Flesk Publications News and Updates
The new Flesk Publications website is ready. It will go live on September 4th. You can take a look at it here: http://fleskpublications.com/flesksite/
The new ordering cart is functioning and usable. Anyone who places an order using the new site between now and September 1st will get 20% off on their purchase by using the following coupon code: fp20
Enjoy,
John
John Fleskes
Flesk Publications
text and photos copyright © 2012 John Fleskes. All rights reserved.
I have just pushed the Kickstarter “Launch” button on our exciting new Flesk project, The Art of Brom!
Soon the press release for Flesk’s upcoming The Art of Brom Kickstarter campaign will be plastered all over the internet at large; hopefully spreading to the eyes, hearts and minds of discerning art appreciators across the planet.
There are several incentives laid out in the Kickstarter campaign that are limited as to the number of people that can take advantage of them.
The incentives for getting The Art of Brom through the Kickstarter campaign include:
We are hugely excited about this book, and about the Kickstarter campaign. For those unfamiliar with Brom or Kickstarter, all is illuminated on the The Art of Brom Kickstarter site itself here.
Enjoy,
John
John Fleskes
Flesk Publications
text and photos copyright © 2012 John Fleskes. All rights reserved.
Links:
The Art of Brom Kickstarter Event
Brom website
Brom Facebook page
Flesk Publications Facebook page
There are three new Flesk titles coming out in November 2012. The Jim Silke Sketchbook, James Bama: Personal Works and Naughty and Nice: The Good Girl Art of Bruce Timm Big Pocket Edition. I’m doing a three-part blog today to share the details.
Naughty and Nice: The Good Girl Art of Bruce Timm Big Pocket Edition is a 256 page, 7.5 x 10 inch, paperback book. The cover price is $29.95.
In a nutshell this is a more compact version of the big Naughty and Nice book at a modest price. The latest printing of the Naughty and Nice book has sold out (I have some left for direct sales that you can get from our website. My book distributor and Diamond has been out of them for a while). I decided that instead of going back to press on the big book that I would repackage the book into a version that would be more affordable to a larger audience. I shrunk the size down from 9 x 12 inches to 7.5 x 10 inches, and cut the page count from 304 pages to 256 pages. The 48 pages removed are of the superhero section (pages 228-271) and the two spreads pages 84/ and 294/295. By trimming the page count, reducing the size and not having to pay the superhero permissions fee I could drastically reduce the cover price. My hope is that this new Big Pocket Edition will be able to get into the hands of a whole new audience. Those who purchased the first edition, with the larger dimensions and page count, will be stoked on having been able to get the large version when they had the chance and should not feel cheated.
I’m very excited about this new format. I like the feel and size of it. It’s easy to hold and enjoy. I used the exact same paper for the printing as the first edition, so you still get the same high grade paper quality. It will still be a hefty collection, but again, at a killer price.
Bruce was kind enough to provide a new cover and Jim Steranko has continued to allow us to use his most enjoyable introduction.
Here’s the new book publicity description:
For those who prefer a more compact format, Flesk is pleased to introduce the Naughty and Nice Big Pocket Edition. This stylish new presentation preserves the aspect ratio of the original Naughty and Nice in a volume made even more conducive to curling up with a good book. The new format also affords the Big Pocket Edition the luxury of a modest price, that it may find its way more readily into the hands of the discerning Everyman.
In a radical departure from his previous work on animated films and comics featuring superheroes, Naughty and Nice: The Good Girl Art of Bruce Timm showcases hundreds of full-color, line and pencil images of partially clothed and nude women of almost every conceivable description and temperament.
Be it a sophisticated city gal or a savage jungle queen, a hard-boiled dame or a quietly smoldering sorceress, Timm explores the female form with absolute creative freedom, and pure personal expression is the result. The artist has granted Flesk Publications unprecedented access to his archives to provide the best representation of his private works. These rarely seen images span the last 15 years and are showcased in a single collection for the first time.
