Paper View (4): Mattotti 11:32

 

In the Paper View series we watch people draw. Today, we’ve got a big shot: Italian maestro of comics Lorenzo Mattotti!

I’m a big fan of Mattotti. I love his color work (mostly crayons and pastels) but every now and again he goes completely black and white. Some of his very best comics he made like that (the somewhat under-appreciated “Stigmates” for instance), and in this video he once again goes for the starkest black on white.

The clip is in French (with Spanish subtitles),so you already have two shots at understanding Mr Mattotti. If that doesn’t help you, I’m adding a few sentences here, with the highlights of what he has to say…

The New Yorker magazine had asked several people for an illustration for the “Hansel and Grethel” fairytale. These would be presented at an exhibition in a New York gallery.

“Drawing in black and white requires for the artist to be very concentrated to see what’s going on in the drawing.” says Mattotti. “It is very direct, there is only room for the very essence of the drawing. And with these signs and marks, what interests me most is the storytelling, the evocation of a story through the drawing.”

“Hansel and Grethel” has always been one of the fairytales that scared Mattotti the most when he was still a child, but being scared is not something he thinks is bad for children. In fact, he thinks children quite like to be scared of things they see in stories, it fascinates them to be confronted with mystery and fear on paper.

“And anyway,” says Mattotti,”I didn’t make this drawing for children. I made it for myself. For who I was, as a child.”

 

 

Find the official Mattotti website here.

Seaweed 12:28

A Lo-Fi video experiment by Tell No One.

Brilliant little thingy…

 

Seaweed from Tell No One on Vimeo.

The music is “Grizzly Man” by Rockettothesky.

Check out some more videos on the Tell No One – blog

 

(Found via Kitsune Noir)

Horacio Salinas 11:19

 

An Argentinean photographer, based in New York, who finds inspiration in ordinary objects.

 

 

Check out www.horaciosalinas.net for more…

(Found via Fubiz)

Studio Visit (13): Brendan Cass 11:50

Brendan Cass is a painter. He’s one of those painters my mother would say about “Da’kanik ook, zenne!” (“Ooooh, I could do that!”). And I would say: “Well, why don’t you then? He’s probably making oodles of money with this!” and she would chuckle and walk away…

Of course, she does have a point. When you watch the video, it sometimes seems the artist is just messing around a bit. Pouring some purple on a canvas, here…. Applying a few tiny red dots, there…Lalala…

But on the other hand, I know full well that it’s just too easy to say it’s all a fraud.

I guess I haven’t made my mind up yet. My ideas are still rubbery…

I do like seeing someone like this in his studio and listening to what he has to say.

So let’s do that…

 

Brendan Cass in his studio in New York from Lars Bohman Gallery on Vimeo.

(Found via Beautiful/Decay)

They draw and cook 12:44

 

 

Regular readers of Monsieur Bandit know I have a “thing” for food-illustrations. My girlfriend is a cook in a little restaurant and every so often she asks me to make something to promote the “plat du jour” or whatnot. I usually revert to typography-only, because drawing “stoofvlees” hardly ever results in a pretty picture… Nevertheless, I would like to do some nice spaghetti-drawings, and a lasagna… or ice-cream. Or maybe something with chicken…Yeah…chicken…. (do Homer Simpson imitation for full effect.)

The fact of the matter is: drawing food is hard. And hardly ever appreciated (My girlfriend hates cookbooks with illustrations in them. She wants to see the real dish, not what some “arty illustrator type” managed to squeeze from his wacom-enhanced watercolor-set).

Maybe that’s why, whenever I see food-related illustrations, my interest is peeked. How did they do it? Did they manage to make it look good as a drawing and make it look appetizing at the same time? Did they really draw the dish, or just the ingredients (which is often a smart course of action)? Did they do realistic drawings or did they manage to cut loose from that?

All in all, there aren’t that many cookbooks with illustrations, are there? Some of them have tiny spot illo’s (usually a bunch of garlic or a peppermill) to put under each subtitle, but more often than not, cookbooks rely on photography to depict the dishes, the final result one hopes to achieve by following the recipe. Me, I think that’s a shame. I want cookbooks with nice pictures! But then again, I want all books to have nice pictures. And I don’t really cook myself, so I don’t really “use” cookbooks. I just drool over them…

Imagine my joy when I discovered the “They draw and cook”-blog. Here, illustrators and designers are asked to illustrate their own favorite recipes, thereby creating a showcase for their work. Apparently, it is supposed to become some kind of book in the future. Finally! A decent cookbook. With nothing but pictures…

 

 

Head over to www.theydrawandcook.com to check out these and plenty of other illustrators. If you yourself want to participate, the instructions seem pretty straightforward, so…let’s get cooking!

