Separating the Art from the Artist
Suppose an artist or a writer says something that is loathsome or morally reprehensible? Can we therefore judge the artist’s work as having no value simply because the artist is a jerk?
IAAA Gallery: Marilynn Flynn – Aspirational Astronaut
The space art of Marilynn Flynn – one of the few earth-based artists to have her work flown in space.
Drawing Classes with DC Pro Jack Purcell
I would be lying outright if I said that I didn’t have a lot of respect for the profound effect of Western comics and their history on society
Walter Popp
I consider myself pretty knowledgeable about old science fiction art, particularly pulp magazine art and artists. My knowledge is not so vast, however, that there aren’t still some surprises and new discoveries to be made.
Nobody Goes It Alone: Best Friends Make Anime Better
This is the story of two little girls. They live down the street from each other, take the bus to school together, and are often mistaken for sisters.
Doujinshi: Distinctly Japanese
There are many expressions of fandom that cross genres and cultures – fan fiction, fan art, even cosplay. But there is one form in particular that is distinctly Japanese, both in its origin and in […]
The Art of Au Contraire! 2013
A couple of weekends ago, I had the pleasure to attend Au Contraire!, the New Zealand national Science Fiction, Fantasy and Geekery convention here in Wellington. It was the second Au Contraire! I attended: three […]
The Artful Collector: Is it All in the Image?
At the heart of this debate is a real difference between how some creators of commercial art (i.e, art produced for the purpose of persuasion/marketing) view the kind of art they are commissioned to create, […]
East vs. West: Comic Book Showdown
Though my position here, such as it is, is that of “anime blogger,” I think that my real interest in media from the Land of the Rising Sun is comic books, otherwise known as manga. […]
Marvel Comics: The Untold Story by Sean Howe
If you’re looking for a glossy, full-colour account of Marvel Comics, featuring classic artwork and covers from the company’s long history, this book is not for you. Rather, Sean Howe sets out to give an […]
The Real Manga Blues: A “Me and the Devil Blues” Review
Of all the potential stories to succeed phenomenally in manga form, not many people expect a story centering around blues music in the deep American South to qualify. Even less likely is a story about […]
Interview – The Amazing Art of Anja Uhren
I met Anja Uhren recently at an Easter egg painting event. She was casually painting a face on an off-cut of card and I was immediately impressed by the effortlessness with which she produced a […]
Hayao Miyazaki and Epic Fantasy
Since taking on this blogging position, I have been struggling to find works that would appeal to the audience that Amazing Stories has, particularly those who are interested in fantasy. I would categorize a large […]
Art in Action: A Bakuman Review
I spend a lot of time lately complaining about the state of anime and the series that have been created within the last five or so years. In the course of this tirade, shounen manga […]
The Artful Collector: Why isn’t There a More Active Market in What I Collect?
A common thread of discussion for collectors who buy art from me, and which runs through many sites dealing with collectibles, concerns the factors that make certain types of “X” (coins, stamps, comics, art, etc) […]
The Artful Collector: Why Collecting Art is Such a Hard Job
Someone in a chat room I used to contribute to, once made an unforgettable statement: “it’s easy to collect art if you have money!” Hah! How I wish money were the answer! And that a […]
The Clubhouse: Roger Ebert, Death of a Gafiate
The death of Pulitzer Prize-winning Chicago film critic Roger Ebert has already been eulogized far and wide. Most of the accolades concentrate, rightfully so, on Ebert’s storied career as a newspaperman and critic and his […]
It’s Pretty – and Deadly: Horror Animanga
[Author’s warning: the following post contains images with some violent and/or graphic themes. Please proceed with caution.] Any of my friends could tell you how much I hate horror movies. Whether it’s the hack-and-slash or […]
A Lesson in Suspense
One of the great things about science fiction and fantasy is that it takes us to new worlds and gives us new perspectives on things that we never had before. With science fiction that can […]
The Artful Collector: Collecting Strategies Part 1 “The Completist”
I came to my role as dealer in SF art in a very old-fashioned way….as a fan. And I’ve still got ‘fandom’ in my blood. I mention this only because dealers in many collecting arenas […]
Art + Fandom ≠ Fan Art, part II: Images of Galadriel
Well it looks like I put my foot right into it in my previous post! Several people objected to my definition of the term “Fan Art”. They felt that it was not in accordance with […]
Art + Fandom ≠ Fan Art: Definitions
Before I get properly rolling with this blog, I thought it might be worth taking a moment to stake out the territory I plan to cover. This website, and these blogs, are all about fandom, […]
Dress For the Occasion: The Scantily Clad Female
So, here’s a question: Say you’re a beautiful woman (I assume some of you reading this actually are women. Please believe me when I say that in my eyes all women are beautiful. If you’re […]
I Dreamed I Saw the Silver Spaceships
When people think about science fiction the first thing they usually visualize are spaceships (or green skinned women in shiny bikinis, but that may just be me). The spaceship has been a ubiquitous part of […]
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