Field Guide

I found Field Guide, by Derek Stroup, at OK in Los Angeles, an excellent design store that has a well curated art book collection. I knew nothing about it, and after a little research I know not much more. All I really need to know is that I like it, visually, and I think I "get" it, conceptually. It is simply a collection of black and white photographs of television antennae on the tops of homes and buildings. 

As a huge fan of antiquated objects (I think I'll call them antiquations), I am growing to love artwork that deals with these things that have had there original purposes disappear or lose enough popularity to have them be discontinued. Viewmaster 3-D viewers, Super8 film, mimeograph prints, even now Polaroids (although these may be coming back). Without their popular qualities or original purposes these objects take on new aesthetic qualities, either in the aesthetics they create (like rub-on letraset lettering), or in the look of the objects themselves (like old cabinet arcade games). I can hardly bring myself to think of it, but soon enough things as common as newspapers and 35mm film negatives might only be found amongst artists and nostalgic purists. And don't even get me started on vinyl records and analog video. 

The television antenna fit along these artistc lines perfectly when the book was first published in 2002, and even more so now that the final switch to 100% digital broadcasting has rendered these objects completely without purpose. The context of this book being a "field guide" gives an even bigger impression of these objects becoming rare and hard to identify, perhaps even verging on extinction. 

Derek Stroup has published other books from bodies of artworks, some of which are available at Printed Matter online. I purchased Field Guide for $16, but it looks like the price can get into the $24 range. It is 4 x 6 inches in size, with 164 pages, including a good essay, "The Antenna in Architecture", by Eric Fredericksen. It is a first edition (edition size unknown), signed by the artist. My particular copy has some pages of the essay bound out of order, but I don't know if that is just my copy or for all of them.

You can find contact info and other art projects from Derek Stroup on his website: www.derekstroup.com. 

Now get out there and enjoy looking at the television antennae in your neighborhood, or even things like telephone poles and hand-painted signs, cause they just might not be around for much longer.

Live for Deth

Bay Area artist and feline myth creator Deth P. Sun has recently released a new zine. You can always count on Deth to offer up a steady stream of quality art products (as well as ridiculous amounts of original artwork) on a regular basis. From giclee and serigraph prints to T-shirts, stickers, postcards, or beer cozies, Deth's signature characters are almost always available to be yours at a reasonable price. But my favorites have always been the zines.

Please Be Brave, which was released earlier this summer, is a self-published art zine is every sense of the word. Deth made the art, copied the pages, organized the production, and even hand trimmed the pages. It features a whole lot of images drawn from the deep, deep well of Deth's endless sketchbooks. It features impressive spontaneous renderings of both the world around us and Deth's popular mythical cat realm. With plenty of skulls, monsters, ghosts, mountains, junk food, swamps, swords, cameras, instruments, caves, cars, crystals, sea creatures, plant life, houses, toys, art supplies, head gear, birds, and just about everything including the kitchen sink.The pages are crammed with objects, and interspersed with the occasional epic scenario. And, for the first time I can remember, there are a few rabbits in there too. 24 pages, black and white.

You can order your copy direct from Deth, or at the Rowan Morrison online supermarket of art books, for $8. 

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This also seems like a good opportunity to celebrate some of the other great Deth P. Sun zines of the past. Let's start with one from about 5 or so years ago, called 40 Drawings. 

With, you guessed it, 40 drawings of gods, monsters, cats, and other epic things, this zine is pretty slick for a handmade photocopied affair. I really don't know much about its production or stuff like that, but it is interesting to note that while the subject of Deth's artwork was similar then to what it continues to be, it is clear his style has evolved and gotten a bit more refined since 40 Drawings was made. The zine also features a lot of the "humans-in-animal- costumes" art, a theme which has become much less frequent in Deth's work.

Next up is the classic Oakland zine. Based on a map to his girlfriend's house party and originally drawn and made during Deth's brief time living in Los Angeles, Oakland highlights some clever cartographic skills along with a loving local view of the neighborhoods and shops of the East Bay through the artist's eyes. This zine has been a constant best seller and has been reprinted several times. 


A little known fact is that there are, in fact, two different versions of the Oakland zine among its several reprints: 

A reissue from 2007 features a bunch of images of photographed details from the city of Oakland reprinted from Deth's magnificent (and completely unknown) Polaroid collection. Deth has told me the he is not going to reprint this zine again, so you had better get yours while the getting is good. 

And finally, A Knife In The Dark, which is as close to a complete Deth P. Sun hero's quest narrative as we are likely to ever get. 

Epic landscapes, heroic battles, and momentous journeys are all told with a small narrative bit of text to go with each piece of art. This zine, like Oakland, is small in size but a real treat. Just to get a few tidbits of narrative text that isn't completely abstract and actually ties the images together in sequence is real nice. Now out of print, if you find one of these you should snatch it up because it is unique and very enjoyable.

And, finally, I would be a fool not to spend a bit of space here going over the merits of I See It All, the only full-on book of Deth's artwork currently available. Rowan Morrison published this book earlier this year and it was pretty successful right off the bat. This book faithfully reproduces 64 pages from a sketchbook made by Deth P. Sun in March of 2008. It features hundreds of sweet drawings, landscapes, and handmade typography. The roots of Deth's fine art evolve upon the page. I really love this book and am proud to have helped with its production. Here are just a few sample pages:

I See It All> is a real testament to how prolific and productive Deth is when it comes to drawing. He filled an entire sketchbook (including over 40 pages that weren't used for the book) in about 5 weeks! The man can draw it all, from landscapes to architecture to weapons to stylized lettering.

- 7" x 10"
- Limited 1st Edition of 500 copies
- Rounded Corners
- 64 single sided pages (128 pages total)
- 100% recycled paper, soy-based inks and perfect bound with animal-free glue

I See It All is available at Giant Robot stores and other fine art bookstores, or order your copy direct from Rowan Morrison and get some free Deth stickers or postcards with every book. Despite this book being published this year we are nearly sold out so get on it.

Order yours online here



I was stoked to see such variety in I See It All, and continued in his latest zine, Please Be Brave. An artist with talent and popularity like Deth's can be easily tempted to get a little too comfortable and slip into "giving the people what they want" and not challenging themselves. It is always great to get a little retrospective perspective to highlight some progression. I always look forward to see what Deth P. Sun will come up with next and hope he continues to push himself while staying on point and true to his epic vision.

You can always get a lot more of Deth's artwork from his website at www.dethpsun.com. Thanks for sticking through this long post. What can I say... Deth makes a lot of awesome zines.