Last Night's Show

This fictional venue is modeled after The Granada and The Bottleneck in the idyllic college town of Lawrence, Kansas. But it could be any other bar where sweaty fans and loud bands congregate. Maybe I saw you there? 

The Diabolical Botanical Garden

If you're a fan of horror and/or horticulture, you can order an 11"x17" print of this drawing. Email me at gsnider11@gmail.com or visit http://www.flickr.com/photos/incidentalcomics for details.

Like most of my work, I can't quite pinpoint where the idea for this one came from. I remember taking a trip to Botanica, The Wichita Gardens as a kid, then drawing one of its fountains the moment I got home. But instead of sketching a regular fountain, I turned it into an fountain-shaped alien! Another possibility: my grandfather was a retired landscape architect for the National Park Service, and he had a backyard that was a forest of Ponderosa Pines. He told us that the piles of rocks scattered throughout the forest were old Indian graveyards. The idea fascinated and terrified me. I didn't quite believe him, but I was still afraid to peek out the window into the dark forest at night.

The Feuding Death Metal Band

One of my favorite songs of the past decade is "The Best Ever Death Metal Band Out of Denton" by The Mountain Goats. This cartoon is nowhere near as good as that song. But then, not much is. Someday I hope to draw a comic that approaches the pure manic energy and disarming wit of a John Darnielle song lyric. Someday!

Notes on Poetry

Art History

Morning

Order a poster of this comic at http://www.flickr.com/incidentalcomics.

Sustainability

The Pool

This comic is now available as a print at http://www.flickr.com/photos/incidentalcomics for purposes of refreshment and self-improvement. Guaranteed to smell like chlorine and sunscreen!

The New Building

The new building, for non-local readers, is the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. It's scheduled to open this September. If you're a fan of architect Moshe Safdie or the Kansas City skyline (or if you just like buildings with personality), you can order a print at http://www.flickr.com/photos/incidentalcomics.

When Water Towers Dream

I'm a strong proponent of the personification of buildings and man-made structures, a theme I'll return to in a drawing later this week. If the dreams of the first two water towers are reminiscent of scenes from the movie Super 8, it's likely because director J.J. Abrams read this comic when it first appeared in the newspaper or on the blog last year. So yeah, just a coincidence. 

Summer Vision

Island

Château for a Cartoonist

When I've drawn my millionth cartoon, published my memoirs, and sold the movie rights, I should have the financial resources to make the blueprints for this home a reality. I'll have to find an architect equally versed in escalators and observatories. I'll need a landscaper with a thorough knowledge of truffula trees. And a decent zookeeper or ex-lion tamer for my collection of exotic pets. 

The murals and sculptures will all be created by the original artists. This will require some scientific advances in order bring back the late George Herriman (1880-1944). It won't be cheap to fund research in the long-neglected field of corpse reanimation, but the result will be worth it. If you can name all the artists I reference in this drawing, I will give you a job tending the koi ponds.

Jazz

This comic is brought to you in part by John Coltrane, Ornette Coleman, McCoy Tyner, Miles Davis, Charles Lloyd, Charles Mingus, and Charlie Haden.

Want a poster of this comic for your smoke-filled jazz listening lounge? Get it here.

Un Fanzine Muy Bonito

An exciting package arrived in the mail yesterday from Barcelona. Apa Apa Comics, a Spanish comics publisher, just released Colibri #3, a fanzine featuring short works by 25 great cartoonists. And me. It's a thrill to see my drawings in a book that looks awesome, smells like paper, and can occupy space on my shelf or coffee table if I ever get tired of staring at it. Big thanks to the folks at Apa Apa for including my work. Here's the cover and credits page, masterfully drawn by Sergi Puyol:

 

My contribution was an adaptation of my Gorey-esque single page comic originally found here. This the zine version: