Final Transmissionnnn

As some of you may have noticed, typing in 2dcloud.com no longer takes you here, but to the newest bestest indie/alt/art/blah comics site you've ever fucking seen (last night in the old house, who cares what is said!).

Anyway, this site, much like the Good Minnesotan blog that preceded it, will continue to exist as a source of evidence of a time when Raighne and I (Justin) wrote long, heartfelt blog posts, of which we do less and less, for better or worse (?).

Ok, new site, new shop, new articles, new WEBCOMICS, new everything! Over here.

Thanks, and see you in the ether.

An ABYSS opens up over AUTOPTIC

Abyss by Saman Bemel-Benrud ( August 2013 | $8 | comicbook ) recently had it's web-incarnation reviewed over at Vorpalizer:

"[Abyss'] primary power lies in its presentation of these mundane markers of late capitalism into vessels of wonder and terror — abysses that can be fallen into, home to ghosts that open one’s eyes to new states of being enabled by the same device you used to pre-order your burrito." -- Sean T. Collins, Vorpalizer 

Separate from that, ABYSS will be seeing the world print-side as an Autoptic debut in 2+ weeks! Since 2D Cloud is on the board (bored?) / committee for this thing (multi-day / event / medium), you can bet your bottom we'll be there. Saman will be in tow at a neighboring table -- hope to see yah there!

Autoptic Kick-off Parrty

So, as you might know (and if you're reading this, you most likely do), Autoptic is on its way -- in nearly 3 weeks Minneapolis will be overrun by a COMICBOOK/ZINE/POSTER/INDEPENDENT-CULTURE- BLIZZARD -- a week's worth of events.

We'll get to the full spiel soon enough, like the TWO books we're debuting at the show (surprise!). But RIGHT NOW, we're here to give you a heads up about the AUTOPTIC KICK-OFF PARRTY!

On August 17th @ CO exhibitions, starting at 8pm and running late, we 5 different but AMAZING acts set up for YOU:

The Knotwells (live music)
Benoît Tranchand (live music)
Party Food (performance)
Joseph Nixon+Luke Holden (live sculpture and a drum solo??)
Ellen Redshaw (performance/projections/readings/music)

Next week we'll have more news regarding the kick offf parrty, including more images and info about each artist, so check back often!

Oh, and there will be a 2$ suggested cover for non-autoptic-exhibitors. Pretty minimal and TOTALLY worth it. Just coming to the 2dc curated party will grant you a coupon for 2$ off any 2dc purchase of 10$ or more for use at Autoptic or at the NEW 2dc website coming in a matter of weeks. Full details on that coming soon too. OKAY. Gotta jump ship, later!

New Books in the 2dc Shop

New items in the shop include Dueling, 1999, Deep in the Woods, and Every/Body.

Dueling
by Noah van Sciver

1999
by Noah van Sciver

Deep in the Woods
by Noah van Sciver
& Nicholas Breutzman

Every/Body
by various

Spring Con

FRESH from our weekend at TCAF, I'll (Justin) be at the MN State Fair Grounds on Sat. with a limited supply of pre-formal US debut copies of Strong Eye Contact:

...along with the usual 2DC array. You're likely to find portions of 2DC's catalog split between Eric Schuster and Uncivilized Books' respective tables for day 2, so track those two down and check out their books while you're at it!

This is the only other local summer show for 2DC between now and Autopic, so if you just can't wait until August and like to buy from 2DC directly, this is the weekend for it.

Deep in the Woods press release

May 7th, 2013

Minneapolis-based comics micropublisher, 2D Cloud, announces their second release of 2013, Deep in the Woods, a double-feature from Noah Van Sciver and Nicholas Breutzman. Debuting at the Chicago Alternative Comics Expo June 15th & 16th and at finer independent bookstores and comic shops in June 2013.

Deep in the Woods by Nicholas Breutzman and Noah Van Sciver. 30 pages, 11”x17.5”, newsprint, $6.00.

Available now for ADVANCE-ORDER. All orders will ship in June.

Levitating disembodied cow heads, crack witches, mutant children, urban myths, half-remembered folklore: from the minds of Noah Van Sciver and Nic Breutzman comes Deep in the Woods, a double feature that pairs two of 2D Cloud’s favorite cartoonists in one oversized newsprint.

Robin, the dutiful daughter of a drunk runs away from her home, an evil step-family, deeper into the haunted woods. Who knows what she’ll find? Whiskey's solace? A floating cow head's kiss? Find out in Noah Van Sciver’s “The Cow’s Head”.

Heartbroken Sammy must convince her grandfather to crawl out of the well he’s holed himself up in. But first, it’s a walk through the woods with googly eyed mutant brothers and a stop at the crack witches hut for a ssssmoke. Take a toke with Nicholas Breutzman’s “The Mayfly”.

About the Artists:

Nicholas Breutzman

Nic is a Minnesotan native by way of New York who has had a number of comics published both through 2D Cloud as well as in collaboration with other artists, such as Sharon Lintz (Pornhounds 2) and a collection of SVA grads (Jon Vermilyea, Eamon Espey, Raymond Sohn, et al) for the anthology Critical Citadel. He placed at #24 on The Comics Journal’s Top 50 comics of 2009 for his graphic Novella Yearbooks, has been listed as a notable in multiple editions of Best American Comics for work in Motherlover and Yearbooks, and his work with Sharon Lintz on Pornhounds 2 secured him a place on numerous best of 2011 lists.

Noah Van Sciver

Noah Van Sciver was born in 1984 in New Jersey. He first came to readers’ attention with his comic book series Blammo, which earned him an Ignatz award nomination in 2010. His first 2D Cloud release, The Death of Elijah Lovejoy, brought him his second Ignatz nomination in 2012 and a place in the top 10 minicomics of 2011 for The Comics Journal. His work has appeared in the Alternative weekly newspaper Westword, Mad magazine, and multiple graphic anthologies. His first book The Hypo: The Melancholic Young Lincoln from Fantagraphics books is a graphic portrait of Abraham Lincoln’s early years in Springfield, Illinois.

Strong Eye Contact Announcement and Pre-order

April 25th, 2013

Minneapolis based comics micropublisher, 2D Cloud, announces their first release of 2013, Strong Eye Contact, a conceptual meta-fable and funny-book by Christopher Adams. Debuting at the Toronto Comic Arts Festival May 11th & 12th and available at finer independent bookstores and comic shops in early July 2013.

Strong Eye Contact by Christopher Adams. 104 pages, 9”x6.75”, color paperback, $14.95.

Available now for PRE-ORDER. First 25 pre-orders get a copy of Christopher Adams’ last 2D Cloud release, Period, gratis! In addition, all direct orders come with a free interview zine! All pre-orders will ship in July.

Part strip collection, part art book, Strong Eye Contact performs over the course of 104 pages a very obtuse, but careful meditation on what might be seen as the cultural position of the cartoonist by employing a series of narrative contrasts and formal tensions. The use of mediums often associated with childhood mark-making (crayons, colored pens, markers), gives the book a simplistic sheen that belies the formal sophistication operating just beneath the surface.

On this surface, the reader is led by a quixotic, Buster Keaton-like figure through a kaleidoscope of crystalline memory fragments, coalescing into one narrative track. As this unnamed figure tries, with limited success, to be a typical American: using consumer products, failed vacations, fabricated family life, he also attempts to be a successful comic, much like the collection of pages he lives on.

The day to day saga is wet and alive with water colors, crayon, markers, and steady beats of spacious white deluges. Landscapes are populated with mountainous close-ups, cacti, abstracted-patterns, confusion, vast empty spaces, gaps -- cartooning as a potent puzzle where the strangest magic happens inside the reader's mind.

>>For a web preview // downloadable link, click here<<

About the Artist:

Christopher Adams was born in the New York Metropolitan Area. He is between 5' 10" and 5' 11". He does not eat animals. He is an artist and musician. His latest recordings are Baby Hair, Vegetables and Xmas Boogie. His artworks include videos and comic books. His first published comic is Period, released by 2D Cloud in the fall of 2012. TCAF will see the debut of his first full-length book, Strong Eye Contact. He currently lives and works in Baltimore with his girlfriend and plants.
"Death is not an event of life." - Ludwig Wittgenstein

Praise for Strong Eye Contact:

“Rarely have magic markers worked such luminous brilliance.” -- Matt Seneca, comics critic, and cartoonist

"Weird, imaginative, and raw. Adams creates a textural experience leading you through the follies of his character's life." -- Aidan Koch, The Blonde Woman, The Whale

"A bloody Q- tip, the crumbs of a waffle, and an airplane on fire...it all comes together with Christopher's unique drawing system. Is the comedian dreaming or is the comedy a dream?"-- Eamon Espey, Songs of the Abyss, Wormdye

“Like a Mr. Hulot transposed into the America of soft-serve and mini-golf, Adams’ comedian is a normal guy trying to deal with work and relaxation in a landscape of perplexing patterns.”-- Matthew Thurber, 1-800-MICE, Infomaniacs