#erik kriek

[haarlemupdates]

Illustraties kunnen bij uitstek een binnenwereld verbeelden, terwijl muziek de binnenwereld roert en tot de verbeelding spreekt. De kruisbestuiving tussen illustratie en muziek staat centraal in de tentoonstelling ‘Stories & Vibes – Fraaie Staaltjes Muziek x Illustratie’,  t/m 6 augustus te zien bij 37PK, Platform voor Kunsten in Haarlem. Met werk van zeven Nederlandse illustratoren en kunstenaars in samenwerking met diverse andere makers. Terwijl er veel illustratoren en kunstenaars zijn voor wie muziek belangrijk is, als inspiratie of als gezelschap tijdens eenzame atelieruren, gaan sommigen een stap verder. Zij maken muziek hun onderwerp of tonen de symbiotische relatie tussen illustratiekunst en muziek, waarbij beide kunstvormen elkaar versterken en aanvullen. In de tentoonstelling Stories & Vibes is een aantal bijzondere projecten en samenwerkingsverbanden bijeengebracht rondom die gouden band tussen muziek en illustratie. Terwijl de liefde voor muziek de illustratoren verbindt, lopen hun favoriete genres wijd uiteen. Van punk tot retro-disco, en van hip hop tot blue grass. Zo maakte animator en filmmaker Robert Bolwijn een experimentele, geanimeerde videoclip voor en met de Amerikaanse muzikant Johnny Dowd die de absurde en donker-humoristische aard van diens songs weerspiegelt. Een persoonlijke voorliefde voor blue grass bracht tekenaar en illustrator Erik Kriek tot odes aan zijn favoriete songs en artiesten en nieuwe vertolkingen door Tim Knol, de Blue Grass Boogiemen en de kunstenaar zelf. Illustrator en cartoonist TRIK trekt samen op met de Haarlemse punk-poetry formatie The Irrational Library met concerten en live tekenen naar aanleiding van hun gezamenlijke boek en album We… are doomed. Gees Voorhees, zelf ook regelmatig actief geweest als DJ, ontwierp het beeld voor Italo-Disco muzieklabel Bordello A Parigi en werkte samen met podcastmaker Atze de Vrieze voor de serie Weird Hit Wonder. Bij multimediaal vormgever en animator Nils Mühlenbruch gaan tekenen, animatie en muziek hand in hand in zijn energieke Drifter TV projecties en live DJ performances. Veelzijdig kunstenaar en illustrator Brian Elstak dook samen met partners DJ The Flexican en MCs RFx en DenZen in de collectie van The Black Archives. Boeken, video’s, foto’s, maar ook muziek op vinyl en cassettebandjes, vormden een rijke bron voor een nieuwe animatie en soundscape. De samenwerking tussen kunstenaar Vincent de Boer en muziekcollectief Ill Considered kreeg met The Stroke een unieke vorm, waarbij muziek werd geïmproviseerd op basis van een serie tekeningen en uitmondde in een gezamenlijke animatiefilm. Deze film The Stroke won in 2021 de debuutprijs op het Nederlands Film Festival. De tentoonstelling Stories & Vibes – Fraaie Staaltjes Muziek x Illustratie is te zien bij 37PK, Platform voor Kunsten in Haarlem t/m 6 augustus. Info Wat: Stories & Vibes - Fraaie Staaltjes Muziek x Illustratie Wanneer: t/m 6 augustus Waar: 37PK, Platform voor Kunsten Adres: Groot Heiligland 37 | 2011 EP Haarlem Info: https://www.37pk.nl Openingstijden 37PK: donderdag t/m zondag 13.00-17.00 uur, gratis entree          

[yexuscomic]

EL DIARIO MONTAÑÉS

[beyondthespheres]

La Mare - Par Erik Kriek

[kirttrik]

