Robots + Monsters is open again, and we once again got Boinged! Thanks so much for all your love, BBers!

The good people at io9 were kind enough to not only mention that Robots + Monsters has reopened, but they’ve also linked to some of my concept art for the possible upcoming R+M book. Totally cool. Thanks, geeks!

I’ve been hammering away at a pitch for a Robots and Monsters graphic novel, and I created this for another round. I won’t let the cat out of the bag on plot details, but suffice to say, it has a lot of robots and monsters.

From Douglas Rushkoff‘s stint as a guest blogger on Boing Boing:

Robots and Monsters: A Charitable Menagerie, is back. They launched in 2007 to fundraise for SF AIDS Foundation, and now they’re relaunching to support the EFF. For fifty dollars, Joe Alterio or another fabulous artist will pen a custom robot or monster for you – defined by three words you supply – and send it to your door. You get a cool picture and the EFF gets fifty bucks to help keep the net a happy and good place.

Thanks, Douglas, and Boing Boing, once again!

From our little press release:

“Joe Alterio is proud to announce the reopening of Robots and Monsters: A Charitable Menagerie. Launched in 2007 in order to help raise funds for a marathon to benefit the SF AIDS Foundation, Robots and Monsters is an effort that trades original commissioned art for donations to a good cause. Last time, we had outstanding success due in no small part to postings on blogs like Boing Boing, Drawn!, and Uncrate, which helped us raise over $10,000 in the space of 36 hours. Besides the amazing amount of money raised, almost 200 Robots and Monsters were drawn by Joe, with some help from Special Contributors Adam “Ape Lad” Koford, D. Emory Allen, Michael Gabriel, and Lawrence Yang.

We had so much success, in fact, that – well – we got a bit overwhelmed, and had to close down, so we could fulfill orders.

However, Robots and Monsters is now re-launching, and we’re excited to announce our new beneficiary of heady, creature goodness: the Electronic Frontier Foundation. For almost 20 years, the EFF has been on the good side of 1st Amendment fights on the web, and considering that R and M couldn’t happen without this amazingly wonderful and scary tool that we all use now, we figure we owe them one.

Fifty dollars gets you a custom-drawn and painted robot or monster, defined by three words or phrases you provide, sent to your door. What’s more, your creature will get added to our ever growing menagerie, for everyone to enjoy.

In a few weeks, we’ll also have some great merch, like a cool teeshirts and a limited edition poster of 48 robots and monsters from the the first wave, so be sure to check back regularly.

Thanks for all your support, everyone.”

Hooray! We already have orders pouring in. Even in the face of The Greatest Depression Evar, people are stilling willing to donate money to a good cause. man. You know, humans may just make it off this planet and into our monkey-piloted space zeppelins, yet.

Robots and Monsters is finally done: above is the last one. Almost 200 drawings by myself, plus 35 by some fabulous contributors. Thanks to everyone who donated, devoted time to it, and helped out, be it blogging, drawing, helping mail or just looking. I, and more so, the people helped by the 12 K raised for AIDS support and research, very much appreciate it. Thanks.

So what’s next? A bunch of stuff, most of which I’d rather not talk about for fear of jinxing it: let’s just say this isn’t the last you’ve heard of the project. One thing I can say is that the site will reopen soonish…as you or may not know, I am getting married in a few months, though, so if it takes a little longer to get back up to spped don’t be surprised (note the lack of blogging for evidence of the awesome timesuck this seems to require.)

Thanks again, everyone!

The first is the aforementioned skatedeck I worked on for a show at Space Gallery a few weeks ago. Tim Lillis of Narwhal Creative and I both created a deck, and they both rule: I think mine is about halfway there in terms of what was in my head versus what actually came out, but my next piece in this same scheme will be farther along, I think. Also, Jesse, of Subhead Grip provided some incredible griptape work that really took the piece to the next level, so thanks to him for all his help. More here.

The second is something I mentioned before, but I actually received the cardpack that I created for the Ignite agency, and they’re great: nice printing, excellent stock, beautiful packaging. It’s always nice to see your work in physical form, too.

