2008 EVENTS 

From November 14th through the 16th, Teresa Winte, Joey Barronton and other GLM Books staff featured Cartoon Limbo at the 2008 National Big Apple Comic Book, Art, Toy, and Sci-Fi Expo.
The three day annual event, NYC's longest running comic book and arts convention, now in its 12th year, was held at the Penn Plaza Pavilion, directly across from Madison Square Garden.
We gave away gift certificates to Planet Hollywood, Cartoon Limbo t-shirts signed by Stan Goldberg, and memberships to MOCCA NYC.
Our booth was between comic greats Stan Goldberg and Irwin Hasen.
Here are some photos:

(Above) Joey greets Comic Con attendees while Stan Goldberg and Irwin Hasen take a break.
(Below) 16 square feet of rejection: the 4 ft. by 4 ft. "no" that greeted Cartoon Limbo guests
at the 2007 exhibit was welcoming visitors to LIMBO at Comic Con, along with Joey,
who gave away prizes, including Cartoon Limbo t-shirts like the one he's wearing.

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On October 14th, I joined cartoonists who are part of a organization called the Ink Well Foundation, which the Ink Well website calls "an artists' collective for children in need." The Ink Well is composed primarily of artists in New York City’s animation and cartooning community who visit children at places like New York Methodist Hospital, Bellevue Hospital, Ronald MacDonald House, Gilda’s Club, and others. They mostly draw for the children during their visits.
On this visit, I joined Rami Efal and Jane Archer at the New York Methodist Hospital in Park Slope, Brooklyn to be a part of the Sparks of Life program for children. We drew and had a fun visit with the children who stopped in to see us. Visit Ink Well Foundation for photos of this and previous events.

On September 27th, I was in the company of fellow cartoonists Ray Alma, Amber Alvarez, Jane Archer, Julia Durgee, Rami Efal, and Nina Frenkel, along with Ink Well founder Elizabeth Winter. We visited the Lower East Side Girls Club. We joined the girls in mask-making, creating greeting cards, and, in an especially admirable effort on their part, making a comic book which would tell the story (sadly a true story, not imaginary) and raise money for a turtle who was abused and injured recently in the neighborhood who's in need of funds to help pay for medical bills.  Please click the Girls Club link above to visit the site where you can contact them for info on how you can help. Click here to see photos from our visit.

On August 27, I was in the company of fellow cartoonists Ray Alma, Sal Amendola, and Julia Durgee at Bellevue Hospital.
Laurina Rollicks, program director, was there to greet me before the event started and we chatted a bit and then we went upstairs and hung out with the children for about an hour and half and drew. What did we draw, you may ask? Why, anything the children asked for. I had all my little copies of drawings related to the theme of "opposites," as per the Ink Well Foundation's suggestion, and I decided I would launch into my shtick I do when I go to read and draw at schools:

"Hey, everybody, tonight is opposites night."
(Holding up drawing of cat running up stairs and dog running down stairs)

"Can anyone tell me what the opposites are in this drawing?"

One of the children: "Can you draw Batman?"
Another: "Draw me Spiderman!"
And so it went for the evening...

Fortunately, Sal Amendola, comic book artist supreme, was present, and he, along with Ray Alma, kept the comic book heroes rolling off the drawing paper.

Julia's style is bold and sharp and she, being the sole female in the bunch, exuded a great sort of big sister energy when the children got too wound up and excited. One word from her and everything became calm.

I was soon being asked to draw "real" stuff: real lions, real sharks, real cheetahs, etc.  I had to explain that I draw loose and funny, not literal or real, which was met with mostly looks of confusion.

I found a fully-illustrated single-volume dictionary for children, pawed my through it and found several animals I thought I might be able to copy. By the end of the evening, I was reminded that I sell myself short and that I do, in fact, draw very real. Just not simultaneously fast and funny. Hey, you can't always be fast and funny. I was thoroughly appreciative of the lesson.
Heads up: want to learn more about yourself? Hang out with children for a few hours and listen to them, unfiltered and unscripted, hearts wide open and full of love. You'd be surprised.

Anyhow, here are some photos from the event. Join me at the next one, will you?

May 2008: I joined "Crazy Old Aunt Helen" author Janet Carlson-Sanders in Dayton, OH,
where we launched "...Helen"at Hillel Academy. Janet's mom Elizabeth Carlson teaches at Hillel.
We read to the younger grades, then hosted a Q & A sessions about writing and publishing
with the older grades.
Janet is shown here with Elizabeth from a feature that Dayton Daily News did on the book's release.

"Hilarious, warm and loving" - Dayton Daily News

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December 2007: Book signing party for Monica Sheehan and Lewis
(l. to r.) Lewis with "Crazy Old Aunt Helen" collaborator Janet Carlson-Sanders & husband John Sanders, Diane Painter and Bonnie Irons get up close and personal with the camera, Amy Stein-Wood and Travis Wood
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Summer 2007: Guest speaker for two classes in the West Windsor School district;
first at the art class, then here in the Junior Publishing Club.
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Feb. 2007: Lewis visits his hometown of Cookeville, TN and Tennessee Tech University as featured reader for its Chocolate, Poetry, and Prose fundraiser for Tennessee Rehabilitation Services.
(l. to r. Reading, visiting with Dad afterward, surprise reunion with first grade teacher Janey Bassett and sophomore year Spanish teacher Marge Rios.
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Fall 2006: Author appearance at Monkey Hill, Lambertville, NJ
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Summer 2006: Reading, drawing, and book signing at Gumbo in Brooklyn as a part of the ArtWalk '06
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May 2006: Attending the BookExpo America in Washington, DC
(l. to r. Lewis signing books, Lewis & Gary in the GLM Books booth, Bonnie, Alex, & Elliot visit)

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March 2006: Reading, drawing, and book signing at Flying Squirrel, Williamsburg, Brooklyn
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Feb. 2006: Reading, drawing, and book signing at Doodle-Doo's in the West Village, NYC
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Nov. 2005: Two Big Books on Two Big Walls exhibit and interactive reading
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Oct. 2005: Prose aLoft: A 50-year retrospective of the work of Karla Kuskin, along with poetry and art by Lewis Matheney.
Kuskin-Matheney collaborative "Ice Cream Dreams" book signing took place that evening as well.
(l. to r. Lewis signing books, Boyds Mills Press editor Bee Cullinan with guest, writer Paula Fox with guest)
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2004 EVENTS 

Reading and drawing at P.S. 122, NYC. Taking an ice cream break.
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