nelson – rob davis, woodrow phoenix & various

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Pages by Kate Brown, Suzy Varty, Simone Lia, Simon Gane, Dan McDaid, Philippa Rice and Will Morris. There are also pages in Nelson by WJC, Duncan Fegredo, Rob Davis, Roger Langridge, Woodrow Phoenix, John McNaught (you know his work for Nobrow, right?), Luke Pearson, Sean Phillips, Philip Bond, Carol Swaine, Dave Taylor, Hunt Emerson, and many, many more (including many, many women) but you have to read the book to see those. And everyone’s work is damn good, making, in all, something very special.

With Nelson, there will be, like there is in UK comics, something for everybody. Not a compromise, not a design by committee, but far from that. The term ‘exquisite corpse’, used to describe a story made in relay, such as this is, had the right word all along. Exquisite.

Note on 07.11.11 (I’m just adding some more pages): These, in my opinion are non-spoilery images chosen to give an idea of the texture of Nelson, as much as anything. It is perhaps the best work yet of Kate Brown (this is just a taste) and I really like Simon Gane’s narrative work- it is so effortless to read, yet you find yourself sticking around to look more anyway. Half the artists, I had some familiarity with their work, half not. Nelson is a brilliant jumping on point for finding the work of an artist you love. And I’ll say this, as a person, Suzy Varty is brilliant- I will post the Juno this UK comics legend drew for me after the upcoming Thought Bubble festival, where all these artists (including Suzy) will be in attendance.

Thank you very much to Martin at Blank Slate for providing these images and to Kenny, Woodrow and Rob for being OK with me posting them. A couple of days on I’m still thinking about Nelson and know I’ll be reading it again. If you buy it, buy for durability, it is not a one time read.

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character design – simon gane

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pencil & ink – tony salmons

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All images linked to Tony Salmons’ new blog, where he is posting unseen work.

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thoughtbubble anthology – tula lotay & various

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The ThoughtBubble Anthology, from which the above pages are taken, is due out from Image Comics. The latter two pages are unlettered (you’ll have to buy the book to see what the story- by Rufus Hound and Tula Lotay after a Lovecraft story- is). The work is by some of the countries’ best creators, who will be in attendance at the Festival, as well as a cover by New York’s finest, Becky Cloonan, who we welcome back to Thought Bubble again this year. Links to ThoughtBubble’s own pages are found by clicking on the above images, as well as directions about how to get your own copy of the Anthology.

ThoughtBubble is perhaps the United Kingdom’s finest and most inclusive festival. Spanning a full week and culminating on the weekend of the 19th November in Leeds, the festival includes workshops for children, an academic conference and film screenings as well as a very substantial turnout by the best artists and writers in the comics industry, for the Saturday and Sunday, at the Saville Hall and the Royal Armouries. An offshoot of the Leeds film festival, Thought Bubble truly has the feel of a City festival and can provide opportunities and inspiration for anyone who turns up, whether familiar with the medium or not. If you live in the UK and have not been to a comic convention, but have an iota of interest, this might be a good place to start.

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black + white – travis charest

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casanova avaritia – matt fraction & gabriel ba

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pirates – gipi

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covers & interview – marcos martin

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(click on any of the 3 images immediately above to read the fantastic long interview that Michel Fiffe carried out with Marcos Martin, and see more artwork).

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quai d’orsay – christoph blain & abel lanzac

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seville – robert capa

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ink: rodd racer – toby cypress

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hellboy: the fury/ darkness calls – duncan fegredo

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