Tuesday February 20, 2007
INTERVIEW
Sean McGahey
© Sean McGahey 2007
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Tuesday 20-Feb-2007 9:27
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RETORT
MAGAZINE ISSN 1445-7164 |
Online interview with Cartoonist/occasional hack Eric Reynolds
Cartoonist/occasional
hack Eric Reynolds’s illustrations have appeared in
The Stranger, The Comics Journal, The New York Times, The
New York Press, and elsewhere. He occasionally ‘inks’
(to use industry lingo) Peter Bagge’s work. He draws
comics once in awhile. He edits the Complete Crumb Comics,
Angry Youth Comics and Dirty Stories, among others, for
Fantagraphics Books and also serves as the company’s
official shill, doing publicity, sorting mail, taking out
garbage, etc.
Most
of the art available is commercial illustration work for
various papers and magazines, as well as a few Peter Bagge
originals inked by Reynolds and two 7-inch vinyl records
(cheap) and one minicomic (cheaper).
If
for some seriously bizarre reason no one knew about Fantagraphics,
how would you go about describing it?
I
meet people all the time who know nothing about Fantagraphics
and it’s always hard to describe, even after all these
years. I usually just tell people we publish comic books
and go from there, depending on what points of reference
I can determine someone might have to help get their head
around what Fanta is (Crumb, Ghost World, Peanuts, etc.).
But Fantagraphics is simply a publisher of fine cartooning,
whether it be in the form of contemporary graphic novels
that have more in common with literature than Spider-Man,
or classic comic strips like Peanuts, or groundbreaking
countercultural work like R. Crumb.
For
all those wanting to get into the comic scene, what advice
would you give them?
Make
comics, attend shows. Hell, you don’t even need to
make good comics to be “in the scene”.
What’s
it like working/inking for Peter Bagge? I’d imagine
you’d be under loads of pressure.
No,
not really. Maybe at first — I’d never really
inked anyone before Pete asked me except for maybe a few
little things. I’m not sure what to say it’s
like. Inking is inking, you just do it. Working with him
is great, though, he’s very easy to work with. He
knows what he wants and how to communicate what he wants
and he’s one of my best friends, so it’s always
been a very easy process. The deadlines can create pressure,
because I’m not used to working under them like he
is, so I have to usually kick myself into high gear when
I do stuff for him.
Have
you ever designed a record/CD cover? If no, which band would
you draw for? (If ever you get desperate you could draw
for my band - The Strangely Brown Experience….)
I’ve
designed a couple. A band called BELL that was around Seattle
in the late 1990s, as well as some of the Action Suits records
I put out with Bagge. All of the design for those singles
are some combination of myself and Pete. I did a lot off
rock posters in the 1990s but don’t so much any more,
I’ve kind of sworn off commercial art. If I did design
another one, it would probably have to be for The Strangely
Brown Experience or the Beatles.
Any
new up’n'coming artists we should know about?
Shameless
plug: Read MOME!
What
do you know about the UK indie comic scene? And do think
it’s a market/scene you’d want to break into?
(If not already)
I’ve
been to England a couple of times and know a handful of
folks in the scene. I like it. Not sure what else to say
about it but it’s always seemed to be thriving. England
always seems to be a little bit smarter than the U.S. I
like Lorna Miller a lot. Savage Pencil, too, when he does
anything. I know some great folks behind the scenes like
the guys at Gosh Comics, Page 45 and former Escape editor
Paul Gravett. There’s a lot of good, younger cartoonists
whose names I’m blanking on at the moment. There’s
an AMAZING young cartoonist named Will Sweeney who I just
discovered recently but he’s immediately become one
of my favorite cartoonists.
Do
you think we still have an underground scene or did that
die in the 70s or 80s?
Good
question. It still exists, but it’s a lot different
than what it meant in the 1960s, it’s not as politicized
or as transgressive. Underground cartoonists aren’t
as activistic as they were 40 years ago. I wonder if that
will change after a near-decade of George Bush and the Iraq
War.
So
what’s next for yourself and Fantagraphics?
More
books. I’ve got a lot on my plate these days…
COMPLETELY
RANDOM QUESTIONS FOR YA
What
5 personal items would you save from a burning building?
My
two cats, first. My laptop. And then probably some of my
original artwork collection, though it’s tough to
say what. Probably a Clowes or Los Bros page or two. Jeez,
I hope I never have to choose.
If
you could fight any celebrity dead or alive who’d
it be?
Stephen
Hawking, because I’m pretty sure I could take him.
If
you could only buy one of the following box sets - which
one would it be? The A Team, Knight Rider or Air Wolf.
The
A-Team. George Peppard!
If
you could meet any artist who would it be?
Probably
E.C. Segar or Charles Schulz. But I think I’d especially
like to hang with a early 20th Century cartoonist like Segar
in his prime, in the 1930s. That was a swingin’ time
for cartoonists. I have an irrational nostalgia for that
era, depression or no depression.
We
know they’re pretty damn good! Just look at what everyone
else is saying!
Fantagraphics
quotes:
“The
publishing company that cartoonists are thankful to for
perhaps starting this minor genre is Fantagraphics.”
Martin Arnold, New York Times, November 2, 2000
”
What we are doing is the literary equivalent of grunge rock.
We’re the grunge comics.” Larry Reid (of Fantagraphics),
Seattle P. I. June 1, 1992
“Fantagraphics
is the home of some of the best storytellers in the world
documenting a part of America pop culture for posterity.”
Tammy Watson, Stale Mate, Issue 1
“And
without Fantagraphics comics, I would be hard pressed to
think of an excuse to hide under my blanket with a flashlight
and eat frozen pizzas all night.” Tammy Watson, StaleMate,
Issue 1
“It’d
be difficult to find more challenging and entertaining rabble-rousers
amid the panorama of popular culture.” - The Village
Voice
“Fantagraphics
publishes the best comics in the world.” - Wired
LINKS
FANTAGRAPHICS
MOME
Eric
Reynolds Blog
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Think Forward - Answer Back |
RETORT
MAGAZINE ISSN 1445-7164 |
Sean
McGahey
© Sean McGahey 2007
