Chris Kuzma

Complex #2 available now!

2011-11-24T13:30:00.008-05:00

The second issue of my comic book COMPLEX has arrived!

In this issue, we leave Terry and his search for the Beastlord, and instead follow the adventures of the Ducktectives as they teleport through the levels of Complex to the murky depths of Swamplex.

Will they find the elusive Xenotaur? Will Sully and Greta exorcise the demon occupying Greta's body? Pick up an issue to find out!

Also, this issue contains a new Blobby Boys comic by Alex Schubert!

The book is 30 pages, and it's worth every penny.

$5 CAD plus shipping.

Order your copy at the top right corner of this blog.

ENDGAME

2011-11-22T21:34:00.006-05:00

A poster I just finished for Vancouver's Main Street Theatre Company.

I will have to add a lot more text and logos as the actual play approaches, but this is a preliminary teaser to entice the west coast crowds.

This was a hard one to come up with, as Beckett's scripts are so...abstract.

Anyways, I always like these MST posters because I am given free reign to try whatever I want. In this case, I decided to do almost everything on computer, something I've never done before. So yeah, everything but the text was drawn with my tablet. Futuristic.

It's not something I am going to adopt for all of my illustration, but it was fun to experiment with. Like college and drugs.

Many thanks to Daryl, Josh, Ryan, and Stephen. Dudes.

Montecristo Magazine

2011-11-22T20:52:00.005-05:00

I recently did this for an article in an upcoming issue of Montecristo magazine, and let me tell you, it was a tough go. I'm quite happy with the final, but I had a very hard time coming up with it.

The article in question is about the Human Security Report Project: A SFU based think tank that analyses the changing statistics in organized violence throughout the world. Very interesting stuff, actually. The study has found that the number of armed conflicts around the world has decreased in recent years and that, despite what most of us think, the world is safer now than it was in the 1950's.

The art director mentioned that he liked the anthropomorphic approach I've taken in some of my images and asked if I could come up with something in a similar vein for this one. Long story short, it was a real challenge coming up with a single image of a human-like character that represents the fact that worldwide peace is more prevalent now than one would think.

I usually go for a short walk when I need to come up with an idea.

I took a lot of walks.

This one stressed me out, but I'm glad for the experience. Hey, if you're not challenging yourself, you're redundant. In the end, I'm happy with the image I made and I really appreciate that the art director (inadvertently) put me in such a pickle.

Thanks a million to Mark!

NUVO Magazine

2011-11-22T20:43:00.004-05:00

An illustration I did for an upcoming issue of NUVO Magazine. The article is a humourous look at the tendency to use the 'football field' as a means of measuring large objects. Particularly glaciers.

I think I need to stop using that reddish-orange in so many illustrations. It's worn out its welcome.

Thanks so much to Mark on this one!

Squidface and The Meddler

2011-11-12T16:37:00.005-05:00

A few months ago, I did an interview for the excellent blog Squidface and The Meddler.
I was very busy this past summer and I completely forgot to post it here.
So anyways, check it out here: interview
They also posted a bit of my comic work here: comics
Thanks a ton to Mike and Jes! Awesome folk.

Wired Magazine!

2011-10-18T15:12:00.006-04:00

I have a few illustrations in the October issue of Wired.

Check the link here. I'm on pages 2,3 and 4 online.

You can also pick up a copy at your local newsagents.

Huge thanks to Leo Jung for calling me up on this one!

The Deep Dark Woods!

2011-09-26T08:28:00.007-04:00

I recently completed a few jobs for my good friends, The Deep Dark Woods. They are currently on tour promoting the release of their newest album "The Place I Left Behind" through Six Shooter Records, of which I did all the artwork for. I've done album covers for them in the past, but this is by far my favourite.

They also had me design a Tshirt and a tour poster.

If you haven't heard these guys, I strongly recommend that you pick up an album. They're on their way up.

Thanks to Chris, Luke, Ryan, Burke and Geoff.

Vice Comics

2011-07-15T15:10:00.003-04:00

I did another comic for the Vice website.

