CCS Appreciation Week - Vermont Cartoonist Laureate: James Kochalka
Originally published at RKdia Comics. You can comment here or there.
Today is a great day for Vermont and a great day for Comics as a whole:
In recognition of the appointment, a day-long celebration is planned. Events include recognition at the State House in Montpelier by Vermont Representatives, a comics workshop for Berlin Elementary School students at the The Kellogg-Hubbard Library, and a class visit to Elm Hill School in Kochalka’s home town of Springfield, Vermont.
Kochalka will give a talk to the students of The Center for Cartoon Studies at 4pm at Tupelo Music Hall, 188 South Main Street, White River Junction, Vermont. This talk is free and open to the public. For more info, call (802) 295-3319.
The day ends with a concert by the band James Kochalka Superstar at Tupelo Music Hall at 8pm
For tickets and info, visit: tupelohallvermont.com
Like Vermont’s poet laureate, the cartoonist laureate is a person whose primary residence is Vermont, whose work manifests a high degree of excellence, who has produced a critically acclaimed body of work, and who has a long association with Vermont. In his three-year term, James Kochalka will commemorate significant Vermont events in comics and serve as an ambassador for cartooning-an art form that engages readers of all ages.
For more information on James Kochalka, visit: americanelf.com
CCS Played an enormous roll in having former CCS Proffessor James Kochalka, a Vermont celebrity and long-time Burlington Cartoonist, appointed as the Nation’s first Cartoonist Laureate.
Most people on the internet would recognize Kochalka for his song “Monkey Versus Robot” circa early 2000′s as a part of his indie rock/chip-tune band James Kochalka Superstar:
Click to viewand “Don’t Trust Whitey”
Of course you can’t be the state’s Cartoonist Laureate without doing some Comics right?!
Well James has been drawing comics since high school. Nearly every day. Since October 26, 1998, Kochalka has kept a daily diary comic strip. These strips have been published by Top Shelf Productions, first as The Sketchbook Diaries and then in collected form as American Elf. The complete archive of daily strips is now available as a webcomic at American Elf.com.
He also has several graphic novels available, selling over 5,000 copies each!
As listed above there are tons of events planned all across Vermont today in honor of James, and only in WRJ will you find the local bakery creating his character Johnny Boo in cookie form:
CONGRATS JAMES!
-RD
Above photo ©2011 Jen Vaughn
Music Video’s © James Kochalka Superstar