Fata Morgana

(Paperback)

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Description

Fata Morgana follows the adventure of a young boy through the landscapes of his imagination. He encounters and befriends creatures that are, like all mirages, born out of aspects of his own unconscious. Presented in vibrantly colored two-page panoramas, Fata Morgana is a feast for the eyes and mind.

Jon Vermilyea is a multitalented Los Angeles based illustrator, cartoonist, animator, and printmaker. His psychedelic, candy-colored illustrations and unique designs of the monstrous and mythical have left their mark on a wide range of clients including Problem Solverz, Adventure Time, Marvel Comics, the acclaimed alternative band Animal Collective, and many more.

Reviews

"Fata Morgana invites readers to wander, immersing themselves in page after page of ever-changing, luminously colored fantasy worlds populated by beautifully drawn creatures. So look and re-look at Vermilyea's universes very slowly." -- Ken Parille, The Comics Journal "This is exquisite storytelling and becomes, in effect, a children's book aimed at adults...That said, it still manages to replicate the joys of reading this kind of story as a child without dumbing it down or drowning it in a sea of expository prose." -- Rob Clough, High-Low "[A]t the center of each page is a little, really cute Calvin & Hobbes little boy, who's just running through, and he gathers little companions as he goes. And every page is a brand new world you can just stare at for hours. It's really amazing. I'm digging it. It must be my favorite one." -- Jeff Smith (Bone, RASL), Paste "And yet what separates Fata Morgana from a century of stories a bit like it -- Little Nemo and much of Sendak, and more recently Matt Furie's lovely Night Riders -- is that it seems less aimed for those readers still in the midst of childhood and more for those remembering it." -- George Elkind, The Comics Journal "All-ages in the true definition -- a layered book that will appeal to both kids and adults on different levels -- Fata Morgana will not just introduce the uninitiated to the fevered imagination of Jon Vermilyea but is also a wonderful example of the eclectic output of Koyama Press. An entrancing, psychedelic tour de force!" -- Andy Oliver, Broken Frontier "Koyama Press published a real gem in Fata Morgana. Jon Vermilyea's illustrative journey of a boy's playfully wild imagination is like a psychedelic Little Nemo, and it's a book any age group can get into." -- Joseph Luster, Crunchyroll News "Fata Morgana is Jon Vermilyea's Little Nemo in Slumberland by way of Where the Wild Things Are with a taste of The Neverending Story resounding at the edges. And in the middle. It's a nightmare/dream journey of a boy and his toy robot pal and a series of tableaus that look like a Wacky Packages factory exploded in neon-land and the heroes must make it out alive." -- Timothy Callahan, Comic Book Resources "There's a little bit Nemo and some of Where the Wild Things Are in these adorably nightmarish dayglo hellscapes. And while the hyperbolic grotesqueries of Basil Wolverton understandably get namechecked in most writeups of Jon Vermilyea's work, there's a certain Calvin and Hobbesian sweetness in his young, hoodied protagonist's silent adventures across horrifically anthropomorphic landscapes, bodily fluids and all." -- Brian Heater, Boing Boing "Fata Morgana as a wonderfully lunatic, psychedelic adventure, serving as an outstanding art book for illustrator Jon Vermilyea, and another staple in Koyama's superb catalogue. An absolutely beautiful look into a child's mind-bending dreams." -- Kevin Cortez, Drawn Words "This is visual storytelling in its purest form...Fata Morgana is a borderline perfect execution of the artist's vision and it's another fantastic addition to Koyama's growing catalog." -- Patrick Hess, Nothing but Comics! "I wanna see a videogame one day by this guy, cause it'd be an instant classic. Anyway, buy this if you like beautiful artwork." -- Ulises Farinas, Faesthetic "Jon Vermilyea lives in a joyous world covered in vomit. No, that wasn't a cheap shot at the fact that he resides in Los Angeles. Jon literally paints with vomit, draws vomit, sleeps in a bed that looks like vomit, and has eyes that are permanently vomited in so that everything he SEES looks like vomit. And since that's the case, his artwork perfectly resembles the world that he sees and his artwork is a great example of realism! I love Jon!" -- Alex Pardee, Juxtapoz Magazine

Author Bio

Jon Vermilyea: is a multitalented Los Angeles-based illustrator, cartoonist, animator, and printmaker. His psychedelic, candy-coloured illustrations and unique designs of the monstrous and mythical have left their mark on a wide range of clients.