By Ron Evans
Most art loving locals that made their way out to any given First Friday Art Walk over the past few years will likely know who Shen Leidigh is. His looming but approachable lumberjack-esque appearance with a voice that could carry across the mighty Columbia were reason enough to remember him. But his ‘whimsical with a cause’ art and incredibly thoughtful conversation are what sealed that deal. When Leidigh left the valley for a new homestead back east, it left a noticeable hole in the art community, and it also left many of us wondering… “when will he finish the graphic novel?”
Leidigh was always happy to share the concepts and early page work for a graphic novel he was working on called “The Psychedelic Singularity”. We didn’t know a lot in the beginning. But we knew it had a bigfoot vs. GMO element. That was enough to get excited about all on its own. Over the next couple of years we’d see a few more tantalizing pages pop up. Highly (read: insanely) detailed line work filling the page border to border. No traditional panels breaking up the action - instead, Leidigh opted for a clever use of things like fallen trees and power lines as a much less intrusive way of dividing up the scenes. It was clear that this book was going to be something special once we finally got to see it. Which brings us to the present…
Leidigh has durn near finished this massive undertaking - he’s currently finalizing some coloring and lettering for his pages, and he has launched a Kickstarter to raise funds for a proper publishing run. I chatted with the artist about the book and his plan for the crowdfunding campaign.
The artist and writer himself, Shen Leidigh
Give us a little background on the graphic novel, when and how was it conceived?
I first got the inspiration while on a 61 day solo hiking trip in the Cascade Mountains of Washington state. It was that experience of leaving all the modern technology behind and how that made me feel that first sparked the idea.
Humans, nature, the environment, technology - your thoughts on where we are going as a society? And is there a message you’d like to get across to the readers concerning these things?
I think the internet, and in particular how we interact with it by way of mobile phones, is transforming the world in ways we don't fully understand. Every generation, some new technology comes along - cars, airplanes, radio, television, the internet… and every one of these developments has been treated with suspicion by the older generations, then accepted by the younger generation and life goes on. That's the typical pattern. But this time I really do believe it's different. The new developments are coming faster than ever before and it all seems to be leading to someplace or some… thing in the not so distant future. Is it a true artificial intelligence? The "Singularity"? I can't say I know of course, but it feels like it's almost here.
Mostly I'd like to impart a feeling of hope. That, yes, the world really is changing at an ever accelerating speed towards an uncertain future, but you know what? That's what keeps life interesting. Humans have a way of adapting to our environments, and I think we'll do that in the future as well, no matter what may come.
How many pages did the book end up being?
170 pages. I estimate I've spent well over 5,000 hours of hands on work to get the book to this point, and at least that many thinking about it, planning out the pages in my head. It's been my main focus for my creative energy for the past seven years, and I'm happy to say it's almost ready to go to print.
What made you decide to tell a story in the graphic novel medium?
Well, I wanted to write, and I'm an artist as well. Blending both those together, I believe, creates an experience for the reader that tells a story like "The Psychedelic Singularity" in a better way than writing could on its own.
Who are some of your inspirations in the comics world?
Alan Moore of course, Craig Thompson's graphic novel "Blankets", ‘outsider, or underground comix’ as well...anything with real thought and passion behind it that reaches the apex of its genre. The "good stuff". You know it when you see it.
When did work begin and end on the comic in earnest?
I drew the first page in 2013, and I'm just now finishing up the colors. It's been a long journey, but we're nearly there.
Talk about the drawing technique a bit. Lots of detail (understatement!) and a lack of traditional panelling - is this an aesthetics choice or is there more to the story there?
It was a deliberate choice, I wanted to make something unlike any comic or graphic novel I'd ever seen before, something truly original. In addition, I felt the more curved and organic way of paneling the pages helped achieve the particular visual aesthetic I was going for. Turns out it's a heck of a lot more work to draw a comic that way, but it was worth it.
Tell us about the Kickstarter. Plans for the extra money if the goal is smashed?
The Kickstarter launches December 3rd. As for "extra money,” well most of the funds will go to paying for printing and shipping the book to backers, so there's little fear of there being any "extra money.” But, provided there is? Well, I'll use it to help launch my next graphic novel, which is already in an early planning stage.
Are you pushing the book solely as an independent or are you shopping it around with hopes of maybe getting picked up by one of the bigger publishers?
For now I'm publishing independently.
Now that the book is almost finished - do you have any plans for what comes next concerning creative output?
Another graphic novel is the plan, it's going to go in a different direction as far as subject matter is concerned. I've been drafting the story in my mind for the past few years, but only recently have I begun making a few sketches in my spare time.
Where can people follow progress on the graphic novel and all of your other doings?
ShenLeidighArt@facebook
ThePsychedelicSingularity@Instagram
Donate to this incredible art project at Leidigh’s Kickstarter page HERE:
