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Veronica Casson
166 Plays6 years ago
Another great listen this week with Artist VERONICA CASSON!
"I'm Veronica, an illustrator and queer mom, living the dream with my family in Portland, Oregon.
After being born on the east coast and spending many years in New York City, San Francisco and Mexico, I have recently moved to the Pacific Northwest.
I am an award-winning graphic designer, illustrator and comic artist. My webcomic, Claviger, was nominated for and Ignatz Award at the Small Press Expo.
Currently I am working on the remastered version of Claviger as well as a new comic, Grind Like a Girl, which shares my experiences in the world as a transgendered woman.
Ways you can support my art: buy a print, Patron on Patreon, or hire me for your next project. Cheers!"
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Transcript
Meet the Creators: Ken Valente and Peter Bauer
00:00:01
Speaker
You are listening to something rather than nothing. Creator and host, Ken Valente. Editor and producer, Peter Bauer.
00:00:14
Speaker
There's none of that vibe.
Big Questions in Art
00:00:16
Speaker
It's very much kind of exploratory and another thing too. I mean there's a couple of the bigger questions that I'm sure you notice. You know like what is art and why is there something you know rather than nothing. You know have fun you know kick it around. I mean there's some philosophical questions in there but I just kind of get a like to get an opinion of like
00:00:37
Speaker
you know, take the something rather than nothing. I mean, for me, I've asked that of artists and you can look at it as far as your creative process, right? So like, when you're making something like it's really deep into like, what's going on? Are you building on things, you know, so, right approach the question however you want. And, um,
00:01:01
Speaker
Part of the thing I'm trying to do with this is to have it be kind of popular philosophy in for artists. The idea, I think, as a philosopher for me, I mean, this isn't like a technical philosophical language type of thing. It's about like how people think about things that they do in particular artists and how you think about what you're doing and things that kind of
00:01:26
Speaker
I don't know, just go on in your mind. And I found that listeners are interested in what you're doing. Okay, this is something rather than nothing.
Veronica Casson: Artistic Beginnings
00:01:38
Speaker
And we hear Veronica Casson, an artist, illustrator, does some just wonderful material and a wonderful artist. And Veronica, we just wanted to welcome you to something rather than nothing. Thank you, Ken. I'm excited to be here.
00:01:57
Speaker
Great. Hey, one of the questions we launch right off a lot of times, which can be a bit fun, is to learn about artists and kind of how they looked at the world, you know, when they were younger. What were you like as a young human? I was painfully shy when I was really young and
00:02:22
Speaker
But I had parents who were really outgoing. So there was always people at our house. There was always parties or we were always getting dragged around to events. And I would find myself just sort of like hiding in a corner with like paper and crayons or books or toys and like making up little stories and just kind of trying to isolate myself in this chaos because I didn't like to be on display and my parents were very much display people.
00:02:49
Speaker
or follow my sisters around and try to get involved in what they were doing, but they were pretty much older than me, so they didn't want the little kid around. So I feel like I was in a lot of social settings, but I was also sort of alone being the only kid and not really wanting to engage. But I found my outlet, I think, in stories and comics and books and all that stuff, movies, all that's always really appealed to me. And I think part of that was just the isolation
00:03:18
Speaker
and the shyness kind of living in my imagination, I guess. Yeah. And so, uh, in, in, in you mentioned, you know, comics, I mean, I, I think in the guests that I've had on, uh, on the podcast, uh, one of the things that's come up a lot of the times is, you know, kind of.
From Sketches to Comics
00:03:36
Speaker
in that type of situation, kind of going into a different world, a wonderful kind of fantasy world or, you know, creating that type of thing, were you mostly consuming, you know, comics or, you know, kind of popular art and movies at that time? Or were you also at the same time starting to draw and illustrate and become an artist? I think I mostly was drawing until I didn't get into comics actually until probably like seventh or eighth grade.
