Category: Flesk Book Updates

I have been going over the printer proofs for The Art of Craig Elliott over the last week. I had extra copies made so both Craig Elliott and I could both go over them. The proofs allow us to review colors, values, ink densities, contrast, saturation and more, and give us a final chance to correct any mistakes or make any last minute modifications.

With the first set of proofs we found the book to be coming out too dark overall. I went in and lightened the middle values throughout, then had the printer supply a second set of proofs, which looked far superior. At that point I gave the full approval to print the book. The printer then uses these proofs as guides to make sure the final book matches our wishes.

I’m very excited about this book. Craig’s fine art is stunning. With Craig’s personal touch throughout the entire process, from the art, to the design and writing, this book serves as a personal extension of who he is.

There will be three covers for the book. The first cover featuring the woman on Craig’s “Music” painting wearing a bra will be the version sent out to Diamond Comic Distributors and our trade book distributor. The topless version of “Music” will be available direct from us, or for direct wholesale orders. This was the original cover to the book, but since the topless version was a little too risqué for the distributor, Craig went in and put a bra on her. We both think this worked out better in the long run by allowing us to have the clothed and topless cover.

There is also a third cover featuring a woman with red sweeping hair. This cover will only be available direct from Craig or through Flesk and not available for wholesale to the book trade. Stay tuned for an extra bonus that will come with 250 copies of this edition. It’s a way of thanking those who order this version direct from us. If you already pre-ordered one of the “Music” versions through us you can swap for a different cover at any time. Just send us an email and we’ll take care of it.

With the book going on the press any minute now I will have an official street date very soon. I’m still thinking this book will be available at the end of December.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask in the comments section of this blog.

Enjoy,

John

John Fleskes
Flesk Publications
Text and photographs © 2011 John Fleskes

A few days ago Craig Elliott and I went through the proofs for his upcoming book, The Art of Craig Elliott. Craig made a short video which shows some of the pages from his book and he discusses the proofs and artwork contained within.

This book represents Craig’s personal fine art. It is a 9 x 12 inch 68-page hardbound book with four gatefolds. The Art of Craig Elliott will be available in late December. Links to read about more details and to pre-order the book can be found below. You can get it now for the pre-order price of $24.95. Once the book is out the cover price will be $29.95.

Enjoy,

John

John Fleskes
Flesk Publications
Text © 2011 John Fleskes
Video and artwork © 2011 Craig Elliott

Links:
The Art of Craig Elliott book details
Pre-order The Art of Craig Elliott
Craig Elliott Gallery website

I’ve just added the “Evening With Flesk Prime” giclee print to the Flesk online store. Full details follow.

Held on September 8, 2011, “An Evening with Flesk Prime” was a private event held with five of Flesk Publications brightest stars in an evening of food, drink, conversation and illumination. A select few guests joined Craig Elliott, Gary Gianni, Petar Meseldzija, Mark Schultz and William Stout in a dinner prior to Strip Festival Breda 2011 which afforded the appreciator of fine illustration a chance for relaxed one-on-one repartee in an atmosphere of convivial wining and dining.

Guests received a special signed giclee print honoring the evening. Signed by the five participating artists this exclusive giclee print is strictly limited to an edition of 50, with only 25 being available for sale to the public.

This giclee, was created with archival inks and premium stock watercolor paper. The print measures 17 x 24 inches and is signed by Elliott, Gianni, Meseldžija, Schultz and William Stout.

“An Evening with Flesk Prime” giclee print is available at the Flesk Publications online store for $100.00.

Enjoy,

John

John Fleskes
Flesk Publications

Links:
“Evening With Flesk Prime” giclee print at the Flesk Store
Evening with Flesk Prime event

We’ve just started taking pre-orders for Naughty and Nice: The Good Girl Art of Bruce Timm. Ordering information direct through Flesk, or those placed through Diamond Comic Distributors, along with Previews order codes are detailed below. This was a newsletter sent out last week.

You can read an archive of all of our Flesk newsletters here, or join to receive future updates here.

Enjoy,

John

John Fleskes
Flesk Publications

Flesk Publications is pleased to announce Naughty and Nice: The Good Girl Art of Bruce Timm with an introduction by Jim Steranko.

In a radical departure from his previous work on animated films and comics featuring superheroes, the award-winning artist Bruce Timm presents an extensive survey of the many forms that his muse has assumed in his mind’s eye. Naughty and Nice: The Good Girl Art of Bruce Timm showcases over 325 full-color, line and pencil images of partially clothed and nude women of almost every conceivable description and temperament.

This substantial collection provides shapely forms and earthly delights throughout its pages. Be it a sophisticated city gal or a savage jungle queen, a hard-boiled dame or an elegant lady from the land of fantasy, a quietly smoldering sorceress or a wild-hearted adventuress, Timm’s ladies are sure to please the eye.

