Luke McGarry explained

Luke McGarry
Birth Name:Luke Edward McGarry
Birth Date:11 October 1987
Birth Place:Manchester, England
Years Active:2005–present
Known For:FYF Fest, Festival Supreme

Luke Edward McGarry (born 11 October 1987) is a British illustrator, cartoonist, animator and designer based in Los Angeles. He is engaged to actress Jillian Bell.

Early career

In 2005, while they were still students at the Orange County High School of the Arts, Luke and his brother, Joe McGarry – twin sons of British cartoonist Steve McGarry – formed the music duo Pop Noir. Luke's design work for the band, including posters and record sleeves, led to him being invited to create cartoons and illustrations for a number of music-related publications, including LA Record, LA City Beat and OC Weekly. In 2007, in recognition of their design work for The National Cartoonists Society, the 19-year-olds became the youngest-ever recipients of the NCS Silver T-Square, an award whose previous recipients include two U.S. Presidents and cartoonists Milton Caniff, Mort Walker and Bil Keane.[1] Luke McGarry has subsequently been nominated eight times in the NCS Silver Reuben Division Awards, winning three times, for Advertising Illustrator of the Year in 2016, 2019 and 2020[2] [3]

Music business projects

In 2010, McGarry began his seven-year association with FYF Fest, creating the poster art each year, as well as designing printed programs, maps and wristbands for the Festival.[4] [5] During this period, he regularly collaborated with House of Vans[6] and created poster art for a number of Los Angeles music venues and promoters, including Spaceland, The Echo, Echoplex and The Regent. In 2013, OC Weekly described McGarry as "the poster child for success in the world of rock-n-roll cartoons".[7]

McGarry was the lead visual artist for Festival Supreme, an annual Los Angeles comedy and music festival, created by Jack Black and Kyle Gass of Tenacious D, which was staged from 2013 to 2017.[8] In addition to posters, stage design and backdrops, projections and merchandising art, in 2015 he also collaborated with his brother to create a series of five 30-second animated TV commercials, sponsored by Geico, which ran on the IFC network.[9] Operating as The Fantastic Heat Brothers, they wrote, designed, and animated the series, with voiceovers provided by Black and Gass.

Beginning in 2014, McGarry began creating posters and billboards[10] for the annual series of Coachella-adjacent shows staged by the festival's promoter, Goldenvoice.[11]

He has designed a number of record sleeves for other artists, from Kim Fowley[12] to a Secret 7" project for Underworld,[13] and created animated music videos for a diverse range of music artists[14] including:

In 2020, he released his debut solo single, "Black Leather" b/w "Go Ghost" on the Fantastic Heat label, accompanied by two animated music videos.

Cartoons, animation and MAD magazine

Inspired by the death of Han Solo in 2015's , McGarry began creating a series of Sad Chewie cartoons depicting Chewbacca in everyday situations mourning the loss of his friend.[19]

In 2016, he collaborated with LA Galaxy on a poster series.[20] He also made his debut in a number of publications, including The Hollywood Reporter,[21] Canadian Business and Le Parisien.[22] He provided a regular political cartoon, as well as a number of front covers, for OC Weekly.[23]

In 2017, he launched the comic Lukey McGarry's TLDR on GoComics.[24]

He also became a regular contributor to MAD in 2017, creating two regular features for the magazine – "The 27 Club"[25] and "The Chancers"[26] – as well as contributing numerous single cartoons and panels.[27]

The McGarrys have continued to produce animated videos for a variety of clients. In 2017, they created the "Melania's Great Escape" series for Super Deluxe.[28] In 2019 they produced an animated segment for Vice's Party Legends series. Other animation clients have included Google Play, Visa and Universal Music Group.

Much of Luke's cartoon output is published directly to social media and focuses on pop culture and politics. Boing Boing has described his work as "hilarious" and "deeply niche".[29]

Cartoon festival, convention appearances and live shows

McGarry has been featured at San Diego Comic-Con on a number of occasions, including 2013, when he and Jack Black staged a special signing session on the convention floor.[30] The following year, the pair were reunited and joined by Kyle Gass for a special appearance, once more hosted by the National Cartoonists Society.[31] [32] In 2018, McGarry was featured in MAD magazine panels at SDCC,[33] [34] New York Comic Con[35] and Wondercon in Anaheim.[36]

2016 saw him featured as special guest, alongside his cartoonist father, Steve McGarry, at The Lakes International Comic Art Festival in Kendal, U.K.[37] The pair returned as guests for each of the three subsequent festivals[38] [39] and Luke McGarry and his brother, Joe, were featured when The Lakes was staged as a fully virtual online event in 2020. Among the events they conducted for LICAF 2020 were an animation masterclass[40] and music sessions alongside their invited guests, The Walking Dead artist Charlie Adlard, David Silverman of The Simpsons and Batman illustrator Michael Lark.[41] The McGarry brothers also created Sheep Trek, a virtual comic that combined the talents of Luke McGarry, Duncan Fegredo, Steven Appleby, Rick Stromoski, Steve McGarry, Craig Gleason, Johnny Sampson, Tom Richmond, Lucie Lomová, Charlie Adlard, Bill Morrison, Sean Phillips, Michael Lark, Francis Desharnais, Jibé and Alex A.[42] Luke McGarry did a live show broadcast from Los Angeles[43] and the brothers also created the festival's Virtual Clocktower website.[44]

In April 2017, McGarry moderated Drawing the Lines, a political cartoons panel discussion with Tom Tomorrow and David Horsey at The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books at USC.[45]

In May 2017, Luke, Joe and Steve McGarry, as well as MAD magazine cartoonist Tom Richmond, were invited speakers at the China-U.S. Comics Summit Forum at the Jilin Animation Institute in Changchun,[46] where they were honored as visiting professors.[47] [48]

That same year, Luke McGarry appeared at Los Angeles Comic Con[49] and was a special guest at three events in Tokyo – Tokyo Comic Con, Tokyo International Comic Festival (Kaigai Manga Festa)[50] and Comic Art Tokyo.[51] He returned to Tokyo Comic Con in 2018 as a featured guest.[52] [53]

In 2018, he was a featured guest at the Helsinki Comics Festival in Kattilahalli, Finland.[54]

In 2019, after appearing at C2E2 in Chicago,[55] and Wondercon in Anaheim, he appeared as a special guest at Québec BD[56] in Canada before appearing once more at SDCC.

Commissioned to create the look of the inaugural NCSFest in Huntington Beach, California, in the summer of 2019, his work was featured on posters, banners and the shuttle buses[57] laid on by the city to transport attendees.[58] He was featured in seven of the festival's premier events.[59] [60]

He also created the signature artwork for France's Lyon festival in 2019[61] and was a featured guest at the festival, appearing in numerous events and panels.[62]

He has regularly appeared at "Picture This" improv comedy show's in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Denver. The shows feature comedians paired with cartoonists who live draw as the comedian perform their sets.[63] In 2020, McGarry began to broadcast occasional one hour "Lukey Live in Lockdown" shows via Twitch.[64]

Exhibitions

In 2014, Luke McGarry's work was displayed in a month-long solo exhibition at the Burbank, California, headquarters of Cartoon Network.[65] He has subsequently been featured in a number of exhibitions at L.A.'s Gallery 1988, including shows inspired by Veep,[66] Tom Hanks[67] and Bob's Burgers.[68]

In 2016, his illustrations on the Euro2016 Soccer tournament were featured in the "Group Stage" exhibition hosted by Patterns of Play In Hoxton, London.[69]

In 2017, in tandem with a Pop Noir concert in the brothers' native Manchester, England, 20 of Luke McGarry's concert poster designs were exhibited at The Peer Hat venue in the city centre.