00:04:05
Speaker
When I was younger, I loved movies and I really fell in love with concept art books like the sketchbook Every Turn of the Jedi or whatever that stuff was. Yeah. And I would look at these like worlds that these people would build and you'd only see a little bit of on the on the screen. But I would then take my own paper and like add to it. And I love like building these fantasy worlds in my head and just like creating these on paper. So it was mostly drawing and then with like notes and terrible handwriting scribbled all over them.
00:04:35
Speaker
Um, I bet if I saw some of that today, it wouldn't be decipherable, but I remember spending a lot of time just like world building. Yeah. I, um, we've had a couple guests, um, in the, in the, in the comics world, uh, Sean, when and Ethan, uh, slate and, um, uh, one of the, one of the.
00:04:54
Speaker
And I love comic books. I love graphic novels. My dad got me into money when I was just a young boy. And it really stuck with me over time. So I've always appreciated that art form. And I know it's an important one for you as well.
Artistic Influences and Manga's Role
00:05:12
Speaker
What comics, graphic novels, and stories have been influential on the art that you do and you create? Yeah.
00:05:23
Speaker
I think it's changed over time. Like I'll find myself getting absorbed. Like when I first got into comics, I think I got in, oh, in the late eighties that it was very much like Todd McFarlane and Jim Lee were doing, you know, the big Marvel books at the time. Sure. Sure. Yeah. And I got really into that stuff I thought was so cool and neat. Um, and then that was everywhere. And then I got really into anime and manga and I was like,
00:05:48
Speaker
this whole other world is different and explain that. And then I shifted back because I learned about American indie comics. I got really into like stray bullets or strangers in paradise, like all this. And I feel like every time I absorb this genre, there's like pieces of it that stay with me, if that makes sense. Yeah. And then I just, I kind of keep going on that and then keep running. I don't look at for new creators. I'm sorry, I think I spiraled away from the question.
00:06:17
Speaker
No, no, just as one is the the one that you know the comics, you know in this series that you know had an influence on you I mean I saw in kind of some of the things you've listed in your publications. I really like the personal aspect to it I think sometimes artists kind of shy away from that but I like seeing what the playlist is, you know, I saw that and some of your writing but also, you know the comics that were important to you and that that you're reading at that time and I think it's really useful to kind of
00:06:45
Speaker
to capture that. I had mentioned manga, and it's something I hadn't really gotten into, but with no surprise to me, I got into the series, I Am a Hero, which was the Japanese zombie series. And that pulled me into such a degree. I'm like, okay, I'm being pulled into this world big time.
00:07:09
Speaker
Has manga, I mean, starting way back, has that been kind of influential and that's been around you over time? Yeah, it's been a huge influence. I think I just like the whole telling stories with pictures. Like I like the narrative art. But I felt like after I got a little older, like American comics are awesome and there's a lot of great stuff. But it felt very one note after a while. It was all very superheroes in the early 90s. Sure. And then you could get into manga and it was like
00:07:37
Speaker
It had everything that had robots, but it had romance as a cooking manga or like you said, the zombie had very like, you know, if you if you like something, you can find a manga about it. And I think I really like was drawn that you could tell all these other types of stories. There was this comic called Rama One Half, which is really famous. And I think that was the one that really cemented me because it was like slice of life, but it was funny. And the art was like
00:08:03
Speaker
just fantastic. She's one of my biggest influences, still the creator. And she did a lot of groundbreaking work. So I think that just opened up that how much more you could do with comics. And I think once I got into that, I came back to like US stuff and saw the indie stuff like I don't optic nerve or stuff that was very personal. And as you were saying, that like influences me a lot today, this stuff that's like very slice of life or feels very real. But until then, I hadn't seen any of that stuff.
00:08:32
Speaker
I just saw superheroes, which was good, but it kind of limits after a while. Yeah, I'm glad you mentioned Optic Nerve. I think I've really connected to those super personal stories. And there's that element, too, of that super uncomfortable type of thing, where it's like a window. Yeah, it's a window into like, here's this most awkward experience I've ever had. And I'm going to draw it beautifully for you. And you're going to watch me go through this experience, which
00:09:02
Speaker
I've always found the, you know, Daniel Claus and Adrian Tomine and artists like that. And yeah, I connect to those to those as well. And of course, your ongoing series that that that I've talked to you a little bit about and that I had the opportunity to be introduced to and to buy from you at the in the Comic Con and
00:09:28
Speaker
in Portland during the summer was Grind Like a Girl. And it had to do with you growing up trans in the 90s.