 

Raoul Paulet: Bikes 10:11

This is “a metaphorical short film about bikes, movement, freedom and love”, or so says its maker Raoul Paulet. We’ll take his word for it, I guess.
Nice little film, though…

BIKES - Crashing into love from Raoul Paulet on Vimeo.

Check out some more of Paulet’s videos here or take a look at his other work on his website.
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(Found via mographtv.com)

10min4walls (Ft. Skewville) 17:26

I recently discovered this site, bumbling across the double-U’s. A very happy accident, indeed…

10min4walls is made by Rebekah Lynn Potter. She visits artists of al kinds (musicians, street artists, dancers, painters, photographers and what not…) and talks to them. Simple as that. The results are short, 10 minute interviews, a brief look into the work and life of these people.

I love this sort of thing, you know that by now… Studio visits, artists talks,… Can’t get enough of them. What’s special about this series of interviews is that Rebekah goes to talk, not only to the famous and successful artist, but speaks with various people at different stages of their careers.

Here’s one of the videos to wet your appetite (a visit to Skewville), but be sure to check out some of the others on 10min4walls.

 

 

At the time of this writing, Rebekah did 8 interviews, all around Brooklyn. She hopes to expand the show in the future, visiting cities all across the US. Also, when she started this project, Rebekah had no formal training as a journalist whatsoever. She just dived in with some cheap and basic equipment and a lot of curiosity. Now, she would like to get herself some better stuff, to make it all look that little bit more professional. To do so, she launched a fundraising campaign at Kickstarter. Check it out if you think this is something you would like to support…

If you want to see more of Skewville, go here or here. To see the other interviews, visit 10min4walls.posterous.com. Rebekah also works as an artist herself. If you want to check out her work, visit rebekahpotter.blogspot.com.

G+G (2): Zen Station 13:49

A video game where your “inner calm” determines whether you win or loose. And it looks great too…

 

An interview with creator Jannis Urle Kilian Kreft.

(Found via Node08)

Animation: Thomas Hicks 11:59

Sometimes I feel like such a nitwit.

Up ‘till yesterday I had never heard of Thomas Hicks. Nothing. Zilch.

And then I stumble upon a short docu about the man. And find out he has tons of videos on Vimeo.

Well, what can I say? I’m a nitwit…

Here’s the docu I mentioned, and a demo reel. Check them out. Don’t fall into the same trap as I, spending a big part of your life not having heard of Thomas Hicks. It’s no good. Just no good.

 

Thomas Hicks from Etapes on Vimeo.

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Thomas Hicks Animation Montage from Thomas Hicks on Vimeo.

More Thomas Hicks? Go to his Vimeo page.

Giants! 11:49

A little while ago, I showed you someone who saw little people in the streets. Today,  we spot giants. (Perhaps you think it would be much harder to see little people, but I’m not entirely sure about that. Food for thought, huh?)

 

The photographer responsible for these is François Serveau. The images were used as part of a promotional campaign for  the “Pronomade(s) en Haute-Garonne” for the “Centre National des arts de la rue”, a collaboration between Helmo and Bonnefrite.

 

Check out some more of their work here and here. (Strange little site, that last one…. :)  )

 

(Found via Kitsune Noir)

Julio Cortázar & José Muñoz 21:48

A book trailer for “El Perseguidor” (“The Tracker”), a classic of 20th century literature, Julio Cortázar’s homage to jazz legend Charlie ‘Bird’ Parker, illustrated by comic artist José Muñoz.

 

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Alice Pattullo 10:59

Sometimes you just happen upon really gorgeous work, stuff you haven’t seen before from somebody you hadn't heard of. Happy times!

Alice Pattullo just graduated from Brighton University, studied at the college of Art and Design in Minneapolis and is part of a group of illustrators who call themselves “Illustrators Elbow”. She makes drawings and screen prints, often fabricates boxes and packaging and makes books and record covers.

Let’s take a look, shall we?

 

 

 

Find more of her work at www.alicepattullo.com or her blog www.alice-pattullo.blogspot.com and check out the “Illustrators Elbow” group at www.illustratorselbow.com.

And while you are happily clicking away, maybe you could pay a visit to Kickcan and Conkers, a blog dedicated to modern vintage living, always presenting lovely stuff in large quantities. It’s where I found all this. Say hi to Deborah for me.