Continue reading »]]> And the rest of the art I created at Wondercon 2011 (April 1-3), this time all original characters by me.

Octopus – click above for a bigger image

Some creature thingy – click above for a bigger image

Steam punk women – click above for a bigger image

Archer – click above for a bigger image

Fantasy women – click above for a bigger image

Batman Tiki – click above for a bigger image

Cat – click above for a bigger image

Dead pirate – click above for a bigger image

Dragon – click above for a bigger image

Continue reading »]]> Here are some more art I created at Wondercon 2011 (April 1-3).

Pokemon creature – click above for a bigger image

Etrigan the Demon from DC Comic – click above for a bigger image

Vision and Scarlet Witch from Marvel Comics – click above for a bigger image

the Might Thor from Marvel Comics – click above for a bigger image

Continue reading »]]> Been so busy of late I almost forgot to remind everyone that I am exhibiting at Wondercon on April 1-3, 2011. I will be at Artist Alley AA-043 and will be selling comics, sketchbooks, and other goodies as well as taking on commissions. So drop by when your at the convention. I will post more before April 1st, so stay tooned.

Brian Kolm/ Atomic Bear Press

Artist Alley AA-043

Continue reading »]]> Well Wondercon 2010 has come and gone, ending this afternoon 4/4/2010. This year was bigger and more crowded with lots of fantastic names in comics and pop culture. I had one of my best years and can’t wait for next year. Below is just some highlights of this weekend. I hope to post more this following week.

- Thursday came and got my badge and dropped off some materials at my Artist Alley Table AA48. Was pleased to see everything in the area was set-up and registration was quick and mostly painless.

Friday…
- I arrived a bit late to find that the place was jumping with large crowds. I am guessing this was because many had off from work for good Friday.
- Great to see so many friends and familiar faces.
- I had two amazing neighbors on either side of my table: Lark Pien and Alexis Fajardo (who I have done work for in the past)
- I did my first art commission of a Buddha Cow (below, click for bigger image)

- Went to an excellent event at the Cartoon Art Museum for the Hero Initiative and to raise money for comic great Ed Hannigan. Here Mr. Hannigan talks about the Hero Initiative…

Saturday…
- Lots and lots of folks. The report is that the day was SOLD OUT! It really felt like a tiny SDCC which is a good thing in my opinion.

- Got to do some commissioned art, but I forgot to take pictures of most of it… (click for bigger image)

- Got to meet Dave and Jeff from a favorite Disney podcast of mine…Mousetalgia. Jeff is the creator of a wonderful Haunted Mansion website…DoomBuggies.com and Dave is the webmaster of the wonderful blog mousevinyl.com. There you can listen to Disney Records of by gone days. Becky and Kristen did not make it.

- Got to visit with one of my best friends from Highschool who came to see me. He has a cool hobby…he does Paranormal research.

- Had lots of sales for my black greeting cards and mini prints especially of my 25 Penguins. I only used 14 of them and maybe that was too many. One of the most popular was the Frankenstein Penguin.

- Got to have dinner with my buddy Lex (Kid Beowulf) Fajardo, his publisher and a host of other folks. The meal as a crazy big fest. Buca di Beppo gives you a giant cupcake within 7 days of your birthday.

Sunday…
- Got to create lots more cool commissioned art…

- Got to pick up some cool items: Becky and Frank’s mock little golden book, Tigerbutter. An art print by Darwin Cooke. Issue #3 and #4 of The Bean by Travis Hanson. Book #3 and #4 of Blair Kitchen’s The Possum. Discovered the work of Jeff Prechtel and his pirate drawings.

- Also got some great sketches:

- Emerged to the outside from the convention center to POURING RAIN! Fun. Not.

- Feeling energized and worn out all at the same time.

- Got lots of cool new ideas for the future.

Well, that’s all for now. Check out a few more photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/briankolm/sets/72157623647903357/

Check a nice convention review from artist Colleen Durant.

Most likely more later this week.

Continue reading »]]> Well, Wondercon 2010 is only two days away, April 2-4. The convention is at Moscone Center in San Francisco CA and more can be found on the official site.

I will be in Artist Alley table AA48, see on the map HERE.

Artist Alley is an area filled with talented artist, here are a few of my favorite peers and friends. I hope I don’t forget anyone?