Creating 'Grind Like a Girl': A Trans Experience in the 90s
00:09:38
Speaker
And obviously very personal. And I'm really interested in what your experience was both writing and drawing that for you, that deeply personal experience in putting that out there. Can you tell us about that? Yeah, absolutely.
00:09:58
Speaker
So I had been asked, people had mentioned to me like, oh, you know, you're trans, you do comics. It seems like an obvious thing. But I I kind of tried to shy away from that for a while. Like I didn't have any interest in doing a comic. I felt like if I did this comic about being trans, it would very much be like, oh, that's your whole identity. And I feel like that's a pretty small part of my life.
00:10:22
Speaker
I'm more than just the trans girl. I felt like doing that would pigeon me whole as the trans artist. Even though people asked me about it for years, I was like, we'll see. But then obviously I'm doing that now. I had a change of heart. I think what really happened, there was a couple of things. But one of them is a close friend of mine had a kid. She was the first one in a friend group to have a kid and the kid identified as trans.
00:10:51
Speaker
having known me, you know, their parents had a lot like, she had an easier time with her kid because she was like, oh, all this stuff I see in the media, which at the time wasn't that nice. And like, it seemed to be like a doom, like, oh, you have a trans kid, they're going to have a really terrible life. But she knew me and was like, oh, you can be like Veronica and that's fine. You're going to be fine. And by helping this one kid, I felt like, oh, getting my story out there at this point is probably helpful just to see an example of like, oh,
00:11:21
Speaker
There was more people like this, that, and then politics got kind of rough and I felt like maybe maybe it's a necessity to show more viewpoints. So I sat and I was like, okay, let me do this. But I set out for myself a few goals where I was, I kind of, I roll at transition stories because I felt like for a long time, any of the trans stuff, when I was younger, I'd eat up any trans stuff I could.
00:11:47
Speaker
But most of it was all about the transition and I was like, I don't know, I want to do a transition story. So I try to make it universal and it's more about, I mean, it has the specifics of transition, but it's also just about finding yourself and the joy of like, oh, I don't know who I am because I'm this kid and this world, I don't feel fits me correctly, but I've learned who I am and I get closer and closer. There's a lot of joy to be had in contentment and I think that's
00:12:17
Speaker
more universal. So I'm telling a trans story, but I'm also just trying to tell a story of like coming of age and finding out who you are in a world that maybe says that's not who you are. You shouldn't be. And that's that. And that that's the big goal, I guess. Well, that that that absolutely comes true, Veronica. I mean, I've I've I've I've read, you know, the issues and it really does come through as a matter of fact.
00:12:43
Speaker
You know, I was reading it and experiencing it, but I believe those universal themes are right there. So I mean, if that's part of your intent, I really think you accomplished that. And I think you do it both through your words. I mean, you're talking about the experience of like finding yourself and being younger and finding yourself. So there's a universality to that.
00:13:03
Speaker
Um, but also the images, right? So we're talking about comics and, you know, at your, at your, at your powers, at your, uh, artistic powers, you have both a word in, in image. And I think the images, uh, really reinforce, um, what your intent was there. Um, and yeah, and within, within that, that's that, that story, of course, you know,
00:13:29
Speaker
I think we can reasonably say that you know things are different now in in a complicated way, right because we have reactionary politics, but we also have Identity in this great wonderful human experience of like being able to create space to become yourself but that wasn't the world when you know when when when you were going through that and
00:13:59
Speaker
Do you have any? Did you have to take into account or when you were creating grind like a girl? What was going on then now then?
