Jun 30, 2022
mmm icon11 setup ✨
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Registration Opening Soon!
🔈🔈🔈 ICON11 registration opens 11/11 11:11 AM EST! Early bird and discount tickets available. Conference poster art by Kelsey Wroten (@jukeboxcomix). Visit us at theillustrationconference.org.
Lil baby illustrator showing up to his first con in 2 years next week, ICON11
[picture of items laid out in a mock-up of a convention display. there are a lot of shrimp-themed things]
Forgetting How to Draw the Rest of the World: An Interview with Hellen Jo, ICON11′s Programming Chair
Hellen Jo is an illustrator and cartoonist living in Los Angeles, California. Her work, which includes watercolor paintings, comics, zines, and casual apparel, consists primarily of sullen and intimidating Asian American teenaged girls frightening the locals and disrespecting authority.
What's your favorite memory from past ICON conferences?
Before her ICON10 talk, Ako Castuera wordlessly walked on stage, performed a silent Okinawan karate form, then kicked over Josh Cochran's stage props with a bold yell. I felt chills of power, pride, and glowing respect and I get chills just thinking about it!!!
Tell me about your practice!
I make a mix of comics, zines, and paintings for gallery shows. I do the tiniest bit of freelance illustration and I sustain myself via mailorder of graphic clothing that I design and prints of my work. I spend a lot of time drawing on computer paper and Post-Its, a smaller amount of time panicking over Arches watercolor paper, and about 10% of my time kicking and screaming at an old Wacom tablet attached to a nonfunctioning Cintiq where I color digitally. I draw angry teen girls exclusively, to the point of forgetting how to draw the rest of the world, and I sketch them from photo reference, real-life sightings, and memory. I'm currently working on a short coming-of-age comic, drawn on cheapo printer paper with 2B pencils, Post-Its, and correction tape.
What is your studio/office space like?
My home office is essentially a child's bedroom covered in trinkets, posters, stickers, knick-knacks, a bookshelf full of zines, graphic novels, ghost story paperbacks, CDs and cassette tapes, and drawing/shipping supplies/printed shirts stuffed everywhere in between. I have a deep need to be surrounded by my precious junk assortment. In that pile are two large desks, laid out side by side against one wall; one desk is the electronic prison, where my Mac, Cintiq, second computer screen, laser printer, giclee printer, and large-bed scanner are located. The other desk houses my adjustable drawing surface, my heavy-duty guillotine paper cutter (for trimming zines), and a miniature Korean shaman shrine I built for my last gallery show, FOLK MEDIC. The room is my sanctuary, but it can be distracting, so I am also subletting a bare concrete bunker of a studio 15 minutes away, where I am working on my comic pages.
What's your hometown and where do you currently live?
I was born in the South, in Mississippi, and my family moved around a lot in my early childhood, but I mainly grew up in San Jose, California and I consider myself a Bay Area native. I currently live in Los Angeles, California.
Who are some of your favorite emerging creatives?
I really adore the work of Michelle Kwon, a young animator and cartoonist in New York. She is currently drawing and publishing online the coming-of-age comic, “To Die.”
Music, Research, Snacks, and Drawing: An Interview with ICON11′s Secretary/Treasurer
Grace Danico is a Filipino-American illustrator and designer born and raised in Los Angeles. Her work has been recognized by the Society of Illustrators and American Illustration, and requested by clients like Ace Hotel, Everlane, Google, and Red Bull Music Academy. She also curates a regular Spotify playlist called Take Care.
What's your favorite memory from past ICON conferences?
I was a first-time attendee at ICON10 in Detroit, and some favorite memories were teaching a workshop on archiving, Ako Castuera's talk, and late night bowling with illustrator friends (old and new) at Garden Bowl.
Tell me about your practice!
I freelance as an illustrator and graphic designer. My practice involves music, research, snacks, and drawing of course! I enjoy experimenting in different styles while maintaining a playful and fun tone. A perfect day for me consists of waking up, answering emails, making coffee and breakfast, catching up on client work or working on personal projects, taking a lunch break and walking around my neighborhood, working a little bit more, then spending the rest of my time finishing work, then relaxing.
What is your studio/office space like?
I share my home office with my partner, and we share a long desk that occupies one side of our wall. My desk area has shelving that houses all of my favorite books, knick-knacks, and art supplies. Our office doubles as a guest room and music space. I DJ once a month and have turntables set up so I can practice. One of the best parts of our studio is the mountain view.
What's your hometown and where do you currently live?
My hometown is Los Angeles. I previously lived in San Francisco and Brooklyn, and have been back in LA for almost 5 years.
Who are some of your favorite emerging creatives?
I've been enjoying the work of Ariel Davis, Linda Liu, and Karen Hong.