Alexandrias Belly Dance AA023 – Founder of http://www.carnivalofstars.com/
Atomic Bear Press AA048 <–Me
Greg Beda AA077 – Greg has a cool new comic that has an interesting premise.
Josep Blas AA079 – Creator of Space Punks
Bumperboy AA030 – The amazing Debby Huey http://www.bumperboy.net/
Cool Jerk, Intl. AA078 – A fun web comic
Mick Gray AA027 – A very talented artist working in animation and illustration
Mike Gray, Pencil For Hire AA046 – The other talented Gray brother.
John Heebink AA021 – A great local comic artist.
Jane’s World AA125 – The art of Page Braddock http://www.janecomics.com
Kat Girl Studio/ Lost Graphics AA041 – My friend Karen Luk http://paperdragonpress.blogspot.com/
Kid Beowulf AA049 – My good friend Lex Fajardo will have his new graphic novel Kid Beowulf and the Song of Roland. kidbeowulf.com
Keith Knight: Gentleman Cartoonist AA028 – Artist of K Chronicles, (T)hink, and the syndicated strip The Knight Life. http://www.kchronicles.com/
Lark Pien-Little Bird Books AA047 Author of Long Tail Kitty and other fun stuff. http://www.larkpien.com/
George Webber AA042 – Artist of beautiful women and other cool stuff. http://feverdreams.com/

And here are some of the folks in Small Press that you should check out…

Black Swan Press SP01 – The versatile artist of Pirates and other stuff. http://www.pirate-tales.com/
Bobcat Publishing SP16
Steve Leialoha SP15 – Classic illustrator and comic inker.
Karen Luk and Karen Krajenbrink SP17 – Two talented ladies.
Matt Delight Ltd SP28 – Great local talent.
Museum of Lost Wonder SP20 – Cool stuff.
Trina Robbins SP15 – Historian and writer.
Stephen Silver SP21 – Character designer of Danny Phantom and Kim Possible.
Tiny Kitten Teeth SP34 – The amazing retro work of Becky Driscal.
Ben Walker & Co SP23 – Bears with guns, nuff said. http://www.benwalkerart.com/
Wildcard Ink/ Gumby Comics SP05 – Publisher of the wonderful Gumby comic.

And then a few of the regular booths that you might want to check out…

Peter S. Beagle 520 – author of “the Last Unicorn”
Boom! Studios 619 – publisher of Disney/Pixar/Muppet comics
Bud Plant & Hutchison Books 823 and Bud Plant Comic Art 819 – Art and Comic books.
Cartoon Art Museum 721 – My peeps who are having a great party on Friday night.
Comic Book Legal Defense Fund 725 – A great non-profit.
Dark Horse Comics 525 – Publisher of Hell Boy
DC Comics 607 – Superman, Batman, Wonderwomen, etc.
Flesk Publications 1019 – art books
Ghostbot Inc 415 cool art
Girls Drawin’ Girls 1320 – cool art of hot women
Travis Hanson/ Bean Leaf Press 514 – Author of ‘the Bean’ http://www.beanleafpress.com/
Hero Initiative 637
Hungry Tiger 726
Last Gasp 625
Mr Toast 11217
Neon Monster 944 – A great local retailer.
SLG Publishing 707 – a local publisher.
William Stout 1021 – a legend.
Stuart Ng Books 1023 – Great books from Europe, USA and everywhere else.
Studio Foglio 526 – Phil Foglio, creator of Girl Genius.
Super-Con/ Treasures of Youth 633
Templar Arizona/ Something Positive 424 – Fab webcomic.
The Comic Outpost 1111 – A great local retailer who is co-sponsoring the fundraiser at the Cartoon Art Museum Friday night.
Zeum: San Francisco’s Children’s Museum 719 – Great hands on local museum.

Continue reading »]]> We’ll folks, Wondercon 2010 will be upon us in 11 days and I can’t wait. That is, I am excited and also nervous. Nervous because I will be working on some new items and ideas for the convention and excited for pretty much the same reasons. Of course I am excited too for all the awesome friends I will see, the cool new products, the colorful costumes and all the fun and energy the convention provides.

First off, you should know that I can be found in Artist Alley at table AA 48. To help you I have made this spiffy map (below).

hint: click for a bigger image.

This year I will be focusing on art and art prints with the classic comics for sale as well. (all info is subject to change)

- A set of mystery color prints that will feature some new watercolor paintings.

- The last of the limited edition sketchbook from 2008 which features a role playing game theme and included a custom “black and blue” sketch.

- The 25 Penguin prints in both color and the color it yourself print editions.

- Commissioned monochrome and color wash art.  Full size, in your sketchbook or on a sketchcard. It’s all good and all one-of-a-kind.

- A new free postcard when you visit the table.

- Classic Comics

- get a sneak peek at some new comic projects in progress as well.