Portland's Artistic Influence
00:14:10
Speaker
And feeling what was going on now and how did that inform what you were trying to do? Yeah, it's really interesting because I feel pretty recently I feel like the politics around gender and trans that has really shifted And it's certainly way more talked about than it had been for most of my life. I
00:14:28
Speaker
Something that always comes up to me is when I'm doing scenes that are very time-specific and the characters are using language that isn't used anymore, but was very common when I was growing up. Transgender wasn't even a word yet. It was all transsexual or cross-dressed or something like that. I'm always really aware when I'm
00:14:53
Speaker
how much I have to explain, like, remember this is 1994 to the audience to not either offend them or just to really set it in a place. Um, but I also don't want it to feel stale. Again, why I try to, like, this was my personal issue and this is how I dealt with it. And these were my circumstances. Um, even though they're not there now, I also, I know I live in Portland and before that with San Francisco and New York. So it's definitely kind of a bubble and maybe some people, it still feels the way it's home to me in the nineties. I'm not sure.
00:15:24
Speaker
Yeah, and and I noticed that about some of the some of the areas that you've lived in and you're recently to the Pacific Northwest and And in in Portland, what do you what are your impressions of? Pacific Northwest in general, but Portland Coming from you know some some different areas that you lived other metropolitan areas. What's been your impressions? I
00:15:49
Speaker
Oh, I love it. I love it so much. It feels like home almost immediately. And we were scared to move here. We didn't really know anybody. It was just sort of like we visited a few times. We were looking for a new place to go. And I love the weather. I love how there's like this liberal urban environment, but there's still nature. Like there's trees everywhere, even downtown. It's so lovely. It's so lovely, isn't it?
00:16:15
Speaker
And I love cozy like fall sweater weather and we get that for a lot of the year. But then we still have our summers. I think it's really fabulous. I also always heard like the keep Portland weird thing and I was like, oh, I guess it's really weird quote unquote. But what I think as I've been here a couple years now, I feel like what it is is people have these like passions they're kind of interested in, but Portland like people just go for it. Like if you're into board gaming, let's say,
00:16:44
Speaker
There's like a lot of board game stores and like, you could find your culture or if you're into like soccer or, you know, vinyl, like whatever, whatever it is, I feel like everyone just like, these are my likes and I'm going to go for it. And I really appreciate that. I think it's neat to be around everyone and kind of exploring their passion maybe.
00:17:02
Speaker
I felt that here too. As a matter of fact, the most positive aspect, I mean, people, let's take Portland. I mean, people talk a lot, you know, in different ways about Portland and have an opinion and locals and natives and, you know, outsiders. But for me, the main piece, you know, I'm a 47 year old white man, you know, and I come from, you know, just the, you know, my perspective in my history.
00:17:30
Speaker
Portland's like super comfortable and what I mean by that is Portland's super comfortable for me in a way as a white man that I think and other people can have very different experiences of it, right? So it's a very complicated dynamic. One of the pieces that I think is very vibrant and universal is what you talked about is this creativity of this being yourself, of this expressing yourself, expressing your craft, expressing your art.
00:17:59
Speaker
And I felt, and I always feel, walking around Portland, I'm just gonna say my experience and what's been good is, I feel super comfortable around that. It feels like people are doing their thing and expressing themselves. And at least at this point in my life, that's an environment that's very healthy. And I think it can be healthy for artists.
00:18:25
Speaker
And I'm glad I'm glad you've been able to connect with that in comic book culture, right? And then in film and all that. Yeah, it's all huge here. It's it's huge in painters and in an artist. So, yeah, I'm glad I'm glad you I'm glad. And just in connection to that, it sounds like you connect to some of the natural aspects like the nature that's just readily around in the state of Oregon. Is that the case as well?
00:18:55
Speaker
Yeah. I mean, I'm, I'm generally very much more of an urban person. Like I like the city, but it feels good to be around these trees. And my wife really likes nature. So she's always more interested in like moving further out. And I'm like, no, I need to stay by a city. I need bookstores and comics. So now we have it. We like, we found an area where we're like 15 minutes from both. We could get like deep in the forest or I could be downtown at Powell's like,
00:19:22
Speaker
And that's great. That's what I need. That's what I need to function as a family unit, I think. Yeah. One of the questions I'm wondering, I think I have some aspects of the answer in my head for you, but I'm always very interested in artists as far as there's this kind of compulsion to create things or to draw things or maybe process their experience. Do you know why?
