Graphically Printed Material

'A Graphic Cosmogony' is being sold at my local comics shop Dave's, on Sydney Street in Brighton. I've been going there since I was 10 years old so it's a real blast to see a book with my work in it in the window and prominently displayed in store.

By way of crying out a joyful hurrah to the universe about my inclusion in GraCos I've made this screen print based on a panel from my contribution and the fine folks at Dave's have agreed to sell it for the Xmas period (£40 unframed).

If you are interested drop them a line, or even better go check out the store, it's a nice shop and very well stocked for back issues, graphic novels, mainstream or small press.

The Open Day Book

Ahoy there Seafarers,

Last year not long before my first born was born I was contacted by David P. Earle, an artist and all round good guy from The City fo Angels in the U.S. of A. He invited me to be part of a project he was working on entitled The Open Day Book. After describing the endeavour he asked if I would like to contribute a drawing, I said,

"Would I!"

Meaning, yes, I would.

Today that project has reach fulfilment. Here's the press release;

The Open Day Book serves as a perpetual calendar that can be used in a traditional manner, but also lets you interact with the work of more than 300 of today's most captivating artists, all of whom have visually responded to a day of the year.

The design of every dated page allows users to fill in their schedule or respond artistically to the work on the page, engaging with the artists and their work. The over 300 contributing artists have all created work especially for this book that is designed to be used as a daily journal, sketch book or admired as an art book.

Some of my favourite Artists have contributed images to this project, people such as C.F. Miranda July, Genevieve Castree (whose piece can be seen below), Jordan Crane, Anders Nilson, and Dash Shaw to name only a few few. Seriously the book is bursting with incredible work. 

Here's some pictures of it:

Note the amazing cover by David Earle himself. My work can be seen in the above image on the left hand page.

HuRrAh

The Comix Reader is in house people! 

That scholar and gentleman Richard Cowdry dropped them off at my gaff when I was at work today. I can hereby comfirm that it looks f**king awesome. Here's some pictures:

My work, on the left ably accompanied by the work of Kat Kon.

The comic is full to brimming with lots of brilliant stuff by the likes of Lawrence Elwick, Paul O'Connell, Steve Tilotson, Gareth Brookes, Hurk, Pete Lally and of course Rich Cowdry. 

I'll have a stack on my table at the Alternative Press Fair this Sunday, but I'm also flogging them here for £1ppp or $1.50ppp, just drop me an email.

Take care now and stay warm.

Cosmically AWESOME!

Hello!

A few months ago the lovely people at Nobrow invited me to contribute a piece to their anthology of stories based on creation myths. 

I was totally chuffed to pieces to be asked. Nobrow has been producing some of the sweetest comics and art books I've seen lately, their roster of artists features some of my favourite illustrators around at the moment. Basically, I'm really excited to be part of A Graphic Cosmogony. 

It's out now on the Nobrow site and has been showcased on Drawn! I can't wait to see the thing for myself! I mean just look at that cover!

Alternative Press Fair This Sunday

It's that time of year again, I'll be there with my friends, Dr Parsons and Sean Duffield. In my humble opinion this is the most fun fair, I'm looking forward to it and hope to see you there.

Nice poster, art by Martyn Warren.

Solipsistic Pop Three I Tells Yeh!

 My work has the honour of being included in the latest issue of Solipsistic Pop!

The book was launched last Friday at the Black Heart in Camden, and editor Tom Humberstone will be at Thought Bubble this weekend, if you're in the Leeds area be sure to pop by and say hi. I hear that lots of good stuff will be there, including the We Are Words and Pictures peeps, and Steve Tilotson and his Banal Pig, to name but a few.

Here's the link for the festival, www.thoughtbubblefestival.com.

And here's a detail from my contribution:

Here's to Dale

My website has been given a very kind write up by the lovely Dale Berning over at Bunt. 


Go check it out, it's a blog full to bursting with interesting links and well written observations and thoughts, as well as lots of kicking music and pictures. 


And here's a link to Dale's website, the online repository for her beautiful work:
Loup

New Website!