Cheg it oot here.

The New York Times Op-Ed

2011-06-20T11:08:00.003-04:00

Did this for an Op-ed piece in The New York Times. Read it here.

I normally do these drawings in black and white, as that is how they will appear in the newspaper. This time, I decided I might as well work in colour and it worked in my favour: They published the colour piece on the website!

Thanks to Alexandra Zsigmond for this one!

Grain Magazine

2011-06-01T00:58:00.003-04:00

I am the featured artist in the spring issue of Grain Magazine!!

I love the design they came up with for the cover (the wrap-around image, the 'honeysuckle' type treatment I posted about earlier here), so enticing!

And there's a bunch of my paintings inside!! This is so crazy!!

A billion thanks to Sylvia Legris and Betsy Rosenwald for taking a chance on my work.

Animation test

2011-05-26T15:17:00.002-04:00

My first attempt at animation in a long time. I think the last thing I tried was also a walk-cycle.

True West

2011-05-24T14:58:00.009-04:00

A poster I recently finished for Vancouver's Main Street Theatre Company. Their next production is Sam Shepard's True West, an amazing piece of theatre. Truly tense and disturbing.

This is the fourth poster I've done for the company and, I'll admit, it was the first time I've actually read one of the plays. I usually base the image off of a brief synopsis (although I did watch the film version of American Buffalo).

I now realize how much I've missed in each play previous to this one. I read the first line of True West (a description of the character's costumes) and I began scribbling notes in my sketchbook. Every page offered a new interpretation of the work! Slight nuances in speech, descriptions of sounds, interactions between characters...

Anyways, I'm really happy with how it turned out

Thanks again to Ryan, Daryl, Josh and Stephen.

The Feathertale Review

2011-05-24T14:28:00.002-04:00

This illustration was done for The Feathertale Review's 8th issue, which will be out this fall. It accompanies a smart little story about the author's resemblance to a particular film actor. I won't mention that actor's name, as I hope the illustration is well-executed enough to make it obvious.
Thanks to Lee Wilson for this entertaining assignment.

Whazamo! Profiles

2011-05-24T14:07:00.008-04:00

I've been featured in Open Book Toronto's Whazamo Profiles this month. Open Book Toronto is "celebrating the outstanding graphic novels and comics published here in Ontario and throughout the country" and I'm honoured to be included in that list! Click here to read on...
There's a (very) short interview and a few links to where you can find some great comics.
(Here's to you, Miss Koyama!!)

NUVO Magazine - Cougar Cruise

2011-05-12T11:45:00.003-04:00

An illustration I did recently for the Last Writes section in Vancouver's NUVO Magazine.

The image accompanied a surreal article about a "Cougar Cruise" that takes place in Toronto.

Basically, participants pay a fee to take an evening cruise around the Toronto harbour, in the hopes of hooking up with an attractive older woman. Actually, a really funny article full of some very interesting characters.

Thanks to Art Director Mark Reynolds for this one. Always a pleasure.

New York Times Op-Ed

2011-05-12T11:15:00.002-04:00

An illustration for the Op-Ed page in today's New York Times. A smoking ban in public New York parks and beaches goes into effect on May 23rd. Sounds good to me.

Thanks again Alexandra Zsigmond. Always awesome to work with.

Creative Type III

2011-05-02T17:22:00.008-04:00

I did this piece for the Creative Type III show, which just recently came down. This is the second year I've submitted a piece and I enjoyed it immensely.

I hardly ever use type in my work, and I know next-to-nothing about traditional typographic methods, but something about these projects was so appealing. Just getting out my ruler and being PRECISE was a pleasure. I guess it's because I'm trying something different, something that challenges me. That's important.

Thanks a ton to Carla Poirier, Jaque Lane and Blair Johnsarude. They let me eek through the deadline and submit something at the last minute.

The show would not go on without them!

Grain Magazine

2011-04-18T15:08:00.004-04:00

I just finished this type treatment for Grain magazine. They will be featuring a number of my paintings in an upcoming issue entitled Honeysuckle. Apparently, Honeysuckle is Pantone's colour of the year.

