Click on these images for a HI-rez view.
I was enormously fortunate to play a small role in the final book from my friend Mac Tonnies. This was a truly a powerful and bittersweet experience, forcing me to reflect on what it means to be human. I did a series of eleven illustrations, simple black & white chapter openers. As indulgent as it sounds, I am convince that Mac was in the room with me during my time at the desk with my pens.
There is a lot more to this story, and much of it is emotional and challenging. It was a very confusing way to grieve the loss of a friend. I will write more soon - when I can better articulate my mixed-up sentiments.
Anomalist books has a page up to promote Mac's book, THE CRYPTOTERRESTRIALS, this is an extremely important work by one of our great thinkers.
10 comments:
Love your drawings. You are so talented.
be well
much love
Thank you Stacey (with an E)!
Great drawings Mike. Think Mac's other friends such as Paul Kimball etc. will appreciate them too. (Especially the first one.)
That's freaking awesome! You should made that one into a full poster.
Will you be making a portrait of Mac for the back of the dust jacket?
When you write more about the development of the illustrations, I'll be sure to post it to share it with my peeps at The Grail :)
Thanks for this
PS: I notice you haven't signed those illustrations. I strongly recommend you to do that, because they'll be circulating in the net in no time (and I'll be partly to blame, but although I'll make sure to give you due recognition for your amazing artwork, there may be other that won't)
Alas - I never sign anything. I stopped that - like - 20 years ago (or more?). I my previous life, I did a lot of advertising work in the 80's and you never bother to sign any of that stuff - and I got out of the habit. And - I was in NYC during the whole east village art scene, and it gave me the creeps! I used to paint, and I would sign under a pseudonym (I signed FINN with a copyright "C"). Part of that was to be "cool" and part of it was not wanting to "join a club" of posers.
So, maybe the fact that I don't sign anything is even more of an ego thing than if I did.
Nevertheless, you should at least include a text that says "(c)Mike Clelland" or something... IMO
I havent been here in a while tho I have checked in time to time to see whatz going on... MacTonnies I knew almost nothing about until I had the chance- thanks to you- to look at his site and his thoughts. I am sure, having done that, this book will be, is, fascinating. And your artwork is fantastic! I love black and white...
I have been trying to follow your conversation with Regan and havent finished it yet and just now noticed your interview with Anne Strieber... you are busy.
This conundrum all of us are involved in, one way or the other, everyone that visits this site I am sure has found their own entrance to this maze, is still a bit of a siren song to me.
One of the most profound things I have read about the whole phenomenon is something you put down at the very beginning of your blog.
"Does she think the string is alive? I can’t help but think this is exactly what’s happening to us. To me, this phenomenon is similar to that piece of string. It wiggles out in front of us, but it’s simply impossible to catch. Does my cat have a way to perceive the string as a string? Maybe, but she doesn’t seem to be that insightful, her reality is that it’s a wonderful and special living thing that magically amplifies her very being. The string-game can get so overwhelming that she gets positively unhinged with excitement."
Really it seems to me most of our questions are beside the point: I think the one thing maybe we dont grasp is that point.
Thank you for discussing your feelings and experiences about the drawing process. I hope you will be able to write a little more about it. I plan to post something on my blog about working with you on the cigarette lady illustration (the "police sketch" process). Like you, I kinda felt like Mac was looking over my shoulder as I recollected additional bits and pieces of the incident.
Some very cool illustrations and makes me, even more, want to get the new book! I'll get it anyway, but those eye candy teasers you've provided definitely make it all the more enticing.
I didn't know Mac as well as some of his closer friends, but we did have a good deal of discussions over the past few years, particularly in relation to some of his CRYPTOTERRESTRIAL ideas (of which we shared many views), and theoretical black holes (as well as music).
In all my years on the net, Mac was one of the most genuine, intellectual, and personable people I've stumbled across and his perspective will definitely be missed.
Hope to see you often over at the new http://macbots.wordpress.com/ ! It will never replace POSTHUMAN BLUES, but I'll be damned if I won't try and help keep the energy flowing however I can. Mac was a prolific blogger, and thus, needs a prolific tribute blog! At least that's my belief.
Have a nice weekend, be well...
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