Category — Ellen Events

The Philadelphia Public Library invited me to be a part of their citywide reading program in February, after they selected Absolutely True Diary as one of their featured books. Excited! I’ll be doing a talk and a couple of workshops, including at my old high school, Masterman. (What will the teachers look like now? Do I have to call them by their first names? Mrs. Brown, my 7th grade English teacher, emailed me – who knew her name is Mitzi?)

Comics: The Extraordinary Power of Words and Pictures
Presentation by Ellen Forney
Thursday, February 3, 1:00PM
Univ. of the Arts, CBS Auditorium
Philadelphia PA

Comics are enjoying a new respect as a compelling literary medium. Join Ellen Forney, creator of the art in this year’s One Book selection The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, as she enthuses about their quirky appeal in a presentation about both her solo projects and her work with the novel.

Comics Studio with Ellen Forney
Saturday, February 5, 2:00PM
Central Library
Philadelphia PA

Cartoonist Ellen Forney, a Philadelphia native and the mind behind the clever artwork in The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, will teach participants how to develop their own comic art. Please call 215-567-7710 to reserve a space.

14 y.o. Philly girl. Feathered hair!

I’m going to be giving a couple of talks at a couple of colleges next month: Northern Arizona University on October 6, and Virginia Wesleyan College on October 21. An honor and a kick! I’m finishing sculpting my PowerPoint talk, which I’m titling “Why Comics?” though my real inside-my-head title is “The Magic of Comics,” which I’m not using for obvious reasons.

My promo shot, which includes my drawing of Junior from The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian: Photo credit: Jacob Peter Fennell

I did several designs for custom tee shop B-bam (on Pike at B’way) and they’ll be on display for Blitz tomorrow. Please stop by!

I tend to tell my friends about this event in one big blurt:

“Did I tell you I’m on the Capitol Hill Chamber of Commerce now? Yes, and I’m the co-chair of the Arts and Entertainment Committee, and we took on the Capitol Hill art walk as our signature project. So now it’s every second Thursday, visual art and literary arts and music and performing arts, and for the launch on June 11 there’ll be an Art-on-a-Stick Parade and some street performers and at least one after-party. It’ll be fun, here’s a postcard, you should come!”

More information and a map (more than 40 participants!): www.blitzcapitolhill.com

Four of my “Big Fuckin’ Hands” paintings will be in the main gallery at Cornish College of the Arts until next month. (Yes really!) All of them are for sale except the “ass grab” one.

The distinguished faculty of the Design department presents new work, offering a look into the diverse talent of the Cornish community. Full-color catalogue available.

March 17 – April 8
Opening Reception: March 17, 5-8pm
(Their openings usually have wine and catered food!)

I’m a very spotty promoter. One day I will have an assistant who will act as my left brain, and will announce upcoming Ellen events comfortably in advance.

1. As of this morning, I’m officially a board member of the Capitol Hill Chamber of Commerce. (Hi Dani! See you there! Let’s do lunch! Call me!)

2. My Salon of Shame debut is next Tues., Dec. 2, 8pm. (Yay!) I’ll be reading from my super-secret 1978 summer camp diary, sharing insights into important things to pack (Body On Tap), notes on puberty (I had a few things in common with my bunkmate, Hillary), and tales of beating boys at arm-wrestling (”the little weaklings!”), all accompanied by drawings via their spankin’ new digital projector. As always, tickets are already sold out, but wait in the stand-by line and you’ll probably make it in.

3. Extra-curricular teaching activities: I’ve done a few comics workshops for teens recently, three for the Seattle Art Museum and one for the Seattle Girls School. I’ll also be teaching workshops for fifth-graders at Lakeside School next week, as I’ve done for the past four years. (Other teaching news: I just applied for and received funding from Cornish to attend the AWP Conference in February. I’m going to escape the dreary Seattle winter for a long weekend in… Chicago??)

Amy tries to make sense of my thumbnail sketches, and Angela checks out Erin’s drawings of Janet Jackson. (Teen Advisory Group at the Seattle Art Museum)

This is a totally belated post, but I would be remiss to let it just go by (like… a hat in the wind?).

The Seattle Public Library had comics events all over town through January, culminating in Comixtravaganza, a big event on January 26 at the Central Branch. I had the honor of being asked to be the keynote speaker, and I gave a talk in the enormous Microsoft auditorium. (That was a link to a Quicktime recording of the entire hour-long talk.) It was a blast.

Calling NY-ers and friends and loved ones! Please come, please spread the word!—

ELLEN FORNEY and MEGAN KELSO
Two Evenings of Multimedia Comics “Readings”

Cartoonists Ellen Forney and Megan Kelso celebrate the publication of their provocative comics anthologies I Love Led Zeppelin and The Squirrel Mother (Fantagraphics Books) with two evenings of irresistible, innovative performances.

Tuesday, January 9th at 7pm
The Strand Bookstore
828 Broadway (at 12th St.)
212-473-1452

Friday, January 12th at 8pm
Rocketship
208 Smith St. (in Brooklyn)
718-797-1348

Forney performs as narrator with animated video adaptations of selected comics, including “The Final Soundtrack,” a death fantasy involving blood, glamour, and Led Zeppelin, “How to Be a Fabulous Fag Hag,” based on an interview with Margaret Cho, and “My Date with Camille Paglia.” Kelso will discuss her new book, the acclaimed Squirrel Mother, showing panels from the book that were inspired by her own life.

The presentations will be followed by an interview by cartoonist and critic Austin English and an audience Q&A with both artists, followed by a book signing.

COMICS ROCK!
Ellen Forney and Peter Bagge
Saturday, December 16 at 6pm
FREE!

Please join us at the new Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery this Saturday for a special evening with the illustrious, entertaining cartoonists Peter Bagge and Ellen Forney. Ellen will be restaging her back-by-popular-demand multimedia performance based on the stories from her recent I Love Led Zeppelin collection, and Bagge will screen rarely seen animated shorts interspersed with tales of the glory days of grunge, which inspired the stories in Buddy Does Seattle. Also an excellent occasion to buy comics and art books as holiday presents!

Make this the first destination of your rollicking Saturday night!

Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery
1201 S. Vale St. in Georgetown
(Airport Way S. at S. Vale St., half a block north of the 9-Pound Hammer)
206-658-0110