00:19:49
Speaker
You choose to create the things you can that you create or what what compels you or what drives you to create? Yeah, I feel like part of it like I love stories like I'm I'm huge reader of literature and movies and TV shows like I just love stories and
00:20:11
Speaker
I have them in me. I just want to tell stories. And I think I've tried doing some writing here and there. I've done different things, but I think generally that's.
00:20:21
Speaker
But my favorite is comics. So that's the medium I picked to try to get better at. But I really just like telling stories. I have different ideas. And a lot of it is just like me sucking in the world around me, whether that's my friends or culture. And I just kind of put it through my own lens and spit it back out on the page. I think it's just creating as like me. And sometimes it's science fiction or sometimes it's fantasy.
00:20:47
Speaker
but it's still really just my experience of the world and how I relate to it coming back out. So it's regurgitating. I'm trying to think of a less gross word, but it's- No, I think that's used a lot in art. I think it's totally fine. Is Portland changing what you create? Oh, absolutely. What you said about feeling comfortable in the city and like it just people that, I don't think I would have done this comic if I didn't move to Portland. Okay, wow. I never really spoke about being trans.
00:21:16
Speaker
that much in public or to people around me. I think there's people in my life for years who didn't even know I was trans and some that do, but I came here and I felt so comfortable in my own skin that it was like, oh, I'm who I am and I can tell this
The Compulsion to Create and Find Inspiration
00:21:29
Speaker
story. And I found, like I said, that need for it. And I'm like, okay, I feel so not, you know, judged or that I have to be so aware of offending or who I am. I can just be me and all my likes and dislikes and
00:21:42
Speaker
That helped inform all my art, but definitely it gave me the freedom to create Grind Like a Girl. Yeah, I've zeroed in at times with some questions, both for myself and in doing the podcast. And I've become a bit more interested in the impact of locations. And I think Portland is going to have an impact.
00:22:06
Speaker
You know on on how you create or in I actually thinks it's an accelerant in my opinion Yeah as far as what you can do or the or the comfort and feeling that you're expressing yourself in an artistic way and So I I mentioned a lot about a lot about you know art and things that we see as art a question I like to ask artists like yourself is a
00:22:32
Speaker
What do you view as being art? What is art in your opinion? My favorite answer, I've heard this question, I think about it a lot. And my favorite answer is one that Kurt Vonnegut gives. And he always said, we'll ask him, what is art? He says the mission, I'm paraphrasing, but it's close to this. He says the mission of artists is to make people appreciate being alive at least a little bit. And I think that's really cool.
00:23:00
Speaker
I was gonna stop you as soon as sir Kurt Vonnegut ring a bell something like that that I love Vonnegut and What a what a love you know what and after you mentioned that you know that paraphrase that quote Yeah, that that that's Vonnegut right there, but boy does that capture that really does capture a
00:23:22
Speaker
Uh, it feels like it captures it, doesn't it? Yeah, I think so. And I try to keep that in mind too. Like always entertain your audience. You're using a stranger's time. That's something else he says when you're making art, you're using a stranger's time. Use it wisely or, or something like that. That'll feel like their time is used well. Um, yeah, I've always felt that, um,
00:23:44
Speaker
I don't know, as a comic book lover, and maybe you share this, if you're familiar with Breakfast of Champions, Vonnegut's book was, you know, where, you know, here's this great novelist, short story writer, and then he dares to start drawing, and the results are just as fantastical as we would want them to be.
00:24:07
Speaker
Um, I think one of the reviews for the book was, you know, yeah, this is Vonnegut and guess what? He draws. And I think that was probably enough.
00:24:18
Speaker
to sell the book. I'm going back to Portland and impact on, you know, creating things. Do you find that being around the art that you see in Portland? Do you feel that it's an infectious atmosphere both for you but also people that are around you? Have you noticed changes in that way?
