a regular/semi regular basis. The above photo is an installation piece I made for an art show called the Impossible picnic at The Pony Club Gallery back in Nov '08. It now lives above my kitchen cabinets and in my bedroom.