(This was recorded with an iPhone, so please forgive the low audio quality.)
Sponsored by The Creative Writing Program at Carnegie Mellon University, cartoonist Ed Piskor gave a presentation about his career and a wide array of topics ranging from comics, art, juggling between commercial and personal work, the importance of word of mouth, and creating your own opportunities.
Ed's work caught the eye of underground comics legend Harvey Pekar, of American Splendor fame. Forging a working relationship for 5 years, the two collaborated on many comic strips and two graphic novels, Macedonia and The Beats.
Ed has produced his own self-published, self-distributed, comics called Wizzywig, about the history of computer hackers, high tech, and the cultural implications thereof. Those comics have been retooled into a graphic novel collection coming out this summer from Top Shelf Productions.
Currently he's producing Hip Hop Family Tree, a comprehensive history of Hip Hop music in comic form, detailing all of the key relationships, events, and landmarks required to turn a niche, Bronx scene into a global phenomenon in such a short period of time. You can read new chapters every Tuesday.