Portland's Comic Community
00:24:38
Speaker
I think so. Something I didn't even realize that before I got here
00:24:43
Speaker
is that there's a huge comic book community here. Like a lot of the publishers are here now. There's people all over, there's all the used bookstores are full of comics. And that wasn't something that informed me before I got here. But most of my life, a lot of my inspiration came to from my friends, my peers who I'd sit around and draw with. And I think I lost that for a couple of years, probably a good chunk of time, especially when I was a stayed-home mom for a few years.
00:25:12
Speaker
And I came here and I found pretty immediately this thriving comics community. And I see all these people making art and it's just fun, like just getting back to hanging out in coffee shops and drawing art and talking about art. And I think everybody inspires each other. And if you're sort of feeling like, oh, I'm not really feeling it.
00:25:31
Speaker
But, you know, your friends, you're seeing them create or they're talking about creating and get you like kind of like, yeah, let me just get back to it. Let's let's all do this. And we're having a good time. And that's what it should be. It should be like an enjoyable process. Some of it won't be, of course, but it's really inspiring. And I think it affects everybody here. I like to think that's part of why there's so much creation going on.
00:25:53
Speaker
Yeah. And I, you know, as far as the community, I think you're pointing to, and I've always, I'm interested, you know, I work in a collective movement. I work for a labor union and I've always viewed when, you know, individual activity, of course, being, you know, fascinating and vital, you know, what individuals create, but also the environment which creates, you know, whether it's, you know, good working conditions, whether it's, you know, good artistic, you know, creation conditions,
00:26:21
Speaker
I really connect with, you know, and I'm interested in how artists, you know, whether the environment that they're in is helping them and is helping foster that. And I get excited when I see others that are around that. And I saw that within what you were doing. And of course, you're affirming that, you know, what you create, you know, might have come out of a move, might have come out of arriving
00:26:49
Speaker
in an environment. And so one of the things that I asked artists as well, and I think your story about doing Grind Like A Girl and its connection to helping others, right? And that compelling you.
00:27:16
Speaker
Did you feel any sort of duty as an artist to do that at a certain point? Was that the threshold that you got
Representing Trans Stories and Their Importance
00:27:27
Speaker
to? That you had this ability, you're not obligated, but did you feel, I guess, did you feel obligated or compelled? I kind of did, in not a bad way, in a way like, oh,
00:27:41
Speaker
I didn't have this many examples when I was younger, and I'm in a great place now. I have a great kid. I have a happy marriage. Life is awesome, and I know younger me didn't know that was going to work out, and I'm sure there's more. So I felt an obligation, like, oh, if I have this art. Originally, like I said, I wasn't ever going to do a transition story. My whole plan was just to do normal stories or whatever and just make sure there's
00:28:08
Speaker
you know, inclusive diversity in the cast, like different LGBT characters and trans characters. But then I did feel a duty. Like if I could help other people, I had helped that one kid and I was like, there's there's got to be more people. So why don't I do this? And it's weird. It's scary. Sometimes it's a scary story. Sometimes there's some weird pushback and it's hard opening up.
00:28:30
Speaker
I had actually started it a few years earlier. And then I had my son and I was like, this is too private to share with the world. And also kind of like as a as a as a mom, not wanting like, oh, maybe my son isn't gonna want my life story out there. But then I know I do, I felt obligated, like I can help people and
00:28:52
Speaker
you know, it's going back to the Vonnegut thing, like, you know, make art a little bit better or appreciate people being alive a little bit. So if I could do that, that's pretty great. Yeah. And it's, it's, it's, it's very powerful and thanks for describing, you know, your, your connection to it and your experience of it. I mean, that's, it's part of what, what I think is fascinating about, you know, some of the basic questions, you know, the, about what artists are doing and,
00:29:20
Speaker
And why are you creating and what compels you to do it? And as part of the thing is within this podcast of creating something from nothing. We have that big question that is the big question of the show is, why do you think there is something rather than nothing? I think that everyone is looking to see themselves represented somewhere else. Like everyone's looking for themselves. And I think people create
00:29:48
Speaker
when there's always that thing where if there's a book you want to read and it doesn't exist, write it. And I feel the same way with comics or music. So I feel like I'm looking for myself and I don't find it. So I'm going to create something. So we're all creating something to show we exist and to help others like us. I think that that's the, to be seen, I think would be my, my thoughts on that. Yeah. And gosh, that's an intriguing answer. Um,
00:30:17
Speaker
I know one of the things that I've started to think about in doing this show is that artists, of course, as you create over time, you end up creating different type of things that are part of your history.
00:30:35
Speaker
And I really feel fortunate to be able to chat with you and learn about what your recent creation and kind of follow that development both in changing geography and being around an environment that really cultivates your art. So that really lends to kind of like the open-ended piece for me is
00:31:04
Speaker
I'm really interested to see what you do, what you are, and where you go with it. Can you share with the listeners to whatever comfort level as far as what you're working on, how they can connect with the art that you create, and I know you do commissions. Can you connect the audience to you in that way?
Connecting with Veronica's Work
00:31:24
Speaker
Yeah, absolutely. I think the best way to find my work and where I'm most active is Instagram. I post there. I try to do a comic page every week.
00:31:34
Speaker
And then in between, I'll post a couple other things. And my Instagram is saltandfog. And that's it. I mean, I also have a website, which is veronicacassum.com and all that stuff.
00:31:46
Speaker
But really, people, if they're interested, like check out my Instagram, direct message me, tell me what you're interested in. I do some commissions coming up really soon. I'm going to do Inktober, which have you heard of Inktober, Ken? I've heard of Inktober. Can you tell me a little bit more about it and the listeners as well? Sure. It was a challenge started by, I think, Jake Parker. And it's to there's a list of official prompts.
00:32:11
Speaker
And it's every day in October where you're supposed to be inspired to draw with pen and paper or some kind of ink and all work on a similar prompt. So it starts on October 1st and it always starts out really easy and inspired and then by like halfway through, everyone's like, whoa, there's still 15 drawings left. And I'm sharing these with everybody. So this year, this is my third year in a row, I'm gonna really buckle down and do inktober.
00:32:38
Speaker
And for that one, I'm actually working on concept art for my project after Grind Like a Girl, which is probably a few years away. But it's fun to think about another story and hopefully that'll even help kind of refresh my feelings of Grind Like a Girl because I've been working on it for two or three years and then to kind of think about something else and come back to it. So I'll be posting those on Instagram and then I'll have a gallery show of all my Inktober stuff at the Sequential Art Gallery in Portland sometime in November.
00:33:08
Speaker
Wonderful. Yeah, that's fantastic. And thanks for the reminder about in October and it's actually you know, perfect perfect timing because This episode will pop up right at the beginning of October and it'll be great to follow
00:33:24
Speaker
You doing that and I think part of it I'm sure you know from from me on the outside mark not participating but but viewing that it's a little bit easier and if there's any way that I and listeners and others can help Prop the artists up as they can produce all the way through October
00:33:43
Speaker
It'd be a great activity to help support your art. Yeah, to cheer everybody on. Everyone is doing it, especially halfway. We're like, oh, keep going. Because there's a lot of great stuff seen, but it's a lot. It's a lot of work. It's a lot of work. And in Veronica Casson, here on Something Rather Than Nothing, it's been
00:34:08
Speaker
A great pleasure to chat with you, and I actually very much look forward to a bunch of the things you just mentioned that we can look forward to you and in your art. And again, on Instagram, you can find Veronica at Salt and Fog, which is a great Instagram page. I follow it and just a lovely art to enjoy. I wanted to thank you so much, Veronica, for your time.
00:34:35
Speaker
And just really in doing this podcast, being able to listen to and connect to your process, you know, the things that you're doing, it's really been a great pleasure to chat with you. And I really wanted to thank you for your time and all the art that you produce. Thank you so much, Ken. This was great. I love your podcast. This has been really fun to talk to you and be part of it. Great.
00:35:03
Speaker
Thank you so much Veronica, and we look forward to Inktober, right? Okay, yeah, absolutely. You take care, thank you so much. You are listening to something rather than nothing.