Hello there,


Cue the drum roll... Drrrrumm Drrrrumm Ten years in the making! It's claimed seven lives! Ladies and Gentlemen hold your breath! Dare not say a word! For the time has come! Yes! Dum Dum Dum... I have a brand spanking new website! 


And it's here: www.daniellocke.com

From Brighton to Marrakech and Back Again

Salome.

I've just got back from a residency in Marrakech. It was great fun. I met some really lovely folk and worked like a camel in the Western Sahara.

The residency was organized by the highly hospitable, generous and incredibly hard working Amy Smyth-Said and Saad-Eddine Said over at Terre Sans Frontiere (http://www.terresansfrontiere.org/).

I was working alongside a group of international artists and musicians in a communal residence and studio space. Over the course of seven or eight days we worked together to create a group show at the Remp'Art Gallery and a musical extravaganza at the Theatre Royal.

I can safely say that the group of people I found myself amongst are some of the nicest I've ever met, so although I missed my family terribly whilst there, I am compensated by the fact that I have made many new friends.

The exhibition we made is on until the 4th October, if you find yourself in Marrakech feel free to go and check it out.
















Here's a pic of the space on the private view night and a drawing from the piece I submitted.

Minneapolis is Absolutely Fabulous

Ahoy There Seafarers,

If you find yourself in the wonderful city of Minneapolis (the City of Lakes) then be sure to pop by at CO Exhibitions (located at 1101 Stinson Blvd at the corner of Broadway & Stinson) to check out the currant exhibition, Smell the Glove. Artist Michael Gaughan invited interpretations of Spinal Taps album art as described in the movie. Here a photo of my contribution (on the left) in situ.


















And here a link to Michael's site and an article about the show:

http://worldfamousdesignjunkies.com/album-art/smell-the-glove-a-hypothetical-album-cover-show/

Saint Martin of Tours

Open publication - Free publishing - More mental illness

Here's a digital version of the comic that I made for Islington Exhibits last month.

As a result of this project I was asked to make a few portraits of some of the folk that work and reside at St Martins. Here's one of those images, it's destined to be used as part of St Martins Annual report.

RIP Harvey Pekar

Big Bad Robert Roburts

Here's page 1 and 6 from a story I've been working on in my free time. It's tentatively titled 'The Malevolent Life of Big Bad Robert Roburts'.

Distro Mayhem in the Capital

Last Saturday I received the copies of my publication, all 2000 of them. It's a daunting thing to think of all those copies of my work out there! I spent the afternoon handing it out at the Highbury and Islington tube station. It was a funny experience, on the whole people took it without a so much as a word.

A few interested individuals asked what it was, and for more information about Islington Exhibits. The very first guy I offered it to replied that he didn't want it because he already had a copy! My friend Ellie pointed out that people like to have something to read when they sit on the train. It was so hot on Saturday that I worried they might equally have liked the idea of a free fan.

Scetkhbook sketchobko

Here's a couple of pages from the sketchbook I kept whilst on a residency for Islington Exhibits.

Tomorrow from 4pm-5pm I'll be standing outside Highbury and Islington tube station handing out the comic for the festival. Come, come say hello and I'll give you a copy.

Wow, Woha, Hold the Phone!

There's a new issue of l'Episode in town. It carries my story of supernatural discovery 'No Word of a Lie', the work of my close compadre Leon Sadler, an excellent strip by Lisa Lugrin & Clement Xavier, and the continuation of a really lovely piece by Manuel Clard. All this and a beautiful cover and little strip by Aidan Koch. Honestly folks this comic is great, I feel very proud to be a part of it. As I said in my last post I'll find out where to get hold of it online and let you know. Until then I have a few copies so if you're interested drop me a line.























In other news, here's a page from a piece I've been working myself into the ground for.
I'll be standing outside the Highbury and Isington tube station from 4pm next Saturday handing out copies of the whole thing for free as part of the Islington Exhibits festival (that is if all goes well regards the printing, I'll let you know if there are any further developments). It's twelve painted pages printed in tabloid format by the lovely folk at The Newspaper Club (www.newspaperclub.co.uk).

newsnewsnewsnewsnews

Hello friends,

I hope you're finding time to enjoy this amazing weather, indeed I hope the weather where you are is as amazing as here in Brighton, sunny Brighton you might say. Sadly I'm locked into deadline hell, so for the past three weeks and for the next ten days, I'll be doing nuthin' 'cept drawin'.

But at the end of this work imposed life amongst the shadows I look forward to stepping out, blinking into the bright sunlight. My only fear is that my white, white skin might dazzle drivers on the busy road by my house and cause chaos and death as yet unknown on British highways.

I thought I'd post a page from the publication I've been working so hard on. This comic is being produced as part of my residency for the Islington Exhibits festival at the end of this month. For a while now I've been working at a housing project called St Martins in London. St Martins is a provides care for people who are diagnosed with serious mental illness. During my time there I've been keeping a diary in my sketch book, an edited version of this will be published and distributed for free on the 26th of this month from 4pm outside Highbury and Islington tube station.























I'll also take this opportunity to let know that the lovely folk over at Avoid the Future have see fit to review my comic, Pneuma. Here's a link:

http://www.avoidthefuture.com/2010/06/review-pneuma-daniel-locke-self.html#more

And my strip 'Green Fireball' has been included in L'episode 2. In my humble opinion L'episode 1 was one of the most exciting anthologies I've read in a long time, number two is just as good. The book is published by Lisa Lugrin and Clement Xavier at NA in France. I'm unsure if it can be purchased online, I'll find out and let you know.

Arthur

Hello,

A strip I made at the end of last year called 'Spring '09' is currently being showcased over at the Arthur website:

www.arthurmag.com/contributors/comics/

There are many great articles and comics to check out besides my short story so go check it out my friends.

The Last Match

Hello there.

A while back the editor of that great anthology Kush! (the lastest issue is just brilliant, I highly recommend you check it out: www.komikss.lv) David Schilter asked me to take part in a exhibition he's curating, called The Last Match. The show is full of tiny drawings and paintings all made on especially provided bits of uniformly shaped card, and responding to the exhibitions title. Here's my contribution, a painting of a missing match for a button I've lost.























The show is soon to travel to travel to the Netherlands, Germany and Georgia. You can keep track of it's progress here:

thelastmatch.wordpress.com

SolPop2 Launch, Oh Do Say You'll Come.

To Bee Or Not To Bee

The Resonant Resident

Why, hello there,

As part of Islington Exhibits (www.islingtonexhibits.com) I have been given the opportunity to be Artist in Residence at the St. Martin Centre.

St Martins provides housing, support and care for adults who have mental health problems or are ex-offenders with support needs. My residency started two weeks ago and in that time I have been made very welcome by the lovely people I've met there. The residency is supported by Rowen Arts (www.therowanartsproject.com) and co-ordinated by Cubitt Education (www.cubittartists.org).

Over the next couple of months I'll be getting to know the people who live and work at St Martins and by collaborating with them and collecting their stories we will develop an art work that will be exhibited at the end of June this year; I'll keep you posted.

The above image is of a poster I made to advertise the first in a series of workshops I'm running as part of my residency.

Shoppe 'til Yee Droppe

The most excellent scholar and fine gentleman David Bailey over at Good Grief (Manchester) has seen fit to stock my comic Pneuma. My humble offering can be purchased both in person and online alongside the sterling and stirring work of artists selected from across the globe!

Here's David's blog address where he has been very kind in his description of my work:

www.goodgriefshop.blogspot.com

And here's the address to his shop:

www.goodgrief.bigcartel.com/product/pneuma-by-daniel-locke

And here's some photo's of my book:

Toot Toot

Hi there,

At the risk of blowing my own trumpet, I was excited to find that along with my friends Richard Cowdry, Peter Lally and Jimi Gerkin, I got a very kind review from Martin & Judith at the ‘Avoid The Future’ blog:

http://avoidthefuture.blogspot.com/2010/03/small-press-in-uk-our-favourite-comics.html#more

They brought one of the very last copies of a comic I made in 2005 called ‘10am’. It’s a work I produced about a month after deciding that my future, for good or bad was to be read in pictures and words and bound with staples. At the time I was working at a cafe called the Mock Turtle Teashop. I was charged with washing up and KP-ing.