And lastly, more damn Robots and Monsters. As usual.

*UPDATE*: We got blogged by Brainiac again. Sweet!

Los Angeles’ cool thin tendrils slip their sticky coils around me for a few nights this weekend, and all I can think of is the electricity in them that used to be thrilling, but now is static discharge to my frontal cortex. We all assume mantles at a certain point, if only because it’s easier: sometimes, your three sentence rundown of how you are in your brain keeps you from going over the edge with self-doubt or, even worse, a booze-fueled existential slip up. Part of my Cliff’s Notes involved being the Consummate Los Angeles Defender. My stock lines are familiar to anyone who has gone abroad and felt the need to defend their home country as a place of decent human beings. “It’s misunderstood, there’s wonderful parts about it, it’s so damn trendy to hate it”. But for some reason on this particular visit, Madam Angeles kiss feels cold and clammy.

Out in Sherman Oaks, and something strikes me that I could never put my finger on before, maybe because I was too close, too complicit. There’s no people here. The abstract of complaining about cars is something that naturally leads people to think of traffic, smog, and delays. But my epiphany is of a more natural sort: looking around, the human form is nary in sight. Tucked safely away in their flying vehicles, funneled onto the city streets where everyone is behind tinted glass, sunglasses, air conditioners. The sight of a human being is rare from the window of a car here. And that, combined with the bright newness of the malls and and streets signs make it look like a place where something just happened for which you were a little late, and now everyone’s gone.

But I’m here with Kevin, which is gratifying. We talk projects of all sorts, and as usual when I’m with him, I get excited all over again for my various ridiculous hair brained creative schemes. We flit from location to location like purposeless bees, carried by Santa Anna winds from a production studio to the Tee Yee Lounge for Knob Creek rocks to Canters for Lox and capers. We talk about robots and monsters and comics and films and merchandising and how can rest on our laurels and still make rent. It is a infinitely futuristic web 2.0 existence we lead, joining the other sort-of employed college educated professionals who haunt coffeeshops and exist on their Macbooks and are allowed to be nowhere at 2 PM. Our perfect lucky states are enviable.

Los Angeles breaths. We breath with it and hope it all lasts for a little while longer. The tendrils keep their buzz.

It seems like a subconscious cycle I must perform every three months, much like how dogs unwittingly circle before they lie down: blog a lot for a spurt, stop blogging because something time-consuming happens, come back and apologize and resume. Well, I’m done apologizing. I moved, goddammit. And that takes a lot out of you. As you can see from the image above, we still have a lot to do before the house is fully functional, but we’re getting there. I will apologize to everyone that’s been trying to reach me, whether personal or professional: I have a huge backlog of unreplied-to emails and uncompleted projects, so bear with me over the next few weeks. Suffice to say, our new place is lovely, spacious, and waaay too expensive. C’est le vie.

Luckily, I haven’t had any lack of huge projects to distract me, one of which of course is the constant sword over my head Robots and Monsters: there’s new members up, with more coming (project of the day today), as well as the first of our Special Contributors submissions, which are all fantastic. Thanks to Lawrence Yang, D. Emory Allen, and Adam “Ape Lad” Koford for showing up so big and donating your immense talents. You all rule.

I also had the good fortune of being hired by Ignited LA to illustrate their set of holiday cards that goes out to all their clients and friends. The job took a long time, but I think the results are worth it: the images above is just one of many images I made for them, and I’m happy because it pushed me stylistically, and but still ended up looking great. I’ll definitely be posted photos of the actual cards when I receive my set.

With album cover as well as snowboards on the to-do list, I’m gonna be plenty busy, but again, if you’ve contacted me and are waiting for a reply, be patient: I’ll get to you all, I promise.

Just…as soon…as I can find…my mouse….

I’ve discovered my new favorite comix artist: Tom Gould, of London. Check out his whole site, it’s all very phenomenal work, as is his client list. He’s like a unholy hybrid of Edward Gorey, Steven Beistey, and R. Crumb. Agh…I’m swooning because I love all of it so much. I’m gonna try and get him for Robots And Monsters. Fingers crossed!