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Furry Art

Hello Kitty! Have Some Art!

Think of your favorite so-cute-it-hurts art meme, and chances are at some point it was inspired by the success of Sanrio’s Hello Kitty line.  The little white cat with tiny black eyes (first designed in 1974 by Yuko Shimizu) has become a billion-dollar yearly world phenomenon since first breaking out of Japan in 1976. Now, this October Abrams will bring us Hello Kitty, Hello Art!, a hardcover collection of kitty-inspired illustration. “Hello Kitty, Hello Art! is a celebration of the iconic Hello Kitty character and other beloved Sanrio characters through the eyes of dozens of contemporary artists and Hello Kitty fans, including Gary Baseman, Ron English, Luke Chueh, CRASH, Anthony Lister, Eric Joyner, Camilla d’Errico, Amanda Visell, Colin Christian, Huck Gee, Luke Chueh, Deph, and Yosuke Ueno, among others. This hardcover collectible book features a variety of well-known international artists and their unique interpretations of Sanrio characters in various media, including canvas, spray paint, watercolor and ink, aerosol and acrylics on wood, mixed media, oil on panel, and silk screen. The pieces in the book reflect the many ways Hello Kitty and Sanrio have influenced and inspired so many artists around the world.” Pre-order it on Amazon.

image c. 2012 Abrams

Anthro Calendars for 2013

September is when folks usually start taking orders for art-calendars for the following year — and this one is no exception. Orders are now open for the 2013 Werewolf Calendar, featuring lycanthropic-themed works from artists like Goldenwolf, Kyoht, Vantid, Balaa [See Below], Nimrais, Kyndir, Katie Hofgard, Myenia, and more. According to the calendar web site, orders will open at midnight on September 1st, and the first 150 orders will receive a free werewolf sticker and bookmark as well. Then there’s the Rare Calendar for 2013, which every year features anthropomorphic versions of rare or endangered species — and this year, also features the theme of world cultures. The artists involved include Ashalind, CentraDragon, Tiina Purin, Donna Quinn, SilverFox5213, AlectorFencer, Katmomma, Qzurr, Nimrais, Heather Bruton, BloodhoundOmega, Windfalcon, and Kaji. Orders are being taken right now at the Rare Calender web site.

image c. 2012 by Balaa

Oh, Hiya!

OHiya, the Art of Making Friends is the name for a concept created by illustrator Jason Tharp and a group of fellow artists who live in Ohio (get it?). The idea is to use funny animals and other strange creatures to encourage people to greet one another — be they friends or strangers — and learn more about one another and how to make friends. The creatures of Ohiya each have their own unique personality quirks, and how they learn to get along together with so many differences provides the lessons in friendship that Ohiya is all about. To start things off Mr. Tharp and his associates have created a set of t-shirts, buttons, and posters featuring characters like Mythaken the sasquatch, Zoomi-Pop the panda, and Katinja the… well, cat ninja! More is on the way, and you can see it all at the Ohiya Friends web site.

image c. 2012 by Jason Tharp

Furry Ladies for Furry Ladies

There’s a new, decidedly adult-oriented furry fanzine in the works, and its currently seeking contributions. Its intentions are stated pretty clearly by the title: LFR, which stands for Lesbian Furry Rag. The editors are looking for stories, illustrations, and comics “of the girl-kissing-girl persuasion”, to quote them, and female characters of all body types are welcome. Ratings run from pretty and romantic to full-on erotica, with an emphasis on the pleasure of the ladies, rather than the “fetish” sort of lesbian scene meant to entertain straight males. Visit their Tumblr site to find out more about how to contribute and what they’re looking for.

image c. 2012 LFR

Ursa Major Winners for 2011

Hey there, we’re back among the living. Your ever-lovin’ ed-otter has been down with a very, very nasty sinus infection for no less than two weeks, and is only just now getting back to his feet. So it’s time to play some major catch-up with In-Fur-Nation, yes?

The winners of the Ursa Major Awards were recently announced at a Saturday afternoon ceremony at CaliFur in Irvine, California. The June 2nd show was emcee’d by CaliFur’s own Gary Whalen. Greenreaper was on hand to accept Flayrah’s award for Best Anthropomorphic Magazine. The full list of winners for 2011 looks like this:

Best Anthropomorphic Motion Picture: Kung Fu Panda 2 (Directed by Jennifer Yuh Nelson)

Best Anthropomorphic Dramatic Series or Short Work: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic (Produced by Studio DHX)

Best Anthropomorphic Novel: Isolation Play, by Kyell Gold

Best Anthropomorphic Short Fiction: “How to Get Through the Day”, by Kyell Gold

Best Anthropomorphic Other Literary Work: Nordguard, Book One, by Tess Garman & Teagan Gavet

Best Anthropomorphic Graphic Story: Furthia High, by QuetzaDrake

Best Anthropomorphic Comic Strip: Housepets!, by Rick Griffin

Best Anthropomorphic Magazine: Flayrah

Best Anthropomorphic Website: Equestria Daily

Best Anthropomorphic Published Illustration: Blotch, for the cover of Nordguard, Book One

Best Anthropomorphic Game: Pokemon: Black and White

In addition, the Anthropomorphic Literature and Arts Association (ALAA), which administers the Ursa Major Awards, announced a new “ALAA’s Choice” award for a nominee which the committee felt deserved special mention for its merit. This year that award went to the graphic story Red Lantern by Rukis and Alectorfencer.

The Ursa Major Awards are the “People’s Choice Awards” for anthropomorphic fandom, nominated and awarded every year by votes from regular fans like you. Want to get involved?  Make suggestions? Visit www.ursamajorawards.org to find out more. And start thinking about what to nominate for 2012!

image c. 2012 ALAA

Game Art from Japan

Solatorobo: Red the Hunter is an Ursa Major Award-nominated video game from Japan which (according to its Wikipedia page) is “a spiritual sequel to the Tail Concerto game”, which was also released by Namco Bandai. Now the anime/manga fan site Otaku.com has let us know that the Solatorobo Sketch Book is available for import, and you can order it on their site. It’s expensive (kind of), but it this softcover book features some striking anime-style furry art.

image c. 2012 Namco Bandai

The My Little Pony Project

Don’t look now, but My Little Pony has invaded the world of cool urban art. Actually, they did a long time ago, but with the phenomenal success of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, people’s awareness of ponies as fine art has grown by leaps and bounds. So folks are expecting quite a turn-out for this month’s My Little Pony Project  in Los Angeles, California. Headquartered at the Toy Art Gallery (7571 Melrose Avenue), My Little Pony Project 2012 features 2D and 3D high art from a variety of artists, all dedicated to their interpretations of My Little Pony — the current show and previous incarnations. This year, the gallery is hooking up with several local retail stores in the Melrose high fashion district (including Munky King, Japan L.A., and Joyrich) to display pony art and pony materials. Two of the sponsors of the month-long event (which started today and ends May 26th) include t-shirt maker We Love Fine and DVD maker Shout Factory. Juxtapoz Magazine has a good write-up on their site explaining it all.

image c. 2012 Toy Art Gallery

Cats and Dinosaurs

Okay, so you’ve got a pet dinosaur. Raising one from an egg can be a real pain, er, adventure! Not the very least for your other household pets! That’s the idea behind Kitty & Dino, a new children’s hardcover book written and illustrated by Sara Richard. From the publisher’s press release on Amazon: “When a little boy brings home a dinosaur egg, the cat of the house isn’t too keen on the tiny creature that pops out. But after a few weeks of showing the new baby the ropes, a bond forms between kitty and dino that transcends species.” It’s available for order now, and coming from Yen Press in April.

image c. 2012 Sara Richard

Ursa Major Awards Nominations are Open!

Here’s a press release from Fred Patten of the Ursa Major Awards’ organizing group, the Anthropomorphic Literature and Arts Association: “Nominations are now open for the 2011 Ursa Major Awards, intended to recognize the best works published in the field of anthropomorphics last year. Nominations will close on February 29; voting starts March 15 and closes May 4 (to allow last-minute online voting from Morphicon). Furry fans may nominate up to five works in each category.  The 2011 Awards will be announced and presented in a ceremony at CaliFur VIII in Irvine, California, June 1 – 3, 2012. Award categories include Best Anthropomorphic Motion Picture, Dramatic Short Work or Series, Novel, Short Fiction, Other Literary Work, Graphic Story, Comic Strip, Magazine, Website, Published Illustration, and Game. If you cannot think of five worthwhile nominees in each category, see the 2011 Recommended Anthropomorphics List on the Ursa Major Awards website for suggestions.” Remember, something doesn’t have to be on the Recommended List to be nominated. It just has to have furry characters featured in it prominently, and have been released during the 2011 calender year.  So get started! [And we’ll see you next after Further Confusion!]

image c. 2012 Heather Bruton