VELLEKOOP Maurice
penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/180776/maurice-vellekoop
I don’t think of it [his work] as trying to be politically correct. I just think it reflects reality, especially in Canada where people seem so integrated.” Toronto Star, 15 August 1998, K3.
Born 1964 in the Greater Toronto Area and raised in Etobicoke. In 1998 he was living on the Toronto Islands.
Inspired by his sister Ingrid, he became interested in commercial art, eventually attending the Ontario College of Art from 1982 to 1986.
He joined Reactor Art and Design a multidiscipline art agency and studio based in York Ontario, and has illustrated for magazine, book publishers and agencies.
In addition to Canadian publications like Descant, Maclean’s, Radio Guide, Saturday Night, Taddle Creek and Toronto Life, his illustrations turn up regularly in U.S. magazines such as Entertainment Weekly, Glamour, The New Yorker, The New York Times, Out, Premier, Rolling Stone, Spy, Vogue, and in the United Kingdom, Wallpaper. He was part of a group of young Toronto graphic artists in the late 1980’s, which included Jamie Bennett, Blair Drawson, Jeff Jackson, Anita Kunz and Rene Zamic whose work spread throughout both the North American and European markets. . “I was in New York at a symposium a couple of weeks ago and everyone was talking about what a hotbed of talent Toronto has become.” Said Kunz, “Art directors now seem to be on the look out for people from Toronto.”
He became fascinated by the potential of the comic book and so cartooned and illustrated for Vortex and Mr. X. Unfortunately, the company ceased operations before this avenue could be pursued further. However, he, Fiona Smyth and Gregory Gallant (Seth) collaborated on a mini comic called Fabulous Babes.
He bases his illustrations on graphic art and movies of the 1930’s, 1940’s and 1950’s, but he denies his work is locked in the past. “In the early 1980’s there was a big interest in nostalgia in fine art as well as illustration. Now it’s starting to die out. Even though my work looks nostalgic, I deal with contemporary themes and issues.” [Toronto Star 20 Nov. 1988: G1]
WORK:
CARTOONIST, ILLUSTRATOR & WRITER:
BOOK GRAPHIC COLLECTION:
Content panel & commentary & Cover book front:
Maurice Vellekoop’s ABC Book. Gates of Heck Inc., 1997.
Content panel & commentary & Cover dust jacket wrap around:
A Nut At The Opera. Drawn & Quarterly, April 2006.
Content panel & strip & Cover book front:
Vellevision: A Cocktail of Comics & Pictures. Drawn & Quarterly, December 1997.
Content strip & Cover book front & back :
The World of Gloria Badcock. Koyama Press, 2011.
BOOK TEXT & GRAPHIC ANTHOLOGY:
Content story graphic:
Drawn and Quarterly: Twenty-Five Years …. Drawn & Quarterly, May 2015: “Side Door Lover.” