April 16: Ben Katchor in town - tomorrow!

Ben Katchor
Date:     Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Time:     7:00 PM
image     The first cartoonist to receive a MacArthur Fellowship reveals the ways urban planning and architecture influence and reflect cultural values in his new graphic narrative, Hand-Drying in America.
Here are window-ledge pillows designed expressly for people-watching and a forest of artificial trees for sufferers of hay fever. The Brotherhood of Immaculate Consumption deals with the matter of products that outlive their owners; high-visibility construction vests are marketed to lonely people as a method of getting noticed.

A master at twisting mundane commodities into surreal objects of social significance, Katchor reveals a world similar to our own—lives are defined by possessions, consumerism is a kind of spirituality—but also slightly, fabulously askew. This surrealist handbook for the rebuilding of society in the twenty-first century ensures that you will never look at a building, a bar of soap, or an ATM the same way.

Katchor is the author of The Cardboard Valise, The Jew of New York and Julius Knipl, Real Estate Photographer: The Beauty Supply District.

Admission:    

Tickets are $12 or receive 2 FREE tickets with the purchase of the book through Sixth & I ($30). Tickets and books can be purchased online or by calling TicketFly (877.987.6487). There is a $1.50 fee per ticket for phone orders. Doors open at 6:00 pm

March 29: Dueling comics events

On March 29 at Busboys and Poets (14th and V in Washington, D.C., 6:30-8:30) discussing 'Trickster' will be editor Matt Dembicki, contributing artists Michael Auger and Jacob Warrenfeltz, as well as Christopher Cardinale, illustrator of 'Mr. Mendoza's Paintbrush,' who will be talking about that book.

Also on March 29, Ben Katchor is at the Corcoran Gallery of Art. Here's their PR:

The Picture Stories of Ben Katchor
Tuesday, March 29
7 p.m.
Members $12; Public $15
Hailed by The New York Times as "the most poetic, deeply layered artist ever to draw a comic strip," Ben Katchor has collected both a cult and mainstream following for his wry, perceptive, and slightly surreal comic strips of urban life. The author of The Jew of New York and Julius Knipl, Real Estate Photographer: The Beauty Supply District, Katchor's work has appeared in The New Yorker, The Forward, and Metropolis. The first cartoonist to receive a MacArthur Fellowship, Ben Katchor discusses his first book in more than 10 years, The Cardboard Valise (Random House, 2011)- the whimsical graphic novel which follows the intertwined lives of three characters who travel to the fantastical nation of Outer Canthus. A book signing follows the talk.

March 29: Ben Katchor at the Corcoran

 Courtesy of Warren Bernard -

Ben Katchor is speaking at the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Tuesday, March 29 at 7 p.m., $15.

http://programs.corcoran.org/products/the-picture-stories-of-ben-katchor

It's been years since I saw him - at Politics and Prose? - but I recall him being a good speaker so I'll be going to this.

Small Press Expo Announces Ben Katchor As A Guest For SPX 2008

For Immediate Release

Contact: Warren Bernard
Phone: 301-537-4615
E-Mail: webernard@spxpo.com

Bethesda, Maryland; September 4, 2008 - The Small Press Expo (SPX), the preeminent showcase for the exhibition of independent comic books, graphic novels and alternative political cartoons, is proud to announce Ben Katchor as a guest for SPX 2008.

Fresh from his appearance at the international comics exposition, Stripdaagen, held in Haarlem, The Netherlands, Mr. Katchor is making his first appearance at SPX. Mr. Katchor is known for his books "Julius Knippel, Real Estate Photographer", "The Jew Of New York", and "Beauty The Supply District". He is a contributor of comics to both The New Yorker and the New York Times, and has a regular strip that is printed in Metropolitan Magazine. Mr. Katchor has turned his talents to the stage, writing the libretto and creating the backgrounds for the plays "The Slug Bearers of Kayrol Island" and "The Rosenbach Company".

SPX is proud to add Ben Katchor to the other guests appearing at this years SPX, Joost Swarte, Bryan Lee O'Malley, Hope Larson, Tom Tomorrow and Lloyd Dangle.

Additional guests will be added over the next few weeks, please stay tuned for those announcements.

This year, SPX will be held Saturday, October 4 from 11AM to 7PM and Sunday, October 5 noon-6PM at The North Bethesda Marriott Convention Center in Bethesda, Maryland. Admission is $8 for a single day and $15 for both days.

For further information on the artists or to request an interview, please contact Warren Bernard at webernard@spxpo.com.

SPX, a non-profit organization, brings together more than 300 artists and publishers to meet their readers, booksellers and distributors each year. Graphic novels, political cartoon books and alternative comics will all be on display and for sale by their authors and illustrators. A series of panel discussions will also be held of interest to readers, academicians and creators of graphic novels and political cartoons.

SPX culminates with the presentation of the 12th Annual Ignatz Awards for outstanding achievement in comics and cartooning that will occur Saturday night, October 4. The Ignatz is the first Festival Prize in the US comic book industry, with winners chosen by balloting during the SPX.

As in previous years, all profits from the SPX will go to support the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund (CBLDF), protecting the First Amendment rights of comic book readers and professionals. For more information on the CBLDF, go to their website at http://www.cbldf.org/.

Founded in 1994, SPX is North America's premier alternative comic-book and graphic novel festival. This annual event brings together comic creators, publishers and fans together to celebrate the art of visual storytelling.

Post reviewed Katchor play

Missed this yesterday, but the play's in New York anyway - "'Slug Bearers,' a Musical That Breaks the Mold" By Peter Marks, Washington Post Staff Writer, Thursday, March 6, 2008; C01.