Thanks, 2024 Edition
We've got a new episode, some things to be thankful for, including a gif I didn't embed, some gorgeous new Instax pix, & more
The Virtual Memories Show News
A 2x/week email about a podcast about books & life
Podcastery
This week, I posted Episode 614 of The Virtual Memories Show, as comics librarian and curator Caitlin McGurk returns to the show to celebrate her amazing new book, TELL ME A STORY WHERE THE BAD GIRL WINS: The Life and Art of Barbara Shermund (Fantagraphics). We talk about Caitlin’s shock at her 2012 discovery of Barbara Shermund’s incredible gag-comics and illustrations in the archive of the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum, how her interest in Barbara evolved from blog posts to a museum exhibit to a book, the challenge of writing about someone who did no interviews or press and had no close relatives, and how easily women get erased from history. We get into the gestalt of Barbara’s fantastic linework and washes and her wry sense of humor, why Caitlin wound up writing an academic press version of the book before rewriting it for a trade publisher, the challenges & rewards of designing a book to showcase so much art, and how Barbara helped create the look of The New Yorker in its early years. We also discuss the malleability of history, how the Billy Ireland has changed in the 10 years since Caitlin & I last recorded, the pep talk she wished she could have gotten from our late friend Tom Spurgeon, time Al Capp (!!) advocated for allowing women into the National Cartoonists Society, the incredible story of tracking down Barbara’s remains and giving her a proper funeral 35 years after her death, and more. Give it a listen, and go read TELL ME A STORY WHERE THE BAD GIRL WINS!
Last week, I posted Episode 613, as artist Frances Jetter joins the show to talk about her wonderful new graphic novel, AMALGAM: An Immigrant, His Labor Union, and His American Family in Brooklyn (Fantagraphics Underground). We talk about how the book both expanded and narrowed in scope during its 12-year process, how her grandfather’s story bleeds out into American, Jewish and labor history, and how she integrated her trademark linocut prints with other media to create an unforgettable graphic narrative. We get into how the editorial illustration field changed over her career and why she moved toward artist’s books and narrative art, why “illustrator” isn’t a dirty word, how we don’t always see the resonances of our work when we’re in the middle of it, how working with other materials and forms (like sculpture) rejuvenated her drawing, her family’s political background and her awakening, how students have changed over her 40+ years teaching at SVA, and more. Give it a listen, and go read AMALGAM!
Recent episodes: Roland Allen • Eric Drooker • Simon Critchley • Doug Brod • Sven Birkerts • Christopher Brown • Dmitry Samarov
Thanks, 2024 Edition
It’s Thanksgiving in the US tomorrow. Amy’s cooking up a storm for us and my college friend who joins us each year. I did much of the grocery shopping for her, and didn’t mess up too much, near as I can tell. I’ll do some house-cleaning tomorrow morning.
If you’re heading into a fraught situation or messed up family dynamics at the dinner table, I wish you grace or the strength to flip the table over and say, “Screw this, I’m outta here.”
[every image I found when I searched for table-flipping was either a Jesus in the Temple quote or a Real Housewives of NJ gif]
If you’re looking for things to be thankful for, they’re still out there / in here. I find blessings in friendship, art, love, conversation, and (relatively) good health. I hope you’re able to take a breath this week and cultivate what’s good in your life, even when times are apocalyptic or your family’s driving you nuts.
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Also, thanks to all of you wrote and sent condolences last week after we lost Benny. It’s been tough without him, but I’m glad so many of you reached out with love.
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Oh, and I’m thankful for friends who like to walk and/or hike, even if last Sunday’s trek in Warwick took us to strangely graffiti’d concrete bunkers
and abandoned research centers where we uncovered secret government programs to [REDACTED]
Instaxery
On Saturday, I visited a bunch of past guests in northern NJ and shot Instax in their homes for my GUEST/HOST book, now that I’m all re-energized on that project. I had to make Choices, but think all 3 work in their own way. The bottle was the funniest one, because I’d spent a lot of time with the guest looking at all sorts of amazing antiquarian books and other objects in his home, and I happened to glance at the sunlight on this Japanese gin bottle as we were walking upstairs from his basement, and I just stopped, shot and BAM. As I wrote about last Sunday, I’m back into this project, and hope to give you guys some news about it in the new year, once I’ve got some production and pricing figures in place. But the vision is THERE, man, and I feel like I can make something meaningful that you’re going to love. So give thanks for that, too.
Artistry
My daily sketch-journal continues apace, even if some of them aren’t . . . good, but I haven’t had time/motivation to draw for real. I think I need to get back to color, not just scrawl in Microns or sweep & smudge with brush pens. Maybe I’ll look at some Milton Glaser drawing-books and get inspired or feel worse about myself. You should go to the Flickr album of most of the art I’ve made & find something you like.
Postcardery
Let me know if you want to be on my postcard-a-day list. (Financial supporters of the podcast get a hand-drawn or painted postcard as a thank-you, like that one above.)
Until Next Time
Thanks for reading this far! I’ll be back on Sunday with links, books, & workout-craziness (trust me; it’s crazy), and on Wednesday with a new episode, and maybe some art, maybe an Instax or two.
How ’bout getting off of these antibiotics / How ’bout stopping eating when I’m full up / How ’bout them transparent dangling carrots / How ’bout that ever elusive kudo,