In October 2018, McGarry was the focus of 31 at 31,[70] a month-long exhibition at Carlisle's University of Cumbria that featured 31 of his concert posters to mark his 31st birthday.[71]

His work was heavily featured in the "Playing For A Draw' soccer art exhibition[72] that debuted in the UK in the summer of 2018 at the National Football Museum in Manchester, before it moved to the Brewery Arts Center in Kendal later that year.[73] Playing For A Draw was one of three exhibitions, along with "Hero(ine)s" – a French exhibition which reimagined classic comic characters as female icons – and "90 Years of Popeye," staged concurrently at the Huntington Beach Art Center under the umbrella of "The Wonderful World of Comics" as part of the inaugural NCSFest.[74] McGarry's work was featured in all three exhibitions and he designed all the banners, posters and advertising art for the event.[75]

In June 2019, as part of Lyon BD, he had a one-man exhibition at the city's Kiblind Gallery.[76]

In September 2019, as part of The Lakes International Comic Art Festival, McGarry created the timeline centerpiece of the Let's Go Camping With Tom of Finland exhibition,[77] which charted the history of the Tom of Finland comic series.[78]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: National Cartoonists Society – Awards. 27 October 2020. www.nationalcartoonists.com. en.
  2. News: Cavna. Michael. Lynda Barry, Ann Telnaes win top honors at 2017 Reuben Awards for cartoonists. en-US. Washington Post. 27 October 2020. 0190-8286.
  3. Web site: Winners of 2020 NCS Divisional Awards. 8 November 2021. en.
  4. Web site: 26 August 2016. Meet Luke McGarry: The Artist Behind Music's Most Important Festivals The MAT Magazine. 27 October 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20160826231518/http://matmag.net/meet-luke-mcgarry/. 26 August 2016.
  5. Web site: 13 November 2016. Luke McGarry: Luck of the Draw. Canvas. 27 October 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20161113130637/https://www.lacanvas.com/luke-mcgarry-luck-of-the-draw/. 13 November 2016.
  6. Web site: 2 July 2012. FYF Full Lineups 2012 Vans House Parties NYC. 27 October 2020. Transworld SKATEboarding. en-US.
  7. Web site: Jackson. Nate. 7 May 2013. Luke McGarry of Pop Noir Nominated For Cartoonist of the Year Award.
  8. Web site: 26 October 2015. Schtick & Move: Festival Supreme @ The Shrine Auditorium [LA]]. 27 October 2020. Monster Fresh. en-US.
  9. Web site: Locker. Melissa. 7 October 2015. Hit the Road to Festival Supreme with Tenacious D's New Animated Shorts.
  10. Web site: Shatkin. Elina. 20 February 2014. Localchella 2014: 44 Shows that Bring Coachella to Los Angeles Los Angeles Magazine. 27 October 2020. Los Angeles Magazine. en-US.
  11. Web site: Goldenvoice Announces Updted Coachella-Adjacent Show Schedule for April. 27 October 2020. larecord.com.
  12. Web site: Kim Fowly: Stupidity Is an Art Form.
  13. Web site: Celebrating Severn Years of Secret 7.
  14. Web site: Six Point Media.
  15. Web site: Roth. Matthew. Music for Preschoolers.
  16. Web site: Kevin. Bronson. 14 October 2010. Guster, 'This Is How It Feels to Have a Broken Heart'. 27 October 2020. buzzbands.la. en.
  17. Web site: 8 December 2015. Desaparecidos – "Golden Parachutes" Video. 27 October 2020. Stereogum.
  18. Web site: A. Aron. 25 August 2017. Hoodie Allen – Sushi. HNHH.