- FREE Easter Treats on Easter Sunday!

All for now, but more info will be on the way–Stay Tooned!

Continue reading »]]> I will be at Wondercon 2010 this April 2-4. Come and celebrate Easter with comics, movies, animation, toys and other pop culture fun. You can find me (as illustrated below) in artist alley table 48 where I will have lots of comics, art, prints and other goodies to check out. Looks like I will be sitting between to Alexis Fajardo author of Kid Beowulf (aa 49) and Lark Pien author of Long Tale Kitty (Little Bird Books = aa47) which means I must be one of the cool kids now. Click on the map below to see it enlarged.

ALSO on Friday April 2, 2010 the Cartoon Art Museum, the HERO initiative and Comic Outpost will be having a special tie in event: a benefit auction for comic artist Ed Hannigan. The museum usually has some sort of event, but this one will be extra special. I will be there helping out and I hope you folks can make it as well.

Today, Hannigan is 58 years old and has multiple sclerosis.  The Hero Initiative, a charitable organization that provides financial assistance to comic book professionals in need, and Marvel Comics have collaborated on a tribute book, Ed Hannigan:  Covered, that features highlights from Hannigan’s artistic career.  The Cartoon Art Museum will display some of Hannigan’s most notable covers alongside the cover and complete interior artwork for one of his most famous single-issue stories, The Spectacular Spider-Man #64, which introduced the crime-fighting duo Cloak and Dagger.

Sponsorship for this exhibition has been provided by The Comic Outpost.  The Comic Outpost, located on 2381 Ocean Ave. San Francisco, CA has been fulfilling the needs of comic book lovers for well over 15 years.  Current owners Gary Buechler and Roger Yan firmly believe their customer service and subscriber program is second to none.  For more questions, visit their website at www.comicoutpost.net or call (415) 239-2669.

SAVE THE DATE: An auction of original artwork will be held at the Cartoon Art Museum on Friday, April 2, 2010, in conjunction with San Francisco’s WonderCon comics convention.

Continue reading »]]> I will be at the Fremont Comic Arts and Anime Teen Expo (CAAT-X) this Saturday April 25, 2009 from 10-4pm. There is more info HERE.

I will be trying out something new (thanks to some electricity from the City of Fremont) to bring a small TV and playing a video loop of my animation and artwork. When I got my iPod Touch this December one of my hopes was to play slide shows and videos from it. But to make a video that will constantly loop over and over seemed impossible. But I figured it out and wanted to share it with you all in case someone else wanted to use the same technique. I am guessing it would work on the iPhone too.

YOU WILL NEED: Movie video loop in iTunes, Garage Band or other sound editor, Small TV or Monitor with RCA input, iPod Touch (I have version 2.0+), and the Apple Composite AV Cable (RCA imput)

NOTE: I will not cover making video in this post, but will cover it if folks want me too.

SOULTION: (as far as I know) the only way to loop a video is to have it be part of a PlayList in iTunes. But the problem I found is that Movies (i.e. videos) will not show up on the iPod Touch in a PlayList unless there is an audio track as part of the PlayList as well. Once you have an audio file the PlayList in iTunes can be set to loop.

Heres how I did it:

a) Open garage band or another audio editor and create a TINY audio clip that is about 1 second long and is silent. If your clip imported is longer then you want you can shorten it in iTunes’s INFO for that track. The file should be an MP3, WAVE or other compatible format.

b) Import the TINY audio track into iTunes as well as the video loop if you have not done it yet.

c) Create a PlayList with the TINY audio track as well as the video track(s) you want.  You can put as many copies of the movies into the play list as you want so you can have it play the TINY blank audio track very little.

d) Go to the iTunes settings for your iPod Touch and make sure that your play list is selected in both the MOVIES and MUSIC sections.

e) Sync and update your iPod Touch

f) Plug you iPod Touch into the TV with the RCA Video cables that you can purchase sepertly. (Apple Composite AV Cable)

g) Select PlayList under MUSIC and make sure it’s set to LOOP (the icon of arrows going in a circle under the title and to the left).

NOTE on playing video and slide-shows from an iPod Touch. Nothing will show up on the screen unless you have hit the play button. In the case of a ‘photo’ slide-show (another option for conventions) you can press play to have the images show up on screen and then pause if you are giving a presentation.

