Mad Love for The Mandlebrot Set

Below, selected excerpts from an article published in Speakeasy no. 86/87, June 1988, page 14. 

In that occasion Moore talked about his Mad Love Publishing and the upcoming The Mandlebrot Set project. We all know that later on the series changed his title in Big Numbers and in 1990 MPL published two of the planned twelve issues. Then MLP closed and the project remained unfinished. 

[...] The fist major work to be published by MLP after AARGH! is the cryptically titled The Mandlebrot Set, a twelve issue, 28 page black and white limited series to be released sometime toward the end of 1988, or early 1989. Concerning the building of an American style shopping centre in provincial British town, the series promises a major 'piece of fiction', the aim being to bring '... something of... and what an American shopping mall is all about. So it's also about skateboards, mathematics, shopping, history, sex, computers, all human life is here.'
Bill Sienkiewicz is handling the art chores and this is the first time the two have worked together on a project. [...]

Experimentation has become something of a watchword for both creators, and The Mandlebrot Set is bound to alienate some of the faithful. 'I'm aware that the majority of those Alan Moore fans out there are in fact Alan Moore superhero fans,' admits Moore, 'and I'll be pleasantly... interesting than a superhero.
'If I was to try to pin it down,' continues Moore, 'it takes the spirit of what J. G. Ballard said, that 'Earth is the last alien planet'. It's reality treated as if it is science fiction, so there'll be stranger characters, concepts, events and the like without there being one jot of SF. It's a completely uncompromised comic, but that's not to say that it's not going to be entertaining. [...] with The Mandlebrot Set I'm trying to go as far as Watchmen moved on from Swamp Thing. I'm going to try different storytelling techniques to get away from what's become Alan Moore cliches. It's going to be more sophisticated, more human, more personal.' [...]

For more info about Big Numbers visit this very special site, HERE.

The Tomorrow Syndicate by Claudio Calia

Art by Claudio Calia

Above, a perfect black and white shot of a key moment in American history featuring The Tomorrow Syndicate from the personal favourite 1963 miniseries. 

Art by Italian comic book artist and graphic journalist Claudio Calia.  

This homage is included in Francesco Pelosi's essay, Alan Moore: Mappaterra del Mago.

For more info about the artist, visit his official site: HERE.

German Jerusalem

Cover art by benSwerk

Above the cover for the German edition of Jerusalem to be published by Carcosa this fall. 

Cover art by benSwerk. 

For more info about the artist, visit the official site and Instagram page.

Polsino and The Extraordinary Gents

Art by Polsino

Above, a super illustration by Italian comic book artist Leonardo Lotti AKA Polsino. It features several characters and moments from The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen series.

This extraordinary homage is included in Francesco Pelosi's essay, Alan Moore: Mappaterra del Mago. Highly recommended!

For more info about the artist visit his Instagram.

Swedish Monsters, Maniacs & Moore

Art by Christoffer Hjalmarsson

Above, a poster drawn by Swedish comic book artist and illustrator Christoffer Hjalmarsson for the screening of 1987 documentary Monsters, Maniacs & Moore.

 

For more info about the artist, visit his DeviantArt and Blog page.

The documentary is available on YouTube, HERE. 

La Came From Hell

Art by La Came

Above, a gorgeous, sooty illustration by Italian comic book artist and illustrator Laura "La Came" Camelli. This homage to From Hell is included in Francesco Pelosi's essay, Alan Moore: Mappaterra del Mago.

For more info about La Came: Mammaiuto page - Instagram

Alan Moore between the lines by Matteo Alagna

Art by Matteo Alagna

Above a great portrait of Alan Moore by Italian art director and illustrator MATTEO ALAGNA. On the background you can read the final lines from Voice of the fire's first chapter.

This is part of Alagna's 5-portrait project titled Between the lines (2019):

5 writers, 5 quotes, 5 colored inks. Minimal and iconic portraits of some of my favorite authors. On the background, significant quotes from their writing. Because what the ink draws on the paper can last forever.

You can admire the complete project HERE. 

For more info about the artist: Behance - Instagram

Tom Strong and Tomorrow Stories by EMME

Art by EMME

Above, a spectacular illustration by Italian comic book artist Francesco Maria Ghedini aka EMME featuring Tom Strong and Tomorrow Stories' characters First American & U.S.Angel, Jack B. Quick, Cobweb, Splash Brannigan and Greyshirt. 

The illustration, in black and white, has been printed in Francesco Pelosi's book, Alan Moore: Mappaterra del Mago. The image is a clear homage to the Crimebusters' meeting in Watchmen.

 

For more info about EMME visit his Instagram page, HERE.

Art by EMME

The Crimebusters. Panel from Watchmen.

On the tombstone

Art by Alpraz

Above, Moore portrait by Italian artist Alpraz. The illustration is included in Pelosi's Moore book.

 

Below, a small excerpt from an interview originally published on Honestpublishing.com in 2011.

How do you want to be remembered?
Alan Moore: I don’t really much care, because I won’t be around to glory in it. I don’t know, as somebody who was a good writer, a decent magician and who tried to follow his path with integrity to the best of his ability. And also that I was really sexy. That would do. Put that on the tombstone. 

You can read the complete interview HERE.

For more info about Alpraz: official site.

The Great When description and covers

UK edition

The Great When is the first book in the Long London series of five fantasy novels.

It will published on the 1st of October by Bloomsbury. Covers and book description are a bit different for the UK and the US edition. See above and below. Enjoy!

From Bloomsbury UK

A dark and beguiling tour through the streets of a magical London by the Sunday Times bestselling master of modern fantasy, Alan Moore

The year is 1949, the city London. Dennis Knuckleyard is a hapless eighteen-year-old who works and lives in a second-hand bookstore. One day, on an errand to retrieve rare books, Dennis discovers that one of them does not exist. It is a fictitious book, yet it is physically there in his hands nonetheless. How? It comes from the Great When, a dark and magical version of the city that is beyond time. There, epochs blend and realities and unrealities blur. If Dennis does not take this book back to the other London, he will be killed.

So begins a journey delving deep into the city's occult underbelly and tarrying with an eccentric cast of sorcerers, gangsters, and murderers, many of whom have their own nefarious intentions. Soon Dennis finds himself at the center of an explosive series of events that may alter and endanger both Londons.
Mystical, magnificently written and hilarious, The Great When is Moore's most imaginative work yet and the first in the fantastic new Long London series.

From Bloomsbury US

From the New York Times bestselling author and legendary storyteller Alan Moore, the first book in an enthralling new fantasy series about murder, magic, and madness in post-WWII London.

Dennis Knuckleyard is a hapless eighteen-year-old who works and lives in a second-hand bookstore. One day, his boss and landlady, Coffin Ada, sends him to retrieve some rare books, one of which, Dennis discovers, should not exist. A London Walk by Rev. Thomas Hampole is a fictitious book that appears in a real novel by another author. Yet A London Walk is physically there in his hands, nonetheless.

Coffin Ada tells Dennis the book comes from the other London, the Great When, a version of the city that is beyond time. In the Great When, epochs blend and realities and unrealities blur, while concepts such as Crime and Poetry are incarnated as wondrous and terrible beings. But, Coffin Ada tells Dennis, if he does not return the book to this other London, he will be killed.

So begins Dennis' adventure in Long London. Delving deep into the city's occult underbelly and tarrying with an eccentric cast of sorcerers, gangsters, and murderers, Dennis finds himself at the center of an explosive series of events that may endanger both Londons.

Mystical, hilarious, and magnificently imagined, The Great When is an unforgettable introduction to the consciousness-altering world of Long London.

US edition

UPDATE: Cover artist is Nicolas Delort. Visit his site HERE.

More info at EW.com here.

Art by Nicolas Delort

Romantic Moore by Alessandro Aroffu

Art by Alessandro Aroffu

You should already know about Francesco Pelosi's upcoming book about Moore (details here). What you don't know (yet) is that my intro is enriched with a gorgeous illustration by my dear friend and excellent artist Alessandro Aroffu. You can admire it above. Below, some wip material.

 

The illustration pays a clear homage to Caspar David Friedrich's Wanderer above the Sea of Fog showing Moore in the company of some well-known beings from Idea-Space. Enjoy!

Alessandro loves creating stories and drawing comics. He is also a... beekeeper. All things are related!

For more info about Alessandro, visit his Instagram: HERE.

Wip art by Alessandro Aroffu