I had the hardest time coming up with a treatment I was happy with. I wanted to avoid anything cute and flowery. This was difficult given the word I was working with and the colour I was asked to use. So I decided to go completely opposite and make it metal.

Le Gallery

2011-04-05T11:11:00.003-04:00

Myself, Patrick Kyle and Ginette Lapalme currently have a show up at Toronto's Le Gallery. The show gathers seleceted work we've created over the past two years. It's such an honour to be exhibiting in a gallery that shows so many fantastic artists! Thanks so much to gallery owner Wil Kucey for opportunity.

New York Times Letters Illustration

2011-03-21T13:52:00.004-04:00

An image I just completed for The New York Times Letters page regarding the radiation threat in post-earthquake Japan. You can read about it here.

I visited Japan nearly three years ago and was immediately enamoured with the country. Seeing the damage from the recent earthquake is truly saddening.

Please visit your national Red Cross webpage and make a donation to help those in need.

Thank you so much to Alexandra Zsigmond from The Times. Always a pleasure to work with!

COMPLEX - new comic book now available!!

2011-03-15T09:23:00.004-04:00

This is the cover and 14th page from my new comic book, COMPLEX.

The story follows young Terry Hersham, a citizen of the multi-levelled Complex, and his trials and tribulations as he attempts to gain access into Fuckplex (a particularly naughty level of Complex).

The book is 32 pages long, and chock-full of adventure and gross-outs. The excellent illustrator, Josh Holinaty, also contributed 4 pages.

It'll only cost you $5 CAD + shipping and you can purchase it on the main page of this blog.

ENJOY!

American Illustration!!

2011-03-10T18:46:00.004-05:00

I just received my copy of American Illustration 29 the other day. I have a couple pieces in the beautifully designed book and they look great!

I'm a little blown away by the double-page spread!

Game Over Show 4 - Giant Robot San Francisco

2011-02-17T13:43:00.003-05:00

Three pieces I just finished for the Game Over 4 show at Giant Robot in San Francisco! I'm super excited to be a part of this!

It's running from March 4 - March 30, and the lineup of artists is amazing. The group show pays homage to the continuous evolution of videogames and their massive influence on popular culture. See more here: www.gr-sf.com

Wish I could make it down there, but alas, I'm stuck up here in Toronto for the winter.

NYTimes Op-ed

2011-02-17T10:55:00.004-05:00

A little piece I did for February 10's New York Times Op-ed page. Read about it here.

This was a tricky assignment as it was the night before former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak was supposed to resign. The Times was looking for an image that could be general enough to work in any given scenario that might play out over those 24 hours. Extra tricky as it had to fit within a 2.15" x 2.5" box.
Extra Extra tricky was the timeline: assigned at 12 pm, 3 roughs by 2:30pm, final by 5:30pm.

I found that working within such a tight deadline had me trusting my instincts a lot more than ususal. Less hemming and hawing, more going with the gut. I need to try to approach all illustration assignments like this, whatever the deadline may be.

A huge thanks to Alexandra Zsigmond at the Times.

Egypt

2011-02-07T13:29:00.003-05:00

A personal image made in response to the current situation in Egpyt.

Death Spirits

2011-02-07T13:18:00.004-05:00

This image is for a soon-to-be-released book about Death Spirits. There are a lot of other great contributors and I can't wait to see the final print.
I'm trying out some new stuff here. I guess you could call it mixed media.

Walrus Illustrations

2011-02-04T13:09:00.004-05:00

I have a few illustrations in the current issue of The Walrus magazine.

The images above are my illustrations for the Miscellany section and the Letters section.

You can see the rest online, but I'd suggest that you purchase a physical copy :)

Huge thanks to designer Jennifer Spinner at The Walrus. She helped make the assignment enjoyable and relaxed.