This was next on my stack to read. It is The Exile by Erik Kriek. I was on the fence on backing this Kickstarter but super glad I got it. It is a truly beautiful book. The art gave me a sense of the natural, cold-hearted beauty of Iceland, contrasted with with heat of battle and anger. It is one of the most human depictions of Viking culture I have read. The characters are fully realized and 3 dimensional. The protagonist has true regrets that he should be truly ashamed of. The art is simply beautiful. I highly recommend it if you can find a copy. #theexile #erikkriek #livingtheline #vikings #viking #comicart https://www.instagram.com/p/CodMYGVSspN/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[popeyesmith]

More Holiday '23 Books for Comics Nerds

In the two months since my last roundup of 2023 books, publishers have unleashed a torrent of books aimed at holiday gift giving. So let’s catch up with capsule takes on the more notable releases in this last quarter. The Set-Up by Joseph Moncure March, with illustrations by Erik Kriek (Korero). Probably my favorite holiday book surprise is this heavily illustrated reprint of Joseph March’s 1928…

[repubblicabanana]

Erik Kriek

[sparehed]

Murder covers

Ephemerist: Murder covers

In 2016 Dutch gothic Wunderkind Erik Kriek published In The Pines, a collection of short stories inspired by classic murder ballads, songs about murder, unrequited love and betrayal, all rendered with heavy swatches of black and only one extra colour. Stories included Pretty Polly, Long Black Veil, Taneytown, Where the Wild Roses Grow, and Caleb Meyer. Together with the Dutch americana purists…

[theblackestofsuns]

“In The Lab”

Gutsman Comics #2 (1999)

Erik Kriek

Oog & Blik

[35007ed]

Fantastic!

[universitybookstore]

from Fantagraphics and cartoonist Erik Kriek, comes this masterpiece of often wordless dread, In the Pines: 5 Murder Ballads.

[michaelminneboo]

Filmblad Schokkend Nieuws bestaat 25 jaar. Vandaar deze gave cover van Erik Kriek.

[megatrip]

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/strangedeath/the-exile-a-viking-graphic-novel-western-by-erik-kriek

[bob-sala]

Illustration by Erik Kriek. Yes, that’s me. Mahalo, Bob 

[vermiculated]

books - this is why ‘monthly” is a valuable interval

oh geez.

White Nights - Ann Cleeves

Sawkill Girls - Claire Legrand

Lady in Red - Maire Claremont

Behind Closed Doors - Amanda Vickery (vg)

A Rope of Thorns - Gemma Files

Dreaming Darkly - Caitlin Kittredge

The Lady's Guide to Celestial Mechanics - Olivia Waite

Astray - Emma Donoghue

Heartthrobs - Carol Dyhouse

Nine Pints - Rose George

Daily Rituals - Mason Currey

Rereadings - Anne Fadiman ed

Rustication - Charles Palliser

What Makes This Book So Great - Jo Walton

Creatures of Will and Temper - Molly Tanzer

The Lost Man - Jane Harper

The Sins of Lord Lockwood - Meredith Duran

The Jade Temptress - Jeannie Lin

Hither Page - Cat Sebastian (hashtag soup feelings)

Paradise Lodge - Nina Stibbe

Medical Bondage - Deirdre Benia Cooper Owens

Flagrant Conduct - Dale Carpenter

Intimate Friends - Martha Vicinus

The Luminous Dead - Caitlin Starling

Night's Black Angels - Ronald Pearsall

The Politics of Narrative - Kenneth Graham

Indigenous Navigation and Voyaging in the Pacific - Nicholas Goetzfridt

Pornography - Mari Mikkola

Life in the English Country House - Mark Girouard

Country House Life - Jessica Gerard

The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins (classic beachread)

A Tree of Bones - Gemma Files

Battleborn - Claire Vaye Watkins

Marilou is Everywhere - Sarah Elaine Smith

When I Grow Up I Want to Be a List of Further Possibilities - Chen Chen

The Scientific Revolution in Victorian Medicine - AJ Youngson

Consider the Fork - Bee Wilson

You May Kiss the Duke - Charis Michaels

My One and Only Duke - Grace Burrowes

The Quick - Lauren Owen

Our Kind of Cruelty - Araminta Hall

I Am Still Alive - Kate Alice Marshall

Will's True Wish - Grace Burrowes (the wish is dogs)

