A High-Low Look at my Comix Work

At this point it's fair the say that Rob Clough is the foremost writer on art comics. Under that general term, I group comics that are produced for the love of the medium, using it as a means of artistic expression (as opposed to a commercial genre vehicle.) Mr. Clough maintains his own on comics, High-Low, and also writes for the the Comics Journal.

Not only is Rob prolific, but he is enthusiastic, with a stunning, over-arching intellectual and intuitive command of his field. He is not only familiar with a huge body of books and artists, he diligently tracks new and emerging talent. He has the smarts to connect the dots and make articulate assessments of how a book works (or not) on it's own terms, but he also places it within the ongoing world of comics in particular and overall culture in general.

I was happily surprised this week to check in on Rob's comics review blog high-low to find reprinted reviews of my work in his ongoing Sequart Reprints series. Here are links:

Reviews of Bughouse Graphic Novels

Reviews of Tranny and 40 Hour Man

Rob closes his review of Bughouse,  my signature graphic novel series, asking if I will ever portray the main character, Jimmy Watts, as a mature adult who has worked through his demons. Could be, but in the meanwhile I offer this classic Scott Hoover photo of me from the early 90s. Why did I write about addiction in Bughouse? This photo offers a clue.

In all fairness, I should mention that I consider Rob a friend. He does like my work! We've only met in person a few times at SPX, but we are in semi-regular contact to our mutual enjoyment.

Finally, time for the brazen sales effort! Here is a link to the current Steve Lafler graphic novel catalog.

Steve Lafler photo by Scott Hoover.

Humberto Batista at Polanco Gallery in San Francisco July 26

Contemporary Oaxacan artist Humberto Batista shows painted collages at San Francisco's Polanco gallery from July 26 to August 30. The show opens July 26, 6 - 9 pm, at 393 Hayes St., San Francsico.

The works feature images from a variety of sources--ancient to classic images of Latin American architecture and culture, seamlessly combined with painted elements. Batista's sense of composition is dead on, drawing the eye into each work. His sure hand with the paint brush and luminous use of color create compelling dreamscapes. The viewer feels as if they're in a world they almost know, or perhaps yearned for, that is just beyond their grasp.

I've been fortunate to visit Humberto in his studio to view these singular works, take my word for it, they are spectacular. I don't have access to the collage images right now, so I'm doing the next best thing and putting some images of the artist's assemblage work into this post.

Photos: Mari Seder

The Complete Dog Boy is Here!

My long standing dream of publishing all of my Dog Boy comics in one volume comes true today!

Doggie Style: The Complete Dog Boy is a monster 488 page volume from publisher CO2 collecting my seminal indy/alt comix title. It's a deluxe oversized (8.5 x 11) volume packed with the preposterous antics of Dog Boy.

The best way to get your copy is to visit my Kickstarter page for Doggie Style and select the book at $38 (includes shipping and an original sketch on the title page.)

Click here to visit the Doggie Style Kickstarter.

You are also invited to the Doggie Style publishing bash at the Mercury Cafe (201 Octavia St., San Francisco) Thursday, July 25th at 7:00 p.m.

We'll kick things off with a performance by The Dick Nixon Experience. This will be Oaxacabilly music at it's finest with Scotty Hoover, Dave Cherry, Doyle Stewart, Jon Caploe, Jeff Hobbs and myself.

I'll have both paperback and hard cover editions of Doggie Style on hand. We are going to have a wicked good time!

Above is the cover of Dog Boy #10 from 1988. This image is reproduced in luminous blue ink on a black T-Shirt, one of the many rewards available at the Doggie Style Kickstarter project.