Nine-part narrative illustration for The New York Times Magazine

2010-12-20T13:27:00.005-05:00

As the title of this post says, I just did a nine-part illustration for this past Sunday's issue of The New York Times Magazine. It was for the tenth anniversary special of their 'Year in Ideas' issue, so it was an honour to be included.

The cover was decked out quite festively in hundreds of balloons - the pattern of which formed one of those quick-response codes for a smartphone. If you happen to own a smartphone, you could scan the cover and watch some animations specially commisioned for the issue. Bloody amazing!

I was asked to come up with a nine-part narrative piece that would combine both festive elements and the concept of the idea. Tricky? yes. Fun? very.

The images were to run on the edge margin for nine pages and tell a little story. Odd dimensions to work within, but all in all, I'm very happy with it!

You can click on the above image for an animated GIF of the images. Although, it looks cooler in the actual magazine.

Thanks so much to Leo Jung and Sara Cwynar at The NYTM. They are both super great people and really fun to work with.

Kraft foods Symposium

2010-12-06T12:57:00.005-05:00

Patrick Kyle, Ginette Lapalme and I spent two days drawing all over a big room for a Kraft Foods advertising symposium. We were given free reign to come up with whatever we wanted! In addition to the walls, we were each given an 8ft.x4ft. canvas to fill. Everything was improvised and I'm pretty happy with how it all ended up!

Thanks to Neil at Circo de Bakuza!

New York Times Op-Ed illustration

2010-11-24T17:19:00.004-05:00

Illustration I did for last Saturday's New York Times Op-Ed page. Read about it here.

The piece concerns the case of Anwar Al-Awlaki, an American with links to Al Qaeda who was recently put on the United State's assassination list. He is currently hiding in Yemen.

The debate is whether or not the government should be allowed to assassinate an American in a country the United States is not at war with.

An interesting article, and a fun and challenging illustration.

Thanks to Aviva Michaelov at the NYT!!!

A couple new illustrations...

2010-11-24T16:56:00.006-05:00

Two illustrations I recently did for Montecristo Magazine and NUVO Magazine, respectively.

The first one was for an article about how all the good movies come out in December to catch the Award deadlines, and all the January films are crap.

The second one was for an article about how, based on the reason for the evaluation, the same piece of art can have different values.

Thanks again to Mark Reynolds! Always good to work with him.

Illustration Served!!!

2010-10-31T15:25:00.003-04:00

Some of my older work is currently featured on IllustrationServed.com!

It's on the main page and I'm pretty keen on it.

Direct link here.

It's Nice, That!

2010-10-07T14:19:00.002-04:00

Just got a nice little posting over on It's Nice That blog.

The UK-based blog posted a few of my images and did a short interview.

Thanks so much Alex for the notice!

cheg it oot here.

Wowee Zonk 3 Booklaunch

2010-09-18T14:09:00.003-04:00

Koyama Press and The Beguiling present Wowee Zonk's "Wowee Zonk 3" and Tin Can Forest's "Baba Yaga and The Wolf" BOOK LAUNCH!
Thursday Oct.7th, 7pm-10pm
The Central, 603 Markham St. Toronto
Be there!

Wowee Button!

2010-09-18T13:58:00.004-04:00

Design for a button I'm getting made. It will be available (along with original limited edition buttons by Patrick Kyle and Ginette Lapalme) at the Wowee Zonk 3 / Baba Yaga and the Wolf Book Launch!
If you're in Toronto on Oct. 7th, head over to The Central on Markham St. and buy the new books by Wowee Zonk and Tin Can Forest. Both books are published by the amazing Koyama Press!
Unfortunately, I will be unable to attend as I will be at a wedding in Saskatchewan, but everyone else will be there. It should be a laugh!

Poster for Blackflash Magazine/PAVED Arts Halloween Part-ay

2010-09-17T16:57:00.004-04:00

Poster just finished for the Blackflash Magazine/PAVED Arts Halloween party.
Blackflash magazine is a great art photography mag edited by my good friend John Shelling. You can pick them up at any fine booksellers across Canada.
Thanks buddy.

Layout for Avenue Magazine

2010-09-09T15:30:00.005-04:00

Just got a copy of September's Avenue Magazine in the mail! I said I would post some images, so here they are. In addition to the full-page and the spots, I got a nice feature on the contents page. I'm really happy with how these turned out!
Thanks so much to Anders at Avenue Magazine. Everything looks amazing!

Cafe Con Leche!!!!

2010-09-08T00:09:00.002-04:00

So I did some stickers for my friend Ines!
She is this awesome girl from Mexico that I met in New York.
She's done a lot of stickers and a lot of drawings for a lot of people.
Check her out here and here.
ps. all of these stickers are for SALE.

Avenue Magazine Illustrations

2010-09-07T13:33:00.004-04:00

I did three illustrations for the September issue of Calgary's Avenue Magazine.
The above image was a full page illo for an article that wonders: "Why do smart people get scammed?"

This illustration was for a section in the same article about the profitability of buying and flipping houses.

Lastly, this one was for a bit about playing the stock market.

I'll try to get some images of them in print, just to see how they look that way. My parents live out in Calgary, so I'm sure they can send a few my way.

Thanks a ton to Anders K., art director at Avenue, for all of his help!

Cover for The Antigonish Review

2010-09-07T13:26:00.004-04:00

The Antigonish Review, a literary arts magazine out of Nova Scotia, has put one of my illustrations on the cover of their 162nd issue. It's an image I created last year, entitled "Centaur". Check out their website here.

Wowee Zonk Window Display at Magic Pony!

2010-09-06T17:09:00.003-04:00

A pic of the window display Wowee Zonk recently did for Magic Pony Shop and Gallery in Toronto. It'll be up for a while, so check it out if you're in the area!
Thanks Steve, Kristin, Alicia and all the Pony staff!

Katamari Fundraiser

2010-08-31T14:03:00.003-04:00

Poster for the upcoming Katamari show at Floating World Comics out of Portland, OR. The lineup of participating artists is amazing, I'm just happy to be included. Plus, it's for a good cause.
Check out the details here.
Thanks Jason!!!

EYE Weekly illustration

2010-08-19T11:58:00.006-04:00

Illustration just finished for Kate Carraway's column in EYE Weekly about growing up the youngest of three sisters.
Thanks to Art Director, Caley Tessier, who consistently features illustration work in the paper. Kudos.

The Deep Dark Woods

2010-08-04T13:39:00.005-04:00

A poster I recently finished for my buddies: The Deep Dark Woods.
It's for their current tour. I love these guys, and I love their music.
You can purchase their albums here.

WOWEE ZONK

2010-08-04T13:32:00.006-04:00

Wowee Zonk has a great new website!! Check it out here.
If you didn't know, I am one-third of the art collective Wowee Zonk, alongside the amazingly talented Patrick Kyle and Ginette Lapalme. The new site has a great store, some good pics, and a link to our blog that will keep you updated on our hi-jinks.
WOWEE ZONK!

Soccer...er, Football..

2010-07-30T12:22:00.002-04:00

The King and Queen of all Cosmos

2010-07-20T13:19:00.005-04:00

A piece I did for Jason at Floating World Comics in Portland, OR. They are putting on a Katamari-inspired show/fundraiser in the fall and asked a number of cool artists to contribute (and me, too). This piece is loosely based around one of the characters in the game: The King of all Cosmos. The character has a killer mustache, so I was thinking of famous mustaches.

Main Street Theatre Co-op

2010-07-05T18:20:00.006-04:00

This is a poster that I did recently for my best-friend-for-life Daryl King. He is one-fourth of the amazingly talented Vancouver theatre collective Main Street Theatre Equity Co-op.
Their past two shows (both of which I did the posters for) were extremely well-received.
They were Glengarry Glen Ross and American Buffalo, both by David Mamet.
I really enjoy working on these projects, as they give me a lot of room to try things that I normally wouldn't attempt. Despite my apprehensions, I am always very pleased with the final product.
Thanks D.

Koyama Press!!

