Ellen Forney » Pet Projects

Cartoonist Retreat #2

Ellen — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 02:39:28 +0000

I just got back from my week-plus retreat on Bainbridge Island and AH! It was awesome! I thumbnailed several chapters of my book (though I haven’t sent them to my editor yet – hi, Chris!) and came up with a much, much better outline. I also moved from feeling overwhelmed and intimidated to feeling excited and am actually enjoying myself – a huge leap. I’m aiming to have the proposal done by the end of February, which, to my great relief, looks like a very attainable goal.

Me toiling in my yurtlet at Sacred Groves, where I did a retreat last June.

I’d also like to take this opportunity to thank Jamie Vann, the most awesomest research assistant I could possibly hope for.

Crabsitter: She’s Back!

Ellen — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 19:02:21 +0000

I’m taking care of Kelly and Holly’s hermit crabs while they are off drinking hot cocoa with their families. The crabs and me, though? We know how to have fun.

CRABSITTER II is the sequel to CRABSITTER (and its spinoff cult favorite, Vincent Attacks). iMovie rocks. It makes me want to films things just so I can add a monkey screeching or an arc of fairy dust (CRABSITTER II has both of these).

This Week’s Stranger Cover

Ellen — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 08:39:00 +0000

It’s always fun to do a Stranger cover because for a week, I get to see my work everywhere: strewn in cafes, tucked under arms, crumpled in the gutter. I didn’t think the art director would let me do another cover so soon (my last one was in September) but I guess I made a good case for it. (As I recall, it was something along the lines of “Pleeeease??!”)

“Triangle Choke, or Ballard Brazillian Jiu-Jitsu Alliterates Artfully” (an admittedly tortured shout-out to my school, Ballard BJJ. “Alliterates Artfully” -??)

A few people have asked how many covers I’ve done. My first was in 1993 – it was also my first paid job as an illustrator – but after that I wasn’t sure. So I decided to go through my archives, and rounded up nine. I’m pretty sure I got all of them, but by “my archives” I mean a variety of ripped folders, overstuffed envelopes, and plastic sleeves. Back in the creaky ol’ mid-nineties I still used to hand in my originals, and in a fit of organizational pique several years ago I threw out my yellowing copies of the newspapers. (Geeks: remember cutting rubylith?)

Here’s what I have, starting with the most recent:

September, 2008. This is my mouth.

July, 2007. “Two Fingers” is a painting in my “Big Fuckin’ Hands” series.

February, 2003. This image is also the cover for Best Erotic Comics 2008 (Last Gasp), which, interestingly, is featured on BoingBoing right now.

March, 1998. I could only find the artwork for this one. (I remember drawing it around the time of my 30th birthday, though. International Women’s Day = my birthday, March 8.)

April, 1997, collaboration with Shawn Wolfe. I did a drawing of my friend Gwen holding an object (I had her hold a sleeping bag, then removed the sleeping bag and had her hold the pose) and Shawn did the rest.

November, 1996. This was also a t-shirt.

March, 1996. Another International Women’s Day cover. (Note that the usually-phallic rockets look like breasts. Thank you, you’re welcome.)

November, 1995. Eleni (on the right) made that corset.

March, 1995. The newspaper was going through a redesign so the theme was “change.”

July, 1993. I did this when the Stranger was still based on the top floor of a house in Wallingford, which makes me one of the o-o-old timers.

Rosebud Robert’s Calico Cat

Ellen — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 17:39:30 +0000

My newest commission was a portrait of the dearly departed cat of Robert Sondheim, co-owner of Rosebud. Erica kept him company for twenty years (!!) and he still keeps her two favorite toys where she left them on the floor. (Picks them up to vacuum. Puts them back.)

He asked me to draw her on a Persian rug, and to include a tiny bit of turquoise (to match his decor). Interestingly, he only had three photos of her, and I needed more for reference, so I asked him to find some other cats online that reminded him of her (the one on the far right is “Ingrid”):

He loved it and said the portrait looks just like her (whew!).

Mo’ Jiu-Jitsu Drawings

Ellen — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 21:41:27 +0000

My “triangle choke” Stranger cover will appear in a few weeks – serious! In the meanwhile, more sketches…

Darren pointed out that there is a big BJJ gathering in a couple of weeks. (Hopefully my Stranger cover will coincide with that!) A few world champions will be there, including Fabiana Borges, and he suggested I look her up. (Actually, I’d asked if she has an awesome Brazilian accent and he directed me to an entrevista (interview) but I watched a couple of her bouts, too.)

She uses the same technique in both videos: leaps at her opponent and gets in full guard, and works her legs up to a choke. Expedient! Both times it took her about a minute.

Free Badass Wallpaper!

Ellen — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 08:11:47 +0000

These days, whenever someone asks me what’s new, I blurt, “I just started taking Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu!” and I usually wind up on the floor trying to demonstrate some move. BJJ is a lot like wrestling, like a constantly changing human puzzle. SO COOL. Interestingly, I’m finding that drawing has helped me figure out some of the positions.

Here’s a triangle choke:

I liked this one so I inked and colored it, and I’ve been using it as my wallpaper. Then I figured I’d make a few different sizes and post them just for you, and here you are! Free BJJ wallpaper, of various sizes, including for your iPhone. Who loves ya?!

Click on the thumbnail to download (and Ma, you’ll need to drag it onto your desktop!):

1680 x 1050:

1280 x 1024:

1280 x 960:

iPhone:

Respectful bows to Ballard BJJ, my teachers Micah and Darren, Slidey, and their teachers, and their teachers’ teachers.