On quiet moments in the pot-wash I'd make sketches and notes about the customers. The cafe was staffed by an amazing collection of people and the owners worked hard to generate a family feeling amongst us. It was a really lovely thing to be a part of, and although I often resented having to get up early and the repetitive nature of the work, looking back I can see I was a small part of a very special place.

Here's the first page of the comic I made in homage to it:

Hey, That's My Bear!

The above image of the Polar Bear in blue ink was chosen by the fine folk at the Guardian Guide to advertise the most excellent Alternative Press Fair yesterday. I made the drawing at the request of Jimi Gerkin, one of the organizers of the fair and he, in turn sent it out with his press release.

The fair itself was great. I was selling my wares along side Dr Parsons (www.crazycomicclub.co.uk) and Lucy Porter (www.myspace.com/lucyporter), two very fine cartoonists who both brought along new works that I'm sure can be purchased through their respective online contact portholes.

Here's to the guys that put the event on (www.alternativepress.org.uk) and to those that came and enjoyed it, Hurrah!

APF This Saturday

Hello Friends,

A very quick post to let you know about the Alternative Press Fair this Saturday. I'll be there sharing a table with the great Dr Parsons and selling my humble offering, Pneuma, (pictured below).

Spring the Hare

Hello, I hope you are well.

I thought I'd share this little strip I made in collaboration with Paul O'Connell of The Sound of Drowning. I made the images for this cartoon at least 2 years ago, they where part of an experiment in which I started drawing without having a script to work from.

I had hoped that the script would follow the images, in some others case's this worked out and I was left with a finished piece. But for this strip I just couldn't think of the words, it never got finished, and eventually I forgot all about it. I rediscovered it early last month while having a new year clean out of my studio. I handed it over to Paul and he worked his dark magic on it.

Originalno, Nepredvidivo... i sve bolje

Hello there,

I've made it into the Croatian Arts press. The magazine Zarez saw it fit to review Komikaze 8 and I got a mention. I'm not entirely sure what they thought of my work, as I don't read Croatian, but here's a Google translation of the end paragraph of the piece, my name in Croatian is Daniela Lockea, I like it:

"I pointed out comics Chiu Kwong Man, Daniel Locke, Davao Guedina and Craomana that disarms readers almost childlike charm and a bit morbid humor, obviously in the drawings even more than in writing. The starting point of all these comics have been moved, unexpected interpretations of banal everyday topics and situations that the original likovnoscu and consistent implementation of the author's worldview receive symbolic dimension. How is that from the very beginning one of the essential characteristics of those original comics Komikaze group members, it is not surprising that all these authors, it was domestic side, together with no problem and interact harmoniously complement."

The piece is titled 'Originalno, Nepredvidivo... i sve bolje', that apparently means something like, 'Originally, unpredictable ... and better', and I think thats a fairly good assessment of the the book myself.

Here's a link to the magazines site:
www.zarez.hr

And here's one to the anthology:
www.komikaze.hr

Hope you are all keeping warm, take care now.

Out With The Old (I say)!

Hello there and a very happy new year to you,

I hope that you had a fine festive season with merry making and the acquisition of a few more inches around the waist. Here's to 2009! I found it to be a good year. It was the year in which I welcomed my beautiful daughter into the world, made a brief appearance on a reality TV show, and continued to teach and draw and make things. If '09 was shitty for you, you have my condolences, don't worry I'm sure 2010 will be sterling and 2009 is dead and buried anyway!

Keeping with tradition I thought I'd begin this year by casting out the old in order that the new will find a roomy and spacious home here. To this end I've posted a selection of work I made when I considered myself to be a sculptor and installation artist (in fact I'm not sure I did ever think of myself in those terms, but I was wracked with self doubt back then so the terms will do in retrospect). First there are two videos, the first entitled 'A Puppet Being Spied On', the second, 'Ghost Story.' After those you will find an image documenting an inflatable sculpture called 'Sit Up, Don't Slouch', I made it for Paul Smith's Paris boutique in 2005 I think...