2025 Has Been a Banner Year for Molly's Grandpappy, Rea Irvin !

Rea Irvin had a long and prestigious career working on a handful of newspapers around the country, eventually making his way to New York and becoming a sought-after cartoonist-illustrator for Life, Judge, Harper's, Green Book, Hampton’s Magazine, Red Book and numerous other publications before becoming the aesthetic-overlord of the New Yorker magazine. He drew the first iconic cover and generally gave the magazine its look—designing the logo, typeface, column headings as well as serving as cartoon editor.

Most of these significant accomplishments managed to fly under the cultural radar for decades.

But 2025 has been Rea Irvin’s big year.

In July of this year, Rea was inducted into the Eisner Hall of Fame presented at the Comic Con International in San Diego.

Molly accepting the Eisner Hall of Fame award for grandpa Rea

And as of this December, his very first collected works was published by New York Review Books.

The Smythes was edited by artists R. Kikuo Johnson and Dash Shaw, with an afterword by Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum Curator, Caitlin McGurk.

All of this in one year !  

Just a mere 53 years after his death.

A brief 100 years after his iconic New Yorker cover.

And only 126 years after his first published cartoons.

But recognition at last.

Molly's Turn: New work and in progress work

 Martine has been working for us, installing new windows.  Here is an image of him getting the opening ready for the new window install. The garden behind him, the lighting - all made for a fantastic image for me to paint. While I am not quite done with the painting I am very pleased with it so far.

Martine

I finally have my computer closer to my work space.

Here is my studio area in our office. 

Both Larry and I were asked by a friend, Sonny Smith of the Sonny and the Sunsets band, to join his group project which will be shown at the Minnesota Street Project in San Francisco  in January. He sent us a list of mythical musicians and a brief bio asking us to pick a musician which resinated with us.  My choice was the headless Sudanese musician Blem Beja also known as Umar Mubarak. Sonny will be writing music and creating an album of all his mythical musicians. More about Larry's choice to come. 

Above is my preliminary drawing.

I did research on Sudanese musicians and dance and was able to bring together a grouping that pleased me.

The start of my painting......

Here is a painting I finally completed, took me about 4 to 5 long years :-)

Current idea for title is "Molly's Gang: How Sweet the Sound".

A combination suggested by both Judy Kaufman, John Pedersen and Larry Rippee.

Molly's Gang is actually a group of musician friends that came together every Thursday night for close on to 25 years. Starting out here at our house, then when my mother could no longer make it up the stairs all these wonderful people agreed to play at her house until she was no longer able to stay there. We then came back to our house, at which point we decided to alternate between Judy and John's house and our house every other week, this lasted until Covid. Sad to say Covid really stopped us all cold. We did play on Sundays out on the patios every once in a while. We are hoping to reinstate a Sunday  jam once a month, fingers crossed. Such good times. A wealth of good music and friends.

The building at the back of the painting is the Old Amazing Grace Music Store which has since been torn down. 

Amazing Grace Music now resides in a building to the east of the original spot in a building owned by George Lucas. 

 (When Judy called me to say the the owner of the building was going to sell, I was lucky enough to be able to get Lucas's phone number through Chuck Wiley who had been a model maker for years at ILM, and so was able to leave a message for Lucas with his secretary, letting them know that this San Anselmo historical institution was in danger. I left John and Judy's phone number hoping that Lucas might be interested in saving Amazing Grace as Lucas has helped San Anselmo many times. And Lucas (actually his secretary)  stepped up, called John, got the information to purchase, purchased the building, ripped it down and built a beautiful park strip, moving Amazing Grace east to its current position where he completely rebuilt that building to John and Judy's needs. A gentleman indeed!!)

Starting from left front to right in the painting are: John Pedersen, Judy Kaufman (owners of the store), Richard Shaw, Martha Shaw, Ned Riley, Jenny Pfeiffer, Perry Fly, Molly Rea, Greg Townsend.

Back right row: Jacquie Phelan, Steve Vermillion, Bud Heddrick, Greg Snyder, Jan DelaBrandis, Jeannie Carlson, Tom Seitz, Scott Barrett, Michael Hagstrom, Micheal Drayton, Chuck Wiley.

Very far back: Nanette Harris and Brent Harris, Diego Gonzalez and April Hayley, Mark Woodrow and Donley Smith. And "far out', Larry Rippee.

When I first moved to Fairfax, Martha and Richard Shaw befriended me, we met at the Tiny Tot playground in Fairfax and ended up living kitty-corner from each other. Martha and Richard were/are very important to me. I became a single mother and they were my family. The kids and I were up there a lot,  Martha and I would be playing Chinese Checkers and /or fiddle tunes (Martha on fiddle and I on guitar) or down here at my house doing the same. The kids absolutely loved being able to run from house to house, very magical. Through Richard and Martha I met Judy and John who in turn introduced me to a whole host of people playing Old Time Music. A musical family for me. I feel very, very lucky to have landed here in all this creativity. If it hadn't been for Richard I might not have ever picked up painting, he inspired me to create art.

Here we all are packed into our house playing music and having fun.

Don't mind how serious they look.... they are having fun!!

Teresa Bowman, Lady of Hope

This is the director of Helen Vine Detox Center here in Marin County. She is an amazing woman, her strength in helping those with no hope is inspiring and I so wish we all had her determination to help those who need it.

Rachel

Rachel is a young woman with heart and determination. I feel lucky to have had her in my life. She is now a lawyer fighting to help people who are in danger of losing their homes.

Eric

This drawing of Eric is a preliminary drawing for a painting soon to be started.

And that is all for now folks!

Gallery Route One’s Annual Box Show 2025

The Box Show is an annual fundraising exhibit for Gallery Route One in Pt. Reyes Station in west Marin County. 

Here’s the way it works: Each artist (there’s now 150 !) is given an unadorned pine box. The deal is you can pretty much do anything to it as long as elements of the original the box remains in the piece (That definition can be stretched pretty far-- boxes on occasion have been ground to dust, burned to ash and otherwise rendered unrecognizable in the process of making an art piece).

Molly and I have been teaming up on the box project for many, many years (I’ve lost count).

Artistically, Molly and I have approaches that are very far removed from each other. She’s a painter (primarily portraits) and I’m a black ‘n’ white graphics guy, tending usually toward comic art.  So our team-ups are always unusual. Sometimes leaning more towards Molly’s aesthetics, sometimes more towards mine.

Here’s what we did this year.

Molly recently completed a large painting (more from Molly on that in a different post) 

and we elected to use that image of dancing figures playing music for our box—with a decided twist. 

We incorporated my particular version of reality... 

...with molly’s more classical approach.

We used Gel Medium to imbed my figures into the picture

Gallery Route One’s Annual Box Show runs from August 16 – September 13, 2025.

The opening reception is Saturday, August 16, 3-5 pm.  The closing Reception is Friday, September 12, 5-7 pm with final bidding Saturday, September 13, 10 am.

GRO Box Show

To see one of our favorite Box Show efforts check out this link:

Our 2024 Box Show piece 

Molly and Larry go to the Comic Con International, Part 2

The previous post recounted our trip to San Diego so that Molly could accept the Eisner Hall of Fame award on the behalf of her grandfather, Rea Irvin.

Here’s just a bit more about the Con.

We were put up at the Hilton Bayfront right next to the convention center.

Here are a couple of obligatory snaps of folks having fun in cosplay.  

A truly unlikely association here

I liked this one a lot

One of the "quieter" moments in the dealer’s room. 

We did visit the dealer’s hall briefly.  Here's me in my official cosplay outfit known as "Going to the Awards Ceremony". Nobody dressed like this in the dealer's room.

     The Con is a bit beyond comprehension.  I believe it was estimated that 135, 000 people attended this year. It felt like Mardi Gras + Super Bowl + Las Vegas.

Utterly lost

As a former attendee of the earlier incarnation as the San Diego Comic Con –back when it was held at the old El Cortez Hotel-- I found the scale of the con overwhelming (I first came down in the 1970’s when I worked with Rip Off Press. A lot of fond memories).

Unfortunately, we had to forego some interesting panel talks. I was pleased that we had a chance to have a couple of quiet, sit-down chats with old artists-friends like Bruce Simon and Steve Leialoha.  

We missed a lot of the 'Con experience' most folks were having but then again, our primary duty was the awards ceremonies.  

The Hall of Fame ceremony (see previous posting here) was held separately from the Eisner Industry awards held in the evening.

We attended both.

The 37th Annual Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards were held in the Indigo Ballroom at our hotel, Hilton Bayfront (lucky for us, a mercifully short walk).

The event reminded me of a typical “Oscars” event: Attendees more or less dressed up. Sitting around our dinner tables being entertained by Eisner presenters--cartoonists, writers, voice actors, and such engaged in snappy patter.

Here are a few snaps:

Looney Tunes voice actor Eric Nauza and Dark Knight producer Micheal Uslan

Caitlin McGurk, curator of the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum, Ohio State University, receiving an Eisner for her biographical work, Tell Me a Story Where the Bad Girl Wins: The Life and Art of Barbara Shermund.

Cartoonists Eddie Campbell and Bob (‘Flaming Carrot)’ Burden

Writer Don Glut accepting the Bill Finger Award Excellence in Comics Writing, or as he characterized "getting the Finger".  On stage is writer/ presenter Mark Evanier and Athena Finger (granddaughter of Bill Finger).

Renowned designer, Chip Kidd, receiving an Eisner for best publication design. In the background actor David Dastmalchian and (I believe) editor Rantz Hoseley

Cartoonist Bill Morrison with Jackie Estrada, administrator of the Eisner Awards and a major figure in the Con since the 1970’s.  Jackie announced her retirement at the end of the ceremony.

Taking home an Eisner