Over 125 new images have been prepared especially for this handsome book. 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.

This 9 x 12 inch 304 page book will be available in two formats: A paperback edition with a cover price of $50.00 (978-1-933865-40-9) and a hardback deluxe signed edition in slipcase limited to 1000 copies with a cover price of $100.00 (ISBN: 978-1-933865-41-6).

“I am thrilled to be able to work directly with Bruce Timm to collect his personal unpublished art into a singular collection,” shares the publisher, John Fleskes. “These works emanate an air of beauty masterfully shaped by line and color by the artist, writer, director and producer who has redefined animation over the last 20 years.”

Flesk Publications has made an exclusive arrangement with Diamond Comic Distributors for the hardbound deluxe edition. The only way this special signed edition can be purchased is direct through Diamond’s Previews or from the Flesk Publications online store. Naughty and Nice: The Good Girl Art of Bruce Timm can be found on page 294 of the September 2011 Previews opposite the Flesk full-page advertisement. Preview order codes are SEP11-1093 for the hardback and SEP-1094 for the paperback. Or, pre-order your copy at the Flesk Store at fleskpublications.com/shop. The book contains nudity throughout and is available to mature audiences only. Ships in late December 2011.

Full details and sample pages for this book and for all Flesk Publications titles, plus the most recent news can be found at fleskpublications.com. Additional information can be read on publisher John Fleskes’ blog at fleskpublications.com/blog.

Flesk Publications

P.O. Box 3174
Santa Cruz, CA 95063
info@fleskpublications.com
fleskpublications.com
Flesk Publications online store: fleskpublications.com/shop
(408) 206-2346
Monday through Friday
11 a.m. to 6 p.m. PST

I’ve just added some copies of Terry Dodson’s recent sketchbook “Reveries” to our Flesk online shop. I helped Terry out with it a little bit.

Reveries is a 16 page saddle-stitched sketchbook that is limited to 500 signed and numbered copies. The size is 5.5 x 8.5 inches. The price is $25.00. It features a collection of Terry’s artwork on Coraline and related characters and design drawings from the graphic novel series “Songes.” Reveries is available at conventions direct from Terry Dodson or here from Flesk Publications.

Link to Reveries at the Flesk Shop.

About Terry Dodson

Oregon-based Terry Dodson has been a comic-book professional since 1993. He has worked on such books and characters as Harley Quinn, Spider-Man, Star Wars, Superman and Wonder Woman and is currently drawing Uncanny X-Men for Marvel Comics. Terry is now working in the European comics market as well, with the graphic-novel series Songes for the French publisher Les Humanoides Associés. This has enabled him to do full-color art for the first time. Terry has also worked in toy and statue design, animation and video games and has had a gallery exhibition featuring his paintings. He remains a popular artist in the industry— a status he attributes in large part to the contributions of his wife, Rachel, who adds her talented inking to his work.

Enjoy,

John

John Fleskes
Flesk Publications
Text © 2011 John Fleskes

Links:
Link to Reveries at the Flesk Shop.
Terry Dodson website

I’ve added the Naughty and Nice: The Good Girl Art of Bruce Timm book details to the Flesk Publications site. (Link below.)

When I originally proposed a book of Bruce’s personal art to him, I suggested a 48 or 64 page collection. I wasn’t aware of how many pieces he had available and I wasn’t assuming he would create new art either. Not only did Bruce have archives of pieces he created over the last 15 years but, he was also willing to produce new works. There will be over 125 new pieces featured in this book. Then I got on the internet and started seeking out collectors to request scans of the originals in their collection. A good number replied and shared some amazing pieces. Before I knew it this little 48 to 64 page book kept growing and expanding. Designer Randy Dahlk and I found ourselves stopping and rethinking the approach of the book a few times as new batches of art would fall into our laps. I recently came to the decision that 304 was the final page count. This is both a substantial number and it is forcing us to only use the very best of the best.

With the page count and art at our disposal continually growing I couldn’t prepare the details, such as the book description, page count and cover price. Now that we’ve come to a finalized map of the book I can share these details. I personally enjoy the journey of where a book leads. It’s the art and Bruce’s willingness to be involved that has determined the shape of this book. Creating a blue print in the beginning and sticking to it is not the approach I care to take.

Randy is hard at work on the design, and I’m doing my editing thing where I call and bug Randy and throw ideas and additions at him. I’ll get more details, sample pages, the street date and news about Naughty and Nice posted here and on the Flesk site as we continue.

Enjoy,

John

John Fleskes
Flesk Publications
Text © 2011 John Fleskes