The Trauma Cleaner - Sarah Krasnostein

Ghost Wall - Sarah Moss (vg)

At The Lightning Field - Laura Raicovich

Offshore - Penelope Fitzgerald

Felix Yz - Lisa Bunker

Amazons and Military Maids - Julie Wheelwright

A Debutante in Disguise - Eleanor Webster

A Little Light Mischief - Cat Sebastian

Sorcerer to the Crown - Zen Cho

Re-dressing America's Frontier Past - Peter Boag (peat bog)

Courting the Cat Whisperer - Wynter Daniels

In Miniature - Simon Garfield

Long Live the Tribe of Fatherless Girls - T Kira Madden

The Science of Shakespeare - Dan Falk

A Twenty Minute Silence Followed by Applause - Shawn Wen

A Flag Worth Dying For - Tim Marshall

Ordinary Beast - Nicole Sealey (vg)

Combat-Ready Kitchen - Anastacia Marx de Salcedo

The Tradition of Female Transvestism in Early Modern Europe - Rudolf Dekker and Lotte van de Pol

Kiss Me Someone - Karen Shepard

Safari Honeymoon - Jesse Jacobs

A Memory Called Empire - Arkady Martine

Nine Continents - Xiaolu Guo

300 Arguments - Sarah Manguso

Grief Cottage - Gail Godwin

Red Bones - Ann Cleeves

Life Mask - Emma Donoghue

The Flame and the Flower - Kathleen Woodwiss

Brute - Emily Skaja

A Bride's Story 6 - Kaoku Moru trans William Flanagan

Skim - Mariko Tamaki and Jillian Tamaki

The Invention of Pornography - Lynn Hunt ed

Canned - Anna Zeide

Mostly Dead Things - Kristen Arnett

Free and Natural - Sarah Schrank

A Tree for Peter - Kate Seredy

In the Distance - Hernan Diaz (vg)

Mastering Fear - Rikke Schubart

Beyond Speech - Mari Mikkola ed

Portrait of a Woman in Silk - Zara Anishanslin

The Art of Living - FL Lucas

Pornographic Art and the Aesthetics of Pornography - Hane Maes ed

Elizabeth and Jacobean Poets - John F Danby

Family Fortunes - Leonore Davidoff and Catherine Hall

Silence of the Grave - Arnaldur Indridason trans Bernard Scudder

She Walks in Shadows - Silvia Moreno-Garcia ed

The Hallowed Ones - Laura Bickle

Making the Grade - William Fischel

The Joseph Johnson Letterbook - John Bugg ed

Manet Manette - Carol Armstrong

Like A Mule Bringing Ice Cream to the Sun - Sarah Ladipo Manyika

Regency House Styles - Trevor Yorke

Timekeepers - Simon Garfield

Patience and Sarah - Isabel Miller

The Warlow Experiment - Alix Nathan

Girls Who Score - Illy Goyanes

In Search of Time - Dan Falk

Skeleton Keys - Brian Switek

The Englishwoman's Bedroom - Elizabeth Dickson ed

Ghosts - Roger Clarke

Joseph Johnson - Gerald Tyson

Falling in Love with Statues - George Hersey

Necromanticism - Paul Westover (vg)

