Tag Archives for JASON LEIVIAN

Anthony Alvarado’s D.I.Y. MAGIC going to 2nd Edition in 2015 from Perigee

Anthony Alvarado‘s “D.I.Y. Magic” ran as a column for this website in 2010-11. In 2011, it was collected and expanded into book form through Floating World Comics, with 40 illustrations (curated by FWC’s Jason Leivian) and a cover designed by Lord Whimsy…

With that initial edition of 1,000 copies now sold out, Anthony has signed a deal with Perigee Books, an imprint of Penguin, to bring a revised, second edition of D.I.Y. Magic to the public in Spring 2015. This new edition will have about 50 pages of new material, with accompanying artwork again curated by Jason Leivian.

Congratulations, Mr. Alvarado!

D.I.Y. Magic is the third book to see publication in recent years after debuting in some form in Arthur. The others are 25,000 Years of Erotic Freedom (Abrams, 2009), a social history/polemic by Alan Moore based on his article “Bog Venus vs. Nazi Cock-Ring: Some Thoughts Concerning Pornography” from Arthur No. 25 (Dec. 2006); and the novel Zazen by Vanessa Veselka (Red Lemonade, 2011), which was serialized on this website in 2009-10. Zazen won Veselka the 2012 PEN/Robert W. Bingham prize.

TONIGHT Thurs Jan 3, 6-10pm Portland, Ore.: ARTHUR RE-LAUNCH PARTY at Floating World Comics

arthurmini

Arthur No. 33: Buckminster approves.

ARTHUR RE-LAUNCH PARTY TONIGHT IN PORTLAND, OREGON

Come celebrate the release of Arthur’s first new issue in four years at a free party TONIGHT Thursday, January 3, 2013 at Floating World Comics, Arthur’s new co-publisher.

We’ll have original comic art on display from contributors Rick Veitch and Gabby Schulz. Floating World head honcho/Arthur co-publisher Jason Leivian will be there, and Arthur Art Director Yasmin Khan is rumored to be stopping by. Plus: Betel nuts, and other surprises.

WHO: Arthur No. 33
WHAT: Magazine release party and art exhibit
WHEN: Thursday, January 3, 6-10pm
WHERE: Floating World Comics, 400 NW Couch St., Portland, Ore. (503)241-0227

If you can’t make it, order a copy online—$5, pretty cheap. Info here.

What humans are saying about Arthur No. 33…

“The new oversized print-only issue of Arthur Magazine is even more gorgeous and satisfying than expected. Like a Sunday supplement for heads.” — Jesse Jarnow, author of Big Day Coming: Yo La Tengo and the Rise of Indie Rock

“Beautiful” — Chris Richards, The Washington Post

“The Haydukes of music/art/culture journalism return…welcome back!” — Team Love Records

“A coffee-table newspaper, printed on 16 immense pages of newsprint with minimal ads, and almost every inch covered with words or pictures… The cover, a gigantic piece by surreal comics artist Rick Veitch, is gorgeous, and the crispness and clarity of the print is perhaps the best I’ve seen in a newspaper. Everything in the new [issue] is worth absorbing… Opening the mammoth pages of the new Arthur feels much like unfolding a road map, one that points to strange, unfamiliar worlds.” — Ned Lannamann, The Portland Mercury

Photo of Buckminster via Brooke S!

PORTLAND MERCURY talks to Jason Leivian of Floating World Comics about his role in Arthur’s return to print

From The Portland Mercury:

Arthur Magazine Raised from the Dead, with Help from Floating World
Posted by Ned Lannamann on Thu, Nov 15, 2012 at 3:44 PM

The news spread quickly this morning that late, lamented Arthur Magazine has been resurrected. Arthur was a free, bimonthly music and culture publication that also dabbled in incisive political commentary, and when it departed the physical plane—it ceased publication in 2008 and existed on the web for a few years, before publisher Jay Babcock officially pronounced it dead in 2011—a gaping, literate hole was left in the landscape of music discourse. (That last, terrible sentence reminds us of why Arthur was so important.)

Now Arthur is back! (Arthur 2: On the Rocks, perhaps?… hello?) It ain’t free anymore ($5), and it will be on newsprint instead of sleek, paper-cutty magazine stock, and its publication costs will be predominantly reliant on the purchase price rather than advertisers to stay afloat. The new version of Arthur is due in large part to a new partnership forged with Portland’s own Floating World Comics and its proprietor Jason Leivian. We asked Leivian about the new Arthur, and how both he and Portland will be involved in the new incarnation.

The new Arthur (Issue No. 33) will be available December 22, and can be pre-ordered now. (UPDATE) There will be a First Thursday release party for the new issue at Floating World Comics (400 NW Couch) on Thursday, January 3 at 6-10 pm. Leivian says Babcock may fly up to make an appearance, although that is not yet confirmed. [I can’t be there, unfortunately! —Jay]

 

MERCURY: How did you get involved?
JASON LEIVIAN: I am really excited about Arthur’s comeback. It was such an influential and important magazine to me when I used to find them at Jackpot Records (usually) back in the day.

It’s interesting for me to recall the steps that brought Floating World and Arthur together. I discovered this bizarre Steve Aylett project ‘The Caterer’ in the pages of Arthur. I went on to reprint that comic. I was publishing a newsprint anthology called Diamond. I submitted an issue to Bull Tongue and they reviewed it. I was so stoked! So Jay knew who I was just from those two projects.

When the magazine was online only I took over as the comics editor for Arthur Magazine. That was how I first started working with Jay. That was a fun gig. It led to more publishing on my end and I think Jay was looking at the newspapers I was publishing as a potential format for Arthur’s resurrection.

MERCURY: Will Arthur be markedly different from its first incarnation?
JASON LEIVIAN: The first few issues of Arthur were on newsprint, so this is a return to that form in some ways. Although you’ll see the dimensions and format of the new issue are larger and laid out differently. I haven’t seen the Indesign files yet but I imagine it’ll be more like a daily newspaper, the way it folds over, etc… I believe this issue that we’re releasing was actually in production before Arthur went on hiatus before. [It’s a different & fresh animal, actually. — Jay] So it will probably have a similar feel to the previous run, but with an all new layout. Anticipate that the next issue after that will be built fresh from the ground up. Jay’s handling all the editorial but I suspect I’ll be sharing suggestions like “Hey Jay, have you heard this new Psychic Ills record? Hint hint.” I want to think of something cool for new comics content.

MERCURY: Will it be published in Portland? Do you know if there will eventually be Arthur CDs/DVDs as well, or other supplements?
JASON LEIVIAN: I’m using a web press printer in Oregon, the same printers that I’ve worked with on most of the newspapers I’ve published. I’ll be handling the distribution from Floating World. Jay and I definitely hope to do more, but we’ll have to review the sustainability after this issue hits the stands. If we can find a magazine or book distributor to help us with shipping and handling I feel like that would take a huge load off my shoulders.

I WONDER WHAT HE'S DOING NOW?

Jason Leivian writes:

It wouldn’t have happened without THE CATERER.

Arthur ran a two page sample of Steve Aylett’s bizarro masterpiece in one of their back issues and I thought it was hilarious. Years later after opening my own comic shop I contacted Steve to see about reprinting THE CATERER in vintage comic form. I also emailed Jay and mentioned the project to him. A lightbulb must’ve gone on in Jay’s head. He put together that I was the publisher of Diamond Comics, a free comics newspaper anthology and he emailed me a few weeks later asking if I’d like to be comics editor for Arthur Magazine.

In the years since we’ve published work by dozens of incredible artists, interviewed folks, shared trippy animation and hopefully given a sense of what’s good and interesting in the international art comics scene. Will started collaborating with me later and introduced the full screen Greenermags format which I really dig.

We’re going to transfer all the Arthur Comics to my store’s website and I plan on curating more “Arthur Comics” there in the future.

I wasn’t able to get the link set up by the March 15th deadline, but you will be able to find us soon at – http://floatingworldcomics.com/comics

I’m also excited to announce that I’ll be publishing a chap book with Arthur contributor, Anthony Alvarado, of his DIY MAGIC articles in May or June.

Thanks again, Jay, for helping us find the others.

Jodorowsky & Moebius' masterpiece THE INCAL returns to print this November.

Jason Leivian writes:

Moebius is arguably my favorite comics creator of all time.  For the past few years, zero of his books have been in print in the US.  Zero.

The good news is Humanoids is back and they’re bringing all of the Jodorowsky/Moebius collaborations back to print.  Jodorowsky and Moebius worked together to create a film adaptation of Dune in 1974.  The film was never made, but instead of letting all their designs and ideas go to waste, they took those concepts and made some awesome comics like Metabarons and The Incal.  This November their finest collaboration, THE INCAL, returns with all three volumes collected in a deluxe slipcase format (with the original colors, not those terrible digital recolors from a few years ago).

Humanoids just received a sample copy of the book and there’s more great photos of the interiors on their blog.