2010-06-16T15:22:00.005-04:00

This is a piece I did for Anne Koyama of Koyama Press.

Background: I am one-third of an art collective called Wowee Zonk. The remaining two-thirds consist of my best friends Ginette Lapalme and Patrick Kyle. They are way better artists than I am and they constantly amaze me with the work they create.

Annie thought the same and was gracious enough to publish a book cataloguing some of our work. It's called 'Pobody's Nurfect' and you can buy it here.

Anyways, Annie has been asking her extensive list of amazing artists to produce their version of her logo. This was my attempt!

I love you, Annie!!!!

New Comic Book

2010-06-16T14:59:00.002-04:00

I've started a new comic book entitled 'Complex'. Here is a sample of what's to come.

Pages 2 and 5 respectively.

Gaga!!!

2010-06-16T14:44:00.003-04:00

This is a piece I did for a zine called 'Prison for Bitches'.

It was put together by my friends Ryan Sands and Michael Deforge.

Ryan is the creator of the amazing Electric Ant Zine (which I've lovingly contributed to twice) and the Same Hat blog.

Deforge is a crazy talented illustrator who constantly blows my mind.

This was a super project to contribute to as it included a LOT of talented people. Some more well-known artists such as Johnny Ryan and Michael Kupperman participated, but also a bunch of up and comers like myself.

Buy it online, it's a great big book and it's totally worth it.

Montecristo Magazine illustrations

2010-05-22T16:58:00.007-04:00

Illustrations JUST finished for Montecristo Magazine out of Vancouver. About men's health in Vancouver, BC.

Worked with Mark Reynolds again on this one. Thanks man! I'm really happy with them!

New York Times Magazine spots.

2010-05-22T16:42:00.006-04:00

For the past five Sundays I've been doing spots for the New York Times Magazine.
Each pair of illustrations accompanied a tech story for the Points of Entry column. I have to give my heartfelt thanks to Leo Jung, whose art direction was amazing. Thanks so much for the opportunity Leo!!

This was another new experience for me as the size of the spots were quite small. It was a challenge figuring out what details to include and what to leave out, and how to make the ideas come across in the images. I'm pretty happy with the final product.

Pieces for One 2 Many show at Steamwhistle gallery.

2010-05-22T16:02:00.009-04:00

step1

step2

step3

step4

step5

step6

My pieces for a group show at Toronto's Steamwhistle gallery called One 2 Many. The theme was loosely based around the collision of the natural environment with the urban. It was a good show with a great group of artists: Patrick Kyle, Adrian Forrow, Ryan Lake, Jim Mezei, Kellen Hatanaka, Alexis Hatanaka, Patrick Thompson and Beside Herself Printing.

Jim really took the lead on this one. Thanks buddy.

Two pieces selected to appear in the American Illustration Annual!!

2010-05-22T15:45:00.006-04:00

Lumberjerks and Central Park Smoke Break are both from the 2009 Wowee Zonk Suicide Pact show at Board of Directors gallery.

They will appear in the American Illustration Annual which launches November 11th.
I hope to be there in NY for the launch!

EYE weekly illustration

2010-02-05T22:49:00.005-05:00

An illustration I just did for Taylor Shute at EYE weekly in Toronto.
A quick little project for a strange little article about the fun you can have with pharmaceuticals.

I got Blog'd...

2010-01-23T18:28:00.006-05:00

Nate Williams over at illustrationmundo featured my work the other day.
Thanks Nate!!

http://www.illustrationmundo.com/wp/2587

New Work

2010-01-17T16:54:00.003-05:00

Some new work....

Posters

2010-01-15T10:22:00.013-05:00

Some more posters I've done in the past few months.

A Poster for Dawn Farm

2010-01-15T08:37:00.008-05:00

A poster I just did for Dawn Farm in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

James Balmer, the president of Dawn Farm was really great to work with.

Thanks James!

http://www.dawnfarm.org/

My first Blog post.

2010-01-09T17:24:00.004-05:00

This is just a little drawing I did the other night.