Golden Masterclass in Storytelling News!

Hi Everyone!

Recently at the Lille Comics Festival, my business partner Michael Golden not only was the Guest of Honor at the show, but he was also awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award by the show as well! 

In my opinion, it is richly deserved. Michael's work is....well...simply brilliant!! 

And, although I have hired Michael to work for me over the last 2o years during my editor days, I have been honored over the last few years to watch him work up close, step-by-step, at various appearances around the world, as well.

At that is a unique experience. Nobody approaches a page or thinks the same way about a page as Michael Golden!

Just so you know... Michael and myself have also been developing an intensive storytelling workshop that we hope to debut in venues within the next year or so. The 1-2 day course (depending on venue) will focus on the elements of good sequential art craft as well as the business of being an artist. More on this later....  

In the meantime, you can catch the truncated course for free at many venues around the nation and the world as we visit various conventions and festivals. Michael has recently taught and lectured at places as diverse as Spain, Belgium, Canada, China, France and domestically in Chicago and numerous US shows.

While in Lille, part of our visit included the customary autograph sessions at stores and sketching at the convention, but Michael also offered to teach a version of his course at one of the local schools as part of the cross-cultural exchange.  

Below is the link to some of the photos of this Masterclass, this one geared towards young students:

http://picasaweb.google.fr/spidersim5962/LilleComicsFestival?authkey=Gv1sRgCMrn7eDIqJSdhQE&feat=email#

Congrats to Michael. And check back soon for more information on his future teaching venues.

--Renee

:-)

(Top, Golden at the Lille Festival. Following, several photos from his art class in Lille.)

Golden, Texeira and Witterstaetter Join Forces in Lille!

Well, here I am in Lille, a few days left of our massive European Tour that started in Spain, went to Paris and now to Lille. Steve Scott joined us for the first part of the tour and now Tex is with Golden and I in Lille. It's been an amazing journey.

Lille itself is a beautiful and historic city. I've been able to walk around a bit and sit in the square with my cup of cafe au lait. I hope to see a little bit more before I leave and maybe go to Flanders Field. We'll see. In the meantime, there is work to do as well...

--R.

Golden, Texeira and Witterstaetter Join Forces in Lille!

France--The lille Comics Festival doesn't start until Saturday, but Michael Golden, Mark Texeira and Renee Witterstaetter are in the city early to jump start the event with art classes and store signings each day before the show.

Guest of Honor, Michael Golden, known for his groundbreaking work on titles such as The 'Nam, Micronauts, G.I. Joe Yearbook, The Avengers,Batman, and Dr. Strange has dazzled generations of fans and establisheing him as one of the most influential creators in comics, with a body of work that inspired countless artists over the years.

During his career, Golden has been an editor at DC Comics as well as senior art director at Marvel Comics, and has worked on numerous movie production projects, including some currently in development. 

His art has been the focus of gallery shows in places as diverse as New York, Gijon and Barcelona, Antwerp and Brussels, and his class on storytelling has been conducted in Spain, Brussels, Canada, the United States and China. Golden’s recent work can be seen on the covers of Heroes for Hire, Exiles,Demon's Regret, Uncanny X-Men, and Spiderman, among others. Vanguard Production's recently released top-selling art retrospective "Excess: The Art of Michael Golden," written by Renee Witterstaetter, which has gone into a second printing. This year will also see the release of Golden’s new sketchbook, "More Heroes and Villains," from Eva Ink Publishing—a perfect match for last year’s "Heroes and Villains" sketchbook.

In addition, while in Lille, Golden is teaching a 2 hour course at the local art school as part of this important cultural exchange, adding this beautiful and historic city to the list of venues where he is previewing this truncated version of his longer 2 day art class to debut next year.

Mark Texeira is best known for his work on Marvel titles such as Wolverine, Ghost Rider, Moon Knight, Black Panther, and more, showcasing a knack of bringing striking reality, powerful mood, and visceral feeling to any story he tackles. 

His fine-art style has also graced numerous album covers, magazine covers, paperback books, movie tie-ins, and gaming merchandise. His clients include Def Jam Records, Marvel Entertainment, Dynamite, Harris, DC Comics, and pretty much every publisher we could name. His brush has brought to life characters such as Vampirella, Conan, and Batman, as well as Tex's creator-owned character Pscythe. 

Mark is currently working on a new Punisher mini-series for Marvel among much more.

Writer, editor, color artist, and publisher, Renee Witterstaetter began her career working for DC, Marvel, and Topps. After a storytelling immersion in comics, film work was a natural progression for her, and she worked on dozens of commercials and music videos for the likes of Madonna, Seal, and Usher, as well as the feature films Rush Hour Two, and Red Dragon, among others. She is the author of numerous books, including "Dying for Action: The Life and Films of Jackie Chan," "The Fantastic Art of Arthur Suydam," and "The Art of the Barbarian, vols. 1 and 2, the top-selling "Excess: The Art of Michael Golden" and "Tex: The Art of Mark Texeira," and her upcoming mystery novel. She has just recently returned from presenting a new paper at an animation forum in China, as well.

Michael, Mark and Renee will be appearing at comic shops in Lille the two days leading up to the show, signing and taking commission requests. All three will also be on hand both days of the festival. Other guests joining the trio will be: Niko Henrichon, Barry Kitson, Phil Winslade, Mitch Breitweiser, Gary Erskine, Stepahnie Hans, Gerald Parel, Ramon Perez, Karl Kershl,Cameron Stewart, Dave Taylor and Michael Lark.

For more information contact: www.lillecomicsfestival.com

For more information on Golden and Texeira, their commissions, work and appearances, contact: evaink@aol.com

(Above--Texeira, Witterstaetter and Golden on a recent appearance in China.)