I’ll post some previews and have the book available for pre-order on our website very soon.
Enjoy,
John
John Fleskes
Flesk Publications
text and photos copyright © 2012 John Fleskes. All rights reserved. Artwork copyright © 2012 Bruce Timm. All Rights Reserved.
There are three new Flesk titles coming out in November 2012. The Jim Silke Sketchbook, James Bama: Personal Works and Naughty and Nice: The Good Girl Art of Bruce Timm Big Pocket Edition. I’m doing a three-part blog today to share the details.
James Bama: Personal Works is a 144-page, 9 x 12 inch, hardcover book with jacket. The cover price is $45.00.
Originally this was going to be a 112 page book, and then I bumped it up to 128 pages. During the final week of production it finished at 144 pages. Two things happened that made this book expand by 32 pages.
The first reason was my essay–which was originally planned on being around one or two thousand words–finishing at just over 7600 words. I’m generally not a wordy guy and have never written something of this length before. But what I came to realize is that due to my close friendship with Jim Bama and from how often we talk, that I have heard quite a number of stories from him that I felt needed to be shared. As I talked with Jim more about this book and the paintings included, I discovered there was a good story worth telling. With Jim’s permission to share, I began writing. Over the course of a month of writing and talking to Jim I sent him what I came up with. He clarified a couple of factual details, expanded on another topic, and with a few slight adjustments I had a finished piece approved by Jim. It’s great to have Jim’s involvement to make sure the piece is accurate and truly represents him. I’ve included many quotes direct from Jim and tried to keep the tone in a natural style that retains my voice, is informative, yet tells a good story. Thankfully I had Marty Timins, Jonathan Leveck and Jim Vadeboncoeur, Jr. all read it over and give me valuable feedback. I enjoyed the challenge of what I consider to be my first in-depth piece of writing. I learned a lot about writing with this piece, but I still have much to learn.
So, not only will this be the first time that these paintings will be published, but it will have this new essay covering areas of Jim’s life and paintings that have never been shared before.
The second reason for the book being expanded came a little late in the game. I asked Jim if he could send me some of his pictures that he has taken over the years to complement some of my text, his paintings and give a better overall picture of how Jim works and sees people. When I received the photographs I realize how stunning they are in their own right. Jim is an amazing photographer and could easily have gone into that professional had he not become a painter. The new 16 pages feature a gallery of his photographs. And you get these extra 32 pages without the cover price being increased!
The best part of this book is that I am able to publish it on a friend. The book is important to us both and we hope others will enjoy seeing these personal paintings. The only people who have seen them before are those who happened to see them at the gallery where they hung prior to being sold. Almost all are in private collections.
Here’s some details about the book:
A living legend’s most personal and cherished images … revealed for the first time!
An acknowledged master of his craft, James Bama began his legendary career with atmospheric, dynamic and dramatic paperback book covers that fired the imaginations of generations of readers, even as they inspired countless youths to become illustrators themselves. His later body of work, which distilled the spirit of the rapidly disappearing American West by focusing on the rugged individuals who still inhabit those vast and empty plains, has similarly enthralled another generation of fans and artists.
Created entirely for personal pleasure over the course of five decades, these portraits capture the lives of the people Bama encountered during his trips to Tibet, Mexico, Japan, China and elsewhere. Most of these images have never been published and have only been seen by the artist’s immediate circle of family and friends. All are lush, staggeringly beautiful evocations of a moment and place, and they are accompanied by Bama’s commentary and an essay by Flesk publisher, John Fleskes.
I’ll post some previews and have the book available for pre-order on our website very soon.
Enjoy,
John
John Fleskes
Flesk Publications
text and photos copyright © 2012 John Fleskes. All rights reserved. Artwork copyright © 2012 James Bama. All Rights Reserved.
There are three new Flesk titles coming out in November 2012. The Jim Silke Sketchbook, James Bama: Personal Works and Naughty and Nice: The Good Girl Art of Bruce Timm Big Pocket Edition. I’m doing a three-part blog today to share the details.
The Jim Silke Sketchbook is 9 x 12 inches at 64 pages. It’s in the same format as the Al Williamson Archives books. The one exception is that I’ve added 4-inch French flaps to Silke’s book. I was able to get a good printing rate so rather than pocket the savings I threw it back into the production of the book. The price is $19.95.
The drawings cover a thirty year span. You will see samples of Silke’s work before he was a professional artist. As some of you may know already, Jim become a professional when he was 60 years old, however he has drawn for most of his life. This aspect of his life will be covered for the first time. Another aspect I find exciting are the many drawings he did in preparation for his Rascals In Paradise series. Most art inside is in pencil, yet they are printed in color and show all the nuances of the multi-colored paper and tones that Jim uses. Like the Al Williamson Archives books, my goal is for those flipping through this book to feel as if they are in Jim’s studios pouring over his originals.
Jim has also provided captions throughout and an introduction.
Working with Jim is a pleasure. I learn a tremendous amount every time I work with or spend time with him. With this book, I designed volume 1 and 2 at the same time, then sent print outs to Jim. After he shuffled some pages around and gave me his feedback for improvements I went in and did a second pass while inserting his captions. All in all it was a smooth process.
Here’s the official book description:
Jim Silke illuminates the previously unpublished gems of his private studio collection.
Each image in the Jim Silke Sketchbook series is meticulously reproduced from the original artwork, and designed to provide the experience of leafing through the private portfolio of this modern master of the art of the pinup.
Pouring over the pages of this colorful collection, the soft, rich charcoals of a voluptuous nude give way to the sharp, angular pencil study of a dashing hero’s subtle range of expression. The tight pastel rendering of a bare fatale ushers forth the rough-hewn conceptual art of an unpublished Rascals In Paradise tale. It is a volume as eclectic as it is personal to the artist himself.
Jim Silke furnishes the introduction to the book, and walks the viewer though his work by providing descriptive captioning for each piece. Comprised solely of previously unpublished works, and spanning the last twenty-five years, this lavish collection is a guided tour of the artist’s studio, with the creator himself as the guide.
I’ll post some previews and have the book available for pre-order on our website very soon.
Enjoy,
John
John Fleskes
Flesk Publications
text and photos copyright © 2012 John Fleskes. All rights reserved. Artwork copyright © 2012 Jim Silke. All Rights Reserved.
I received an email from a long-time Flesk customer and all around good guy, Rasmus Larsen. In his note, Rasmus shared his thoughts on our new Flesk logo that I revealed in May. I intentionally did not explain the design or meaning to any one publicly for the very reason that I prefer for people to interpret it in their own way. Rasmus has given me the best interpretation I have read so far. I asked him for his permission to share his explanation, which he was kind enough to provide. I hand you over to Rasmus:
I like your new logo. I understand that you won’t try to explain it, but leave it up to the person looking at it to form his or her own opinion, so here’s my take on it: The basic pattern – to me – resembles the stylized form of a plant, symbolizing the continuing growth of Flesk Publications as well as an ever growing awareness and appreciation of every single artist that you have published. However, the form could also resemble a stylized pattern of fire, symbolizing the burning passion that goes into the research, writing, production and presentation of each new title from Flesk. Finally, the use of the green nuances has – of course – the meaning of hope, but also goes to show, that “green” – or any other color – has different nuances, and that the understanding of nuances are important for the way an artist works to present an idea or catch a picture or a pose from life, just like the understanding of nuances are important for the way an audience will look at and understand artwork. Nuances also reflect the care you always take to make sure that the art itself is reproduced in the best possible way, so that all the nuances and facets will be reproduced/exposed/visible in the best possible standard to the reader.
I might be waaay off target as you see it, but I guess that’s part of the charm about having room for other peoples interpretations…
Thanks, Rasmus! I’d enjoy hearing some more interpretations if anyone feels like sharing.
John
John Fleskes
Flesk Publications
text and photos copyright © 2012 John Fleskes. All rights reserved.
I arrived back to the Flesk office feeling positive and energetic after a week exhibiting at Comic-Con International in mid-July. This is in contrast to the last three years in which I felt concerned that the show was shifting more toward pop culture genres that veer away from popular comic, fantasy and illustration art forms. Television, film and the gaming companies still managed to make a large and loud presence. This year I focused on looking past their hulking presence and saw that Comic-Con is still about comics and the creators I enjoy.
The Comic-Con program guide and commemorative book focuses on comics; the guest list focuses on comics and many of the panels focus on comics. Case in point: Mark Schultz, Gary Gianni and Jim Silke were all special guests this year and treated very well. When I asked for a panel time and space to commemorate our Flesk 10th Anniversary, the Comic-Con organizers provided us with a space without any questions. As far as my experiences go, I get the same special treatment by Comic-Con as do the large corporate companies.
An interesting thing about all of the news and publicity that Comic-Con receives is that much of the press comes from and revolves around the film and television events and stars. This press does not come from the Comic-Con organizers. The hoopla is arranged by the studios set up there, and media ventures that are attracted by big names outside of comics. The people that run Comic-Con still care very much about comics, and do their best to help the little guy, whether you know it or not.
The people that are not looking out for everyone are some of the large exhibitors. Bob Self of Baby Tattoo Books said it perfectly in that we are a neighborhood, and with any good neighborhood it’s important for all of us to be good neighbors to one another. But unfortunately some companies are not good neighbors. FOX, for example, is not a good neighbor. They blast music to a point where it is hard to hold a conversation and have personality signings that result in massive lines that block booths and the entrance to our row. I’ve sent a personal email to the Comic-Con organizers with my ideas to make for a better neighborhood. We’ll see what happens.
There has been a noticeable decline in familiar faces appearing at our booth. Certain artists have decided that the effort of exhibiting at Comic-Con is no longer worth the expense and time. I don’t blame anyone for making this decision. I’ve thought about it as well. But, for all of the faces we sadly no longer see, there are many new faces we see for the first time. My plans are to continue to exhibit at Comic-Con for the foreseeable future.
I felt I needed some time away from our booth this year. I expanded my staff allowing myself the opportunity to conduct business elsewhere. With four knowledgeable and experienced people running the Flesk booth I felt a freedom that has been foreign to me for eight years. I instructed them to kick me out of the booth if I lingered too long. They adhered to my wishes well and I managed to stay away for most of the show.
My not working the booth in no way meant I was there to play and not work. Instead, I was able to conduct a significant amount of business I had not had the time to focus on in years past. I accomplished most of my goals and didn’t feel as exhausted at the end as I normally do. I also managed to keep up to date on my emails to avoid a backlog of hundreds of emails to sift through upon my return.
The good news is sales and interest in our Flesk titles was up this year, when compared to the last three. The new Bruce Timm collections, Naughty and Nice: The Good Girl Art of Bruce Timm and the Naughty and Nice 2012 Teaser were both hot items. Mark Schultz made his home at our booth and did signings each day. Our Xenozoic collection by Schultz also sold at a brisk pace. The Al Williamson Archives did well, too. We brought about three dozen books with minor dings with us and offered them at 50-70% off. Most were gone in only three hours after they were put out on the table. I always make an unadvertised special at each show. Those who arrive early have options for a few killer deals.
Our Flesk tenth anniversary postcard set was popular. These seven cards in an envelope featuring the art of Mark Schultz, William Stout, Terry Dodson, Bruce Timm, Gary Gianni, Jim Silke and Craig Elliott were gone by Saturday morning. Just over four hundred sets were given away as a thank you to our customers and those who stopped by. Each of the seven artists had a booth near us and they were happy to sign the postcards.
Thursday morning at 10:00 a.m. was our first Flesk panel. The theme was to celebrate our ten years of publishing. Schultz, Stout, Silke, Elliott and Dodson joined me and our moderator, Jonathan Leveck, for a one hour discussion. Jonathan kept the flow steady by bouncing questions between us to keep an engaging conversation going. We discussed upcoming books with each artist and I also spoke about future collections from Flesk. A big piece of news was my announcing our new Brom art book collection coming in fall 2013. I’ll provide more details on the books I mentioned in future blogs. This was the first Flesk panel and we all had a good time. I’m grateful to Comic-Con for giving us a time slot. You can check out the Bleeding Cool News website with a few articles about the panel. They are written by Joshua Stone. (See links at bottom.) I received feedback about people who missed the panel since it happened so early on the first full day. I understand getting inside and to the room in time was an effort. Thanks to those that made it. I’ll see if we can push it a little later in the day for next year.
A few hours later on Thursday I was sitting with Mark Schultz at his spotlight panel. I had a front row seat as Mark gave a talk on his influences and what makes Mark, Mark. It was quite engaging. I ended up talking just a little at the end when answering a few questions. My lack of involvement didn’t bother me. I was more technical support and backup singer and let the panel focus on Mark. I don’t need to hear myself talk.
Then, shortly after was a spotlight on Jim Silke. I grabbed a front row seat and enjoyed Jim’s intriguing stories.
Look for a third part to my time spent at Comic-Con 2012 soon.
Enjoy,
John
John Fleskes
Flesk Publications
text and photos copyright © 2012 John Fleskes. All rights reserved.
Links:
Bleeding Cool News report on Flesk panel part 1
Bleeding Cool News report on Flesk panel part 2
Bleeding Cool News report on Flesk panel part 3
Thanks to everyone at Bleeding Cool News for the coverage! Excellent reporting!
On Saturday, August 4th I was invited to participate at my local comic book shop, Hijinx Comics, for their 30th Anniversary sale and event. Unfortunately I had developed a bit of a nasty sore throat the day before and was fairly useless during my short time there. I managed to squeeze off a few pictures before slumbering off in defeat.
Happy 30th Birthday to Hijinx Comics
Here’s our very own Jonathan Leveck (left) with Hijinx owner Neil Farris (right).
Hot dog anyone? Free dogs were on the menu all day, as was drink and cake.
Mick Gray with his daughter, Jen. Mick is the inker on the DC New 52 title, Batman and Robin. His portfolio is open to the cover of issue number 11 (right) and a splash page to an earlier issue. Mick also self-published his own kids book, Al B. Mouse.
Artist and writer, Alex Sheikman was signing and sketching as well. Alex did the art on the new The Dark Crystal graphic novel and also has his own comic-book, Robotika. Both are worth checking out.
Being the trooper that he is, Jonathan volunteered to take on the free hot dog cooking chores. As a proud vegan Jonathan’s smiling since he has no idea if they are cooked well-enough or not; and he’s not about to taste one to find out. I haven’t had a hot dog in over 20 years and wasn’t about to take one for the team. I offered my advice of cooking them until they looked charred and plump.
Hijinx had rows of longboxes filled with 50-cent comics, plenty of discounted books and a store-wide sale. The crowd remained heavy during the time I was there and it seemed to be a successful day.
Enjoy,
John
John Fleskes
Flesk Publications
text and photos copyright © 2012 John Fleskes. All rights reserved.
The dates and special guests have been announced for “Spectrum Fantastic Art Live 2.” The show will run May 17-19, 2013 in the Bartle Hall Grand Ballroom in Kansas City, Missouri. The five guests are Peter de Sève, Tara McPherson, Charles Vess, Michael Whelan and Terryl Whitlatch. Wow!
I’ll have the same island arrangement as last year and plan on having six artists at our booth. More details coming as the show approaches.
There’s plenty of time to plan your visit for next year. Head on over to the sites linked below to stay informed.
Enjoy,
John
John Fleskes
Flesk Publications
text and photos copyright © 2012 John Fleskes. All rights reserved.
Links:
Spectrum Fantastic Art Live Facebook Page
Spectrum Fantastic Art Live website