RESULT: The Movie(s) will now loop forever or as long as the batteries lasts all from your iPod Touch! Yay! There will be a black screen ‘pop’ when it plays the TINY audio clip, but you can make a PlayList of the same movie over and over again that playes for hours. If this is helpfull, please let me know. If there is a better way to do it too, then post a comment and let me know. To see some video work I have done for conventions, check out my samples:

Continue reading »]]> Today was the service for my father, a very emotional day. But I was surprised and delighted to be given this card that was signed by many of my friends at Wondercon 2009. I was there Friday, but my father was fading away Saturday and I canceled coming to the convention. I asked Topher and Jonelle of Tomatoe.TV ([link]) to leave a note that I would be gone and this was the result. When my cousin Ken gave it to me today it brought tears to my eyes.

So, a big thank you to: the Grays, Jonelle, Kat, Jim S, Rena, Scott, Patrick, Dave, Jaime, Dale and Cindy.

Continue reading »]]> Here is a shout out to some of my peeps and favorite exhibitors at Wondercon 2009. Please check them out. I hope I did not forget anyone.

Artist Alley:

Amy Martin Comics    AA083 (CCSF memeber)
Atomic Bear Press (ME)    AA047
Greg Beda    AA076 (Wot is life)
Belly Dance Comics    AA056 (from the Belly Dance and comics convention)
Bob the Angry Flower    AA028 (a classic)
Cool Jerk, Intl    AA077 (Yay)
Joshua Ellingson    AA042 (Talented graphic designer and illustrator)
Karen Luk Illustration    AA112 (Beautiful painted comics)
Keith Knight    AA027 (K Chronicles and The Knight Life)
Lark Pien-Littlebird Books    AA046 (Super talented creator of Long Tale Kitty)
Little Bat Manga    AA049
Lost Graphics/Katgirl Studio    AA041
Trina Robbins    AA002 (I know here from CAM events)
George Webber    AA084 (Naughty Adult Fun)

Small Press:

Ben Walker Art    SP18 (don’t know him personally, but his work rocks!)
Black Swan Press    SP01 (Richard Becker – Pirate artist)
Bobcat Publishing    SP31 (Llyn’s great fantasy paintings and books)
Mr Toast    SP43 (don’t know, but I am a big fan)
Museum Of Lost Wonder    SP40 (don’t know, but I am a big fan)
September 23rd Studios    SP04 (Alex and Marc and there comic “the Wicked”)
Silvertoons/Stephen Silver    SP20 (Amazing character designer)

Exhibitors:

Bean Leaf Press    D18 (Travis Hannson)
Bud Plant & Hutchinson Books    823 (woot)
Bud Plant Comic Art    819 841 (woot again)
Cartoon Art Museum    824 (the Best)
Charles M Schulz Museum    721 (the Best)
Comic Book Legal Defense Fund    725 (a good cause)
Comic Relief    807 (great store)
Dark Horse Comics    624 (nuff said)
DC Comics    607 (faster then a speeding bullet)
Exhibit A Press    726 (Supernatural Law)
Graphitti Designs    507 (T-Shirts!)
Hungry Tiger Press    814 (OZ comics and books)
Itoya Art Profolio    1448 (nuff said)
Last Gasp    625 627 (another find store)
Lee’s Comics    1007 (a SF comic store)
Red Window, Inc.    1320 (Scott Morse)
SF Bay Area International Children’s Film Festival    820 (a good cause)
SLG Publishing    707 (cool comics)
Stuart Ng Books    1021 (WOW, great stuff)
Super-Con    733 (a local convention)
Telltale Games    644 (New adventure games)
The Comic Outpost    1108 (a great SF store that hosted 24HCBD)

Continue reading »]]> Hey all,

I have not been blogging as much the last few months and I wanted to say ‘Hi’ and let you know that I am still alive. I have a parent in critical health condition which has put many things in a stand still for the unforeseeable future. Having someone you care about in such serious condition really makes you think about your life and your own mortality. Mix that with an upcoming big birthday in April and it’s enough to make one feel ‘in the dumps’ a bit. But I am blessed to have a very wonderful mother, sister, and extended family and friends who will make sure the family gets through what ever happens.

On a more cheery note,I will be at Wondercon 2009 this weekend doing commissioned artwork as well as selling comics and art prints. If you want to commission an original piece of art done at the convention, you can make a request ahead of time by emailing me at staff AT atomicbearpress.com. I will post prices in the next day or two.

BTW here is my banner on it’s home made display stand.

Continue reading »]]> OK folks here is the banner I ordered from gotprint.com. I just got it today. The material is lighter then the ones I have seen that cost more, but at $30 that is not a surprise. The banner is suppose to be matte, but there is some shine to it still, but I don’t think I will return it at this point. The color looks really bright and good tonight (will have to see it in daylight to know the whole scoop). The only biggie is that there is some black ‘dirt’ at the cat and pirate images, but that could just be my original files. All in all it looks pretty good for $30. It took about 13 days to get it including non-work days and a holiday too.
Now to find a way to display it at a con with no wall to hang it on.

Continue reading »]]> Hey all, I just ordered a banner to get in time for Wondercon 2009 at the end of the month. I found that GotPrint.com makes a 2′x4′ banner for about $30 (including shipping). While I am aware that ‘you get what you pay for,’ I have had great experiences with ordering post cards and business cards so I thought I would give it a try.

I will post a report when I get the actual banner.

Here is the final design…

©2009 Brian Kolm

Continue reading »]]> NOTE: Due to family matters I will not be at the con on Sat or Sun.

At Wondercon ( http://www.comic-con.org/wc/ Feb 27, 28 and March 1) you can find me in Artist Alley (Atomic Bear Press    AA047). I will have more info coming in January of all the stuff for sale and such.

Looks like some of my friends and acquaintances will be in Artist Alley:

Little Bat Manga    AA049
Karen Luk Illustration    AA112
George Webber    AA084
Paper Dragon Press    AA087 (Karen Luk too)
Amy Martin Comics    AA083
Greg Beda    AA076
Cool Jerk, Intl    AA077
Keith Knight    AA027
Lost Graphics/Katgirl Studio    AA041 (Striogi and Kat)

and in Small Press and Exhibitors:

Black Swan Press    SP01 (Richard Becker)
Bobcat Publishing    SP31

Cartoon Art Museum    824
Charles M Schulz Museum    721
National Cartoonists Society    719
Bean Leaf Press    D18 (Travis Hanson)
omic Book Legal Defense Fund    725

and many many more.

Continue reading »]]> I did not buy much at Wondercon 2008. When you have your own table you are more focused on making money more then spending it. But one of my new favorite artist is Ben Walker.

I first saw Ben’s work at APE a couple of years ago on a postcard on the freebie table. Ben’s work is a whimsical take on the old west including a 3 legged sheriff and bears bearing arms, all presented in beautiful paintings done in acrylics. What’s not to like with bears in the art.

I purchased his book, Portraits & Tales from Remington Ridge as well as an awesome print of Does a Bear Shoot in the Woods?. The book is really lovely and I was impressed how slick the quality was. The only issue is that the cover is so glossy that fingerprints show up easily.

The table at Wondercon 2008 set up was excellent with nice themed touches including a cutout of a bear, worn wooden boxes, labels on playing cards, etc.

Mr. Walker also runs a alternative drawing studio called Pompsicle. They meet once a week in Sacromento CA and draw models wearing costumes. Sounds like a lot of fun. I might just have to drive up and give it a try.

I look forward to seeing what Ben comes up with in the future. I painted graphic novel or comic would be awesome.

Continue reading »]]> So, before I posted images of art I created for others at Wondercon 2008, and now I get to show some personal pieces I did during the convention.

The first one is a fan piece, a watercolor painting of the villainous Maleficent from Disney’s Sleeping Beauty.

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Then I used a photo I took on Saturday as reference to do a wash drawing on Sunday of two of the Steam-Punk gents. You an see them in the photo HERE.

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You can find out more about the historical-fantasy group at #7 Saville Row!

Continue reading »]]> Being an artist at a convention like Wondercon means that I want to make money from my Art. I was lucky enough to do that.

First off are drawings used in the Maps Magic and Menagerie Convention Sketchbook. Each of the 32 page books had space for a new character and also a spot on the center map for where they lived. Here are a few of the custom drawings I created….

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I also did some one-of-a-kind commissioned art too. It’s always fun to create art “on stage.”

NOTE: If any of the recipient of the artwork would like me take down the photos of them holding it up, please let me know.

First off is a drawing for Thorsten Brümmel who has an amazing collection of sketches and commissioned art at comicartfans.com. He was kind enough to show me some of his sketchbooks and I must have just sat there, slack jawed holding those amazing collections of American and European artist he had. For the art commission I recreated my Cavalier Cat drawing with color washes. Below is a photo of the art as well as a photo of Thorsten as well.

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Next up is two pieces from the same lovely trio of ladies. The first drawing was of them as animals and the second as princesses. I usually resist drawing likenesses, but I think the princess drawing came out very well.

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And last, but not least is the first Tiki in a Tiki themed sketchbook along with a photo of the awesome folks who purchased it. I really love how this drawing came out and it was so fun to do.

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If you have any art that I created at Wondercon 2008 and have it posted online or can send it to me, I would love to share it.