Essay on Sepulchers - William Godwin

Passions Between Women - Emma Donoghue

Women's Friendships - Susan Koppleman ed

Olivia - Dorothy Bussy

Mooncop - Tom Gauld

Persepolis - Marjane Satrapi trans Mattias Ripa

Star Wars Super Graphic - Tim Leong

Luisa Now and Then - Carole Maurel trans Mariko Tamaki and Nanette McGuiness

Daughters of the Lake - Wendy Webb

Rules for Vanishing - Kate Alice Marshall

The Outermost House - Henry Beston

Feminism and the Body - Londa Schiebinger ed

Winter in the Blood - James Welch

Capturing Sound - Mark Katz

The Table-Rappers - Ronald Pearsall

Black - Michel Pastoreau trans Jody Gladding

In These Times - Jenny Uglow

The Daylight Gate - Jeanette Winterson

The Grave Keepers - Elizabeth Byrne

Metropolitan Life - Fran Lebowitz

Life Among the Savages - Shirley Jackson

Social Studies - Fran Lebowitz

When My Brother Was an Aztec - Natalie Diaz

The Imaginary Corpse - Tyler Hayes

The Invention of the Restaurant - Rebecca Spang

Moll Cutpurse - Ellen Galford

Manchette's Fatale - Doug Headline

Hand-Drawn Jokes for Smart Attractive People - Matthew Diffee

In the Pines - Erik Kriek

Raising Demons - Shirley Jackson

Nightingale - Paisley Rekdal

Louis Riel - Chester Brown

Fantastic Metamorphoses - Marina Warner

Elektra - Derrick Puffett ed

Tenements, Towers, and Trash - Julia Wertz

Ghostland - Colin Dickey

Feminism and History - Joan Wallach Scott ed

The Hide and Seek Files - Caeia Marsh

Red Rosa - Kate Evans

A Banquet for Hungry Ghosts - Ying Chang Compestine

Death is Hard Work - Khaled Khalifah trans Lori Price

Civil War - Lucan trans Susan Braund

The Making of the Modern Body - Catherine Gallagher and Thomas Laqueur

Oculus - Sally Wen Mao

The Write Escape - Charish Reid

Freedom Hospital - Hamid Sulamin trans Francesa Barrie

The Lion of Rora - Christos Gage et al

Mauve - Simon Garfield

The Lake of Dead Languages - Carol Goodman

The Turn of the Screw - Henry James

[crampdown]

Cramp’s Comic Recommendations For Fans Of Classic Rock And Co.

Allright here we go. This is my current list of comics/manga/graphic novels you might enjoy if you’re into classic rock. Before we get started I’d just like to let you all know:

- This list is far from being complete. I’m sure there are many more groovy comics out there that I’m simply not aware of yet so if you have any suggestions feel free to add them :)

- I know I said “Classic Rock” but some of my choices may drift into other musical directions

- Needless to say I do not own any of the following images. They all belong to their rightfull owners and I’ll use them as visual reference material only.

- Sorry for eventual misspelling

Let’s go ^^

1. Bob Dylan Revisited 

Let’s start with an obvious choice. This is a collection of 13 well-known Dylan Songs, each of them graphically interpreted by a different artist. The most striking feature therefore is the high variety of different art styles. Some of them are cartoony, some are very abstract while others are almost photo realistic.

Dylan’s mesmerizing lyrics have always been inspirational and these beautiful depictions truly are a sight to see. 

Including works of Thierry Murat, Lorenzo Mattotti, Nicolas Nemiri, François Avril, Jean-Claude Götting, Christopher,  Bézian, Dave McKean, Alfred, Raphaëlle Le Rio, Maël Le Mae, and Henri Meunier, Gradimir Smudju, Benjamin Flao, Jean-Phillippe Bramanti and Zep.

Zep’s take on “Not Dark Yet”

Jean-Phillippe Bramanti’s interpretation of “Knocking On Heaven’s Door”

Definitely worth checking out not only for Bob Dylan Fans.

2. Baby’s In Black” by Arne Bellstorf

I’ve seen several people in the Beatles fandom complain about the lack of Stuart Sutcliffe material when it comes to early Beatles history. 

Well, here it is: a graphic novel that focuses on the relationship between Stuart Sutcliffe and fotographer Astrid Kirchherr who took the very first professional photos of the Beatles during their time in Hamburg (1960-61).

Told mostly from Astrid’s point of view this comic presents itself in a grey and melancholic tone that fits the rather sad story. Bellstorf’s drawings are simplified and charming (they remind me of early sixties children book illustrations which suits the setting’s time period)

If you’re interested in early Beatles history (especially their Hamburg days) you should give this one a try.

3. Blue Monday by Chynna Clugston Flores

I really wish I had known about this amazing comic series a few years earlier, not only because this is a slice of life/coming of age story with teenage characters who are actually likeable and relateable but also because “Blue Monday” is an overall highly entertaining depiction of early nineties teen culture/rebellion in an American suburb that comes with a lot of references to Britpop, mod culture, Buster Keaton movies and Adam Ant (to name only a few).

To quote the author herself: “It’s like Archie on crack, with cursing and smokes”.

The art style of Chynna Clugston Flores is very vivid and expressive and has a certain stylistic touch of anime/manga (like a lot of comics from the early 2000s). I also really enjoy all of the graphic fashion details in this one. Plus, this is the first comic with it’s own soundtrack and that’s always a nice bonus.

I’d recommend “Blue Monday” for fans of Britpop, Punk, New Wave and early 1990′s culture.

4. Punk Rock And Trailer Parks by Derf Backderf

Another story about growing up in American small town madness, this time set in 1980s gritty Punk subculture of the former rubber city of Akron, Ohio. Protagonist Otto who likes to refer to himself as “The Baron” becomes fascinated with Punk after attending a Ramones concert. He meets several Pubk icons (thus as The Clash, The Plasmatics, rock journalist Lester Bangs and many more) and becomes someting of a local punk star himself.

Derf Backderf (who is best known for his highly acclaimed graphic novel “My Friend Dahmer” and his Eisner award winning comic “Trashed”) created a comic that is as “raw and dirty as punk itself”. His art style is an unique combination of expressionism, underground cartoons and punk magazines.

“Punk Rock And Trailer Parks” is a must-have for punk fans (especially if you’re into The Ramones and The Clash. It made me a huge fan of both of them).

5. “CASH - I See A Darkness” and “Nick Cave - Mercy On Me” by Reinhard Kleist

Two biographical graphic novels by Reinhard Kleist, both of them tell the story of a fascinating personality in rock history and both of them are incredibly well drawn. Kleist’s art is full of life and movement and very atmospheric due to his impressive use of stark contrasts. 

I personally love his semirealistic way of drawing people and I’d highly suggest you to check out his other works too. He made a lot of biographical comics that really amazed me.

CASH

Cave

Definetly worth reading. Not only for Johnny Cash and Nick Cave fans.

6. Nowhere Men by Eric Stephenson, Nate Bellegarde, Jordie Bellaire and Fonografiks

I talked about this one a while ago but I’ll gladly do it again since it’s just too cool. “Nowhere Men” is set in an alternative past/present and future where scientists became as popular as pop stars (catchphrase “Science is the new Rock n` Roll”) but somewhere along the way something definetly went wrong. 

The hype of science shares obvious similarities with the beatlemania of the 60s and the founding of Apple back then. Furthermore, the characters are partly inspired by well-known personalities of Rock history. There are many more or less hidden nods and references to musical popculture wich is why I put it on this list.

Nowhere Men is a thrilling sci-fi dystopian that requires an observant reader because there is a lot of jumping back and forth i time and inbetween information. The art style is realistic and full of very vibrant colours.

I found myself reading this multiple times to get all of the details in the world building. A thoughtful and brilliant writing indeed. 

7. P.I.L. by Mari Yamazaki

Japan 1983: 17-year-old Nanami couldn’t be more frustrated. Her grandfather loves to spend all of their household money on useless luxury junk and her strict school criticizes her messy hairstyle. Caught between teenage rebellion and responsibility as she tries different side jobs to earn at least a little bit of money, Nanami also has a thing for punk music and overall everything originated from England.

P.I.L. tells the story of conflict between two generations who aren’t as different as they might seem. Sometimes funny and heartwarming, sometimes with a bit of drama this is a charming slice of life/ coming of age josei with a more simplistic but aesthetical pleasing art style.

as the title might suggest, Nanami is a big fan of P.I.L. and other bands of the punk, neo punk and new wave movement such as The Stranglers and The Killing Joke

8. Yellow Submarine by Bill Morrison

A comic adaptation of an animated film such as Yellow Submarine? Yeah, I was skeptical at first too but hear me out: This is really great. Morrison did an amazing job at capturing the trippy and psychedelic feeling of the legendary Beatles film. As the 1968 film used the medium of animation as an actual form of art to accomplish things only animation can do, Morrison did the same thing and used the advantages of the comic medium to accomplish things only comics can do. And it works. It really works.

Every single page of this colourful book has a different panel layout. Some of them are so beautiful and creative that I’d love to have a full-size poster version of them :’D

If you liked the film, if you love the psychedelic age, you’ll probably like the comic too. 

9. In The Pines by Erik Kriek

“In the pines, in the pines, where the sun never shines...”

5 Murder Ballads, some might call them dark Country Music, each of them beautifully illustrated by Erik Kriek. Atmospheric, dark and gritty and always on point to match the spine-chilling western-like storytelling of these ballads, great for fans of horror literature a la E.A.Poe.

10. Andy - A Factual Fairy Tale by Typex

Allright folks this is it:

Typex’s “Andy” is by far one of the best comics/graphic novels I’ve ever red. It defenitely is my personal favourite reading of 2019 (and tbh I kinda doubt anything will top this anytime soon)

This is more than just a biographical take on of the most enigmatic pop-art artists of 20th centuary’s America, this is a portrait of the 20th centuary itself. There are so many references to art, history, literature, music and more that I could fill a book counting them all. And of course this is a monument for the medium of comic itself. Typex really managed to show what comic’s are capable of (At this point I’m really sorry I can’t explain it better I’m not good in writing stuff like this yet...)

Visually one of the most appealing things are the different art styles Typex manages to pull off so well for every chapter in Warhol’s life because each of them are a mirror of their zeitgeist. The introduction of Warhol’s childhood during the 30s is drawn in a cartoony style of old news paper comic strips. The chapter of 1967 has a psychedelic edge. The chapter of the early 60s shows similarities with the works of Roy Liechtenstein

So many icons from the 1930s-1980s have a cameo in this graphic novel it’s just amazing. If you’re even remotely interested in anything of this time period you’d definitely should read this. (seriously, READ THIS). But at this point I’d also like to mention that this comic does not shy away from showing very explicit content and sensetive topics (please keep in mind this has a mature rating for a reason)

Yeah so I couldn’t give this piece of art enough praise. It is absolutely brilliant, a masterpiece in every sense and word.I wasn’t too aware of Typex before but appearentely he also did a graphic novel on Rembrandt. I’m gonna read this too.

Some honorable mentions:

California Dreamin` by Penelope Bagieu

I haven’t red this one yet so I can’t say anything more about it. But I wanted to let you know that a graphic novel about the life of Cass Elliot exists.

Before Watchmen: Silk Spectre by Darwyn Cooke and Amanda Conner

One of the prequels of the legendary “Watchmen” by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons. It’ “only” an honorable mention because you’ll have to be familiar with the Watchmen universe to fully get all of the story. This prequel focuses on Laurie Jupeczyk, the second Silk Spectre and her own adventures during 1967, the summer of love in San Francisco.

Hip Hop Family Tree by Ed Piskor

Another one I haven’t fully red yet, but so far I’m loving it. It basically tells the history of Rap and Hip Hop from the early 70s to the mid 80s. The art style is intentionally old-school wich really fits it’s tone and setting.

Fritz The Cat by Robert Crumb

I suppose I can’t make a list like this without at least mentioning an absolut icon of the underground comix movement. Crumb created the adventures of this nasty junky cat during the 60s. Fritz can be seen as a satirical mirror of counter-culture’s zeitgeist.

and speaking of Crumb, his “Heroes of Blues, Jazz and Country” trading cards are neat too...

allright that’s it for now. like I said, if you have anymore suggestions, feel free to add ^^

[sandboxworld]

Joseph Moncure March's "The Set-Up" From Korero Press

The Set-Up, a long narrative poem about the boxing underworld – a hard-boiled tragedy told in syncopated rhyming couplets. It's a lost classic by the author of The Wild Party, Joseph Moncure March.

Joseph Moncure March is best known for The Wild Party and The Set-Up. In 1999, Art Spiegelman brought back The Wild Party from obscurity with the accompaniment with Spiegelman’s unique art to the narrative poem. It is quite surprising that March’s better-known work, The Set-Up, has been out of print for over 50 years. The Set-Up was made into an award-winning movie with Robert Ryan playing the…