Monster Burghers

A few months back, I was sifting through the shelves and boxes of comics that crowd a tiny Pittsburgh treasure trove: Copacetic Comics. Marvel comics aren't found there, but rather, indie comics and even hand-made comics, along with anthologies and beautiful hardback collections of comics and comic art.  There, I discovered a book of 30 postcard images of nightmares and doom by illustrator Jordan Crane called Uptight All Night.  I loved the design of each card, the look and feel of the book with it's offset printing, and the sequence of provocative images.  I also loved the format: postcards.

I decided to make postcards of my own, utilizing the many photographs I've taken of Pittsburgh, collaged with drawings.  Rooftops and fire escapes led me to the idea of action movies-- Ghostbusters' Stay Puff Marchmallow Man stomping through city streets, and King Kong climbing the Empire State building.  I imagined Pittsburgh being occupied by monsters, and came up with the idea for Monster Burghers, a book of 30 of my own original postcards. Burghers are citizens of a town or borough, and Pittsburgh dwellers are Pittsburghers.  So far, I have about 10 done.  Here is one:

This past weekend I was thrilled to discover another book of postcards by a comic artist: Adrian Tomine's Optic Nerve.  These 30 postcards are a collection of illustrations from the covers of the Optic Nerve series, as well as a few of his illustrations for the New Yorker, album covers, and movies including Sylvia, In the Mood for Love, and Mullholland Drive.