ICON 11 Call for Papers
Download a PDF of the ICON11 Call for Papers
Academic and professional submissions are invited for peer review for ICON11: The Illustration Conference. The Conference will be in Kansas City, Missouri, from Sunday, June 28 until Wednesday, July 1, 2020. The first two days of the conference are devoted to the Education Symposium and workshops; the second two days of the conference consist of main stage events with speakers, panels and presentations representing a broad range of specialties from the fields of illustration and design.
ILLUSTRATION AS PRIVATE / PUBLIC PRACTICE
Symposium Date: June 28–29, 2020
Venue: Epperson Auditorium, Vanderslice Hall, Kansas City Art Institute, Kansas City, MO
Dates for abstracts submission: August 1, 2019
The ICON11 Education Symposium seeks to explore how educators can inspire students to cultivate their individual voices and perspectives while situating themselves in the marketplace in viable and sustainable ways. The multitude of contemporary mechanisms to create and distribute work have expanded the opportunities for illustrators and redefined the creator/client relationship. How do educators incorporate these realities into their teaching?
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
An open call is made for contributions that broaden the understanding of how illustration is changing in the classroom and in practice. Unusual avenues of practice and inquiry are welcome, including both theory and practice-based researchers, academics, illustrators, typographers, designers, painters and artists.
POSSIBLE THEMES MIGHT INCLUDE
Hand Made: How do we allow for illustration programs to dovetail with classes that teach traditional crafts and media; to apply illustration to media beyond paper? What are cross-institutional opportunities?
Illustrator as Artist: How do teachers encourage a private practice of self-initiated artwork? To what degree is the province of the studio artist explored, the avenue of grant writing and gallery exhibitions? Does this necessitate the creation of entirely separate bodies of work?
Artist as Author: How is storytelling expanded beyond picture making into incorporated language? Is the narrative a purely personal one, as in memoir?
The Illustrator in the Marketplace: How do we expose students to opportunities to engage in direct sales, both online and through events?
Space & Time: The evolution of 3-D, Interactive and Motion-based Illustration (and how to teach it all)
The Invisible Classroom: How does digital technology affect traditional teaching? What are the flaws and assets of remote teaching?
Style: How do teachers help students cultivate their own styles? Does individual style matter?
Thinking Globally, Working Locally: What are topical societal issues that propel students? How can they incorporate matters that matter to them in their work and in their community?
Collaboration: What are projects that involve collective thinking and making; how are they managed?
Inspiration: What are processes that effectively jump-start creative brainstorming?
Artist as Mentor: How can students engage with younger, (or older!), disadvantaged or isolated communities, to share, articulate, and inspire with what they know?
The Art of Seeing: How do we teach students to look closely, to develop a critical eye, to become thoughtful consumers of visual images and to clearly express what they think about what they see?
Shifting Realities: How do we keep up with the changing nature of illustration?
Those wishing to participate are invited to submit proposals for research papers and presentations addressing the themes suggested above or other themes pertinent to the current state of the field of illustration and the challenges facing illustration faculty and students.
ABSTRACT FORMAT
Initial submissions should take the form of an abstract of up to 300 words.
Bullet points of key concepts will be accepted.
In addition to the abstract, please include the presenter’s name(s), affiliation, email and postal address together with the title of the paper and a 150 word biographical note on the presenter(s). These can be as PDF or Word documents.
Please name your abstract document: LastFirstname_ICON11Abstract.
SUBMIT ABSTRACTS BY AUGUST 1, 2019
Email to Marty Blake: [email protected]
Acknowledgment of receipt of your abstract submission will be made within 5 working days.
Selected proposals will be juried by ICON11’s panel of peer reviewers, including Education Chair Marty Blake, Syracuse University and Education Advisor, David Terrill, Kansas City Art Institute. If selected, papers should be from 3000–5000 words including bibliography. Please note: Submissions must follow Harvard system of referencing.
Authors of selected papers will be invited to present at ICON11, June 28–29, 2020. Presentations will be allowed 20 minutes.
DEADLINES
Receipt of the Abstracts | August 1, 2019
Notification of Provisional Acceptance | September 25, 2019
Receipt of Full Paper | January 12, 2020
Notification of Final Acceptance | March 23, 2020
Presentation Date | June 28–29, 2020
With permission of the authors, papers will later be archived and shared online.
Download a PDF of the ICON11 Call for Papers
ICON10 PAPERS ARCHIVE
To review papers presented at ICON10 in Detroit, 2018, click on the presenter’s name to access a downloadable pdf: https://icon10.theillustrationconference.org/papers/
Icon 11 fits! All me-made!
It's almost time! Come on out and grab some art! I'm surrounded by great folks making great work! #iconroadshow #icon11 https://www.instagram.com/p/CfcQ1x5pdR8/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=