  19. Web site: Luke I Am Your Father!. 27 October 2020. Brewery Arts Centre – Kendal. en-GB.
  20. Web site: LA Galaxy v Colorado Rapids.
  21. Web site: Wolff. Michael. 4 January 2018. "You Can't Make This S— Up": My Year Inside Trump's Insane White House. 27 October 2020. The Hollywood Reporter.
  22. Web site: Egmond. Par Nedjma Van. Bretonnier. avec Lucas. Dupont-Monod. Clara. 13 October 2016. Le Parisien Magazine. Cinéastes, musiciens, auteurs... L'Amérique dans leurs yeux. 27 October 2020. leparisien.fr. fr-FR.
  23. Web site: Alt-Right Realizes an Eclipse is Happening This Monday [OC Weekly Editorial Cartoon]]. 27 October 2020. www.ocweekly.com.
  24. Web site: Today on Lukey McGarry's TLDR – Comics by Luke McGarry – GoComics. 27 October 2020. www.gocomics.com.
  25. Web site: 4 June 2018. Excl. Preview: Luke McGarry Unites the 27 Club in MAD Magazine #2. 27 October 2020. CBR. en-US.
  26. Web site: 11 October 2018. Sneak Preview: The Chancers. 27 October 2020. www.madmagazine.com. en.
  27. Web site: 24 April 2018. A Kanye Comic by Luke McGarry. 27 October 2020. www.madmagazine.com. en.
  28. Web site: Kacala. Alexander. 19 October 2017. Melania Tries to Break Free From Captor Trump in This Hilarious Cartoon. en.
  29. Web site: Hessig. Janelle. 1 January 2021. Luke McGarry's hilarious gag comics got me through 2020. en.
  30. Web site: 16 July 2013. Jack Black to sign posters at NCS Comic Con table. 27 October 2020. The Daily Cartoonist. en-US.
  31. Web site: Tenacious D joins Luke McGarry at NCS Comic-Con booth!. 27 October 2020. en.
  32. Web site: The NCS at San Diego Comic-Con 2014. 27 October 2020. en.
  33. Web site: 21 July 2018. MAD panel at SDCC. 27 October 2020. bleedingcool.com.
  34. Web site: 20 July 2018. MAD About San Diego Comic Con. 27 October 2020. Richmond Illustration Inc..
  35. Web site: Allen. Brendan M.. 10 October 2018. NYCC 2018: Mad About MAD Magazine Blending Tradition And Modernity. 27 October 2020. Comicon. en-US.
  36. Web site: 14 March 2018. DC Brings the Action to Wondercon 2018. 27 October 2020. DC. en.
  37. Web site: Top Cartoonists Steve and Luke McGarry Lined Up for October's Lakes Comics Festival – downthetubes.net. 8 April 2016 . 27 October 2020. en-GB.
  38. Web site: Global comic superstar helps to change perceptions of Cumbria. 27 October 2020. In Cumbria. en.
  39. Web site: 28 September 2017. Sergio Aragonés To Announce Inaugural Winner of International Award for Excellence in Comic Art At LICAF. 27 October 2020. Tripwire. en-GB.
  40. Web site: How to Animate DIY Style with Joe & Luke McGarry Lakes International Comic Art Festival. 27 October 2020. www.comicartfestival.com.
  41. Web site: The Viral Loads Lakes International Comic Art Festival. 27 October 2020. www.comicartfestival.com.
  42. Web site: Pass the Panel Lakes International Comic Art Festival. 27 October 2020. www.comicartfestival.com.
  43. Web site: Lukey McGarry – Interactive Comic Capers Lakes International Comic Art Festival. 27 October 2020. www.comicartfestival.com.
  44. Web site: Virtual Comics Clock Tower Launches. www.comicartfestival.com.
  45. Web site: Los Angeles Times Festival of Books: Drawing the Lines: Political Cartoons, C.... 27 October 2020. festivalofbooks2017.sched.com.
  46. Web site: 【美国动漫】美中动画合作:向美国全国漫画家协会提问,美国驻华大使馆微信公众号文章 - 澳微帮. 27 October 2020. www.aoweibang.com.
  47. Web site: A Wall of Unity-- Beijing Review. 27 October 2020. www.bjreview.com.
  48. Web site: 25 May 2017. MAD About China. 27 October 2020. Richmond Illustration Inc..
  49. Web site: Los Angeles Comic Con. 27 October 2020. www.chopblock.com.
  50. Web site: Tokyo International Comic Festival (Kaigai Manga Festa) 2017 – COPIC Official Site (English). 27 October 2020. en-US.
  51. Web site: Tag tcaf abroad TCAF 2020 – 9 & 10 May (PD Day 8 May). 27 October 2020. en-CA.
  52. Web site: 5 December 2018. RoboCop, Aquaman and Terminator's Harley: 5 Things We Saw at Tokyo Comic Con 2018. 27 October 2020. Tokyo Weekender. en-US.
  53. Web site: Luke McGarry Archives. 27 October 2020. Talent In Borders. en-US.
  54. Web site: Helsinki Comics Festival Suvilahti. 27 October 2020. www.suvilahti.fi. en.
  55. Web site: Jim. McGreal. Events-Photos. 27 October 2020. NCS – National Cartoonist Society. en-US.
  56. Web site: Festival Québec BD 2019 : Que la fête commence ! - ActuaBD. 27 October 2020. www.actuabd.com.
  57. Web site: Surf City assets.
  58. Web site: NCSFest Artists Alley ready to get down on Main Street, Huntington Beach next May! – downthetubes.net. 12 December 2018 . 27 October 2020. en-GB.
  59. Web site: 22 February 2019. NCSFest 2019. 27 October 2020. NCSFest. en.
  60. Web site: 24 May 2019. Wacom catches the wave in Huntington Beach. 27 October 2020. Wacom Americas Blog. en-US.
  61. Web site: Lyon BD 2019 Festival poster by Luke McGarry revealed – downthetubes.net. 27 October 2020. en-GB.
  62. Web site: Luke McGarry – LYONBD. 27 October 2020. LYONBD Festival. fr-FR.
  63. Web site: luke mcgarry – The Comedy Bureau. 27 October 2020. en-US.
  64. Web site: Don't Miss Luke McGarry's "Lukey Live in Lockdown"! Lakes International Comic Art Festival. 27 October 2020. www.comicartfestival.com.
  65. Web site: 7 May 2014. 9 Awesome Things You Might Not Know About Cartoon Network Studios. 27 October 2020. Topless Robot. en-US.
  66. Web site: Bailey. Jason. Clever 'Veep'-Inspired Artwork From Gallery 1988. 27 October 2020. Flavorwire. en.
  67. Web site: 18 June 2015. No Sad Stuff – Tom Hanks films inspired Art Show @Gallery 1988. 27 October 2020. Geek-Art.net. fr-FR.
  68. Web site: Brooks. Katherine. 19 May 2016. Uhhh, This 'Bob's Burgers' Fan Art Would Make Tina Proud. 27 October 2020. HuffPost. en.
  69. Web site: Exhibition page (new layout). 27 October 2020. Patterns of Play. en-GB.
  70. Web site: Star Wars: The Art Awakens. 27 October 2020. News and Star. en.
  71. Web site: Global comic superstar Luke McGarry goes retro in Cumbria. 27 October 2020. In Cumbria. en.
  72. Web site: In Pictures: Playing for a Draw Football Comics Exhibition, the National Football Museum – downthetubes.net. 2020-10-27. en-GB.
  73. Web site: Could you win a Limited Edition football-inspired colouring book by Luke and Steve McGarry? – downthetubes.net. 2020-10-27. en-GB.
  74. Web site: NCS Fest. 27 October 2020. The Vendry. en-US.
  75. Web site: The Wonderful World of Comics. 27 October 2020. Huntington Beach Art Center. en.
  76. Web site: Luke McGarry. 27 October 2020. KIBLIND STORE.
  77. Web site: 15 September 2019. "Let's Go Camping With Tom of Finland" 28 September Kendal UK. 27 October 2020. Tom of Finland Foundation. en-US.
  78. Web site: Tom of Finland Centennial to be celebrated this week – downthetubes.net. 4 May 2020 . 27 October 2020. en-GB.