Press release at
this link.
PORTLAND, ME – (April 29, 2010) –
Jay Piscopo announces the release of his new “Creatures of the Sea” coloring book. This book will debut at the Maine Comics Arts Festival on Sunday, May 23.
Piscopo is the author and illustrator of
“The Undersea Adventures of Capt’n Eli” graphic novel series.
“This coloring book gives me a chance to highlight Capt’n Eli and some of the major characters in the series as well as the opportunity to show artwork of exotic and dangerous creatures from the sea,” said Piscopo.
From a walrus to a giant octopus to eels and lionfish, each page highlights a single character in a scene with a real or fantastical sea creature.
“A hero in conflict with a giant octopus has been a staple of many pulp adventure and comic book covers and I was inspired by that tradition,” continued Piscopo. “Creatures of the Sea” features three giant octopus scenes, two with the main character, Capt’n Eli. “You’ll also see Sea Ghost racing with sea turtles and Golden Age Commander X and Circe the Sorceress struggle with a giant crab monster.”
(Follow
this link to view vintage pulp and comic book covers with a giant octopus theme.)
Created in his signature retro style, this 12-page book is suitable for kids of all ages. Priced at $2, this book is family affordable and, like “The Undersea Adventures of Capt’n Eli,” is something that can be enjoyed together as a family activity.
Coloring is one of the oldest and simplest activities and Piscopo has received a lot of response from adults looking forward to this book because they grew up with coloring books and still color as a hobby.
“When I was a kid coloring books seemed to be everywhere,” noted Piscopo. “Today they exist but not in the same abundance. This book is my homage to the heyday of the coloring book fad of the 1960s and 70s. I was greatly influenced by Alex Toth’s coloring book work from the 1960s and inspired by that standard.”
Follow
this link for more about Alex Toth. Samples of Toth’s coloring book work can be viewed
here and
here.
Following the festival, “Creatures of the Sea” will be available for purchase exclusively online at
www.captneli.com.
On Saturday, May 22 at 10:00am Piscopo will kick off the Maine Comics Arts Festival with a free Kids Cartooning Workshop at the Portland Public Library. In this hour-long workshop, children ages 7-12 are invited to try their hand at cartoon art. Using simple geometric shapes, Piscopo will demonstrate how to build figures and perspective to create art that tells a story.
For a behind the scenes look at this interactive workshop, visit this
link.
More about the Maine Comics Arts Festival: The Maine Comics Arts Festival will be held Sunday, May 23 from 10:00am – 5:00pm at Ocean Gateway on the Portland waterfront. Admission is $5 and kids 12 and under are free. Workshops and panels will take place on Saturday, May 22 at the Portland Public Library. More information can be found at this
link.
More about Jay Piscopo: Piscopo has been making state-of-the-art children's entertainment for nearly 20 years. He served as an art director at Tom Snyder Productions, where he led the creative team in the production of educational CD-ROMs, including the award-winning “Fizz and Martina Math Adventures” and was as an animator on the ABC Saturday morning show “Squigglevision.” He was also the co-creator of the internationally distributed comic book series featuring the world’s first disabled superheroes, “The Scrap City Pack Rats,” which he created in partnership with Goodwill Industries. Jay is an engaging presenter who has conducted hundreds of comics workshops and classroom events teaching drawing and storytelling techniques. He resides in his hometown of Portland, Maine.
More about “The Undersea Adventures of Capt’n Eli”: With his companions Jolly Roger, a 200-year-old parrot, and the faithful seadog Barney, Capt’n Eli takes readers into a mesmerizing world of time travel, high-tech ships, flying mini-subs, robots, lost civilizations, and undersea empires in conflict. Volumes 1 and 2 are available now and Volume 3 is scheduled for release in 2010. This series is published by Nemo Publishing and distributed nationally by Diamond Comics Distributors.
Capt'n Eli's origins are quite unique. He’s the namesake of real-life World War II veteran Eli Forsley who was also the inspiration for a line of hand-crafted sodas from Portland, Maine. Read more at
this link.
www.captneli.com###
WHAT: 
Portland, Maine comic book artist Jay Piscopo is the creator of The Undersea Adventures of Capt’n Eli graphic novel series. He will be doing free super hero sketches for fans and highlighting his new Sea Ghost comic book which was just noted as one of the top aquatic super heroes of all time by Comic Book Resources.
Educators and Librarians: Check out today's Portland Press Herald to read about John Shableski's "The World of Graphic Novels" workshop for librarians and educators this Saturday at 11:00 at the Portland Public Library. More detail about this FREE workshop is below. 
Jay Piscopo kicks off the Maine Comics Arts Festival with a free kids comics drawing workshop 
PORTLAND, ME – (May 3, 2010) – Maine comic book artist Jay Piscopo will kick off the Maine Comics Arts Festival with a free kids comics drawing workshop. Piscopo is the author and illustrator of “The Undersea Adventures of Capt’n Eli” graphic novel
These two photos are from graphic novel artist Jay Piscopo's three-part comics drawing class at The Port Teen Center in Freeport, Maine. The Port is an amazing place and the students were lots of fun to work with. 
In May, he will present his hour-long interactive Draw on Your Creativity workshop at the following schools: 
PORTLAND, ME – (April 29, 2010) – Jay Piscopo announces the release of his new “Creatures of the Sea” coloring book. This book will debut at the Maine Comics Arts Festival on Sunday, May 23.
Created in his signature retro style, this 12-page book is suitable for kids of all ages. Priced at $2, this book is family affordable and, like “The Undersea Adventures of Capt’n Eli,” is something that can be enjoyed together as a family activity.
Following the festival, “Creatures of the Sea” will be available for purchase exclusively online at www.captneli.com.
Were you at the Maine Comics Arts Festival? Add your photos to the Maine Comics Arts Festival Flickr Group HERE.
Heidi MacDonald was at the Festival and posted a great report and pics in her Publishers Weekly column The Beat.
Wow! What a festival! Rick, Laura and the Casablanca Comics team put on a fantastic Maine Comics Arts Festival at Ocean Gateway in Portland, Maine, overlooking beautiful Portland harbor and Casco Bay. Check out photos HERE and stay tuned for video and even more photos this week. 
Jay Piscopo and The Undersea Adventures of Capt'n Eli crew were pumped to see so many families at the festival. Kids are the core (and future) of comics and it was great to see that in action in our hometown of Portland. We were proud to be a part of this fantastic show with so many great creators. 
Jay Piscopo and the Capt'n Eli crew look forward to seeing everyone today at the Maine Comics Arts Festival. Stop by Ocean Gateway Terminal in Portland, Maine today between 10:00 and 5:00. Jay will be doing free convention sketches and the Capt'n Eli's Soda crew will be there handing out free soda samples for attendees. For directions and more about the festival click HERE. Stand by for adventure!
Last night, The Inn on Peaks Island hosted a fantastic VIP reception for comics creators attending the festival. A great time was had by all! The Inn is hosting many creators, educators, and comics reviewers as guests this weekend as part of its support for the festival.
You're in for a treat! The Capt'n Eli's Soda crew will also be there handing out free soda samples throughout the festival. 
On Sunday May 17 from 10-5, Jay Piscopo and The Undersea Adventures of Capt'n Eli crew will be at the Maine Comics Arts Festival in our beautiful hometown of Portland, Maine. You're in for a treat because the Capt'n Eli's Soda team will also be there offering free soda to festival-goers! This first-year festival is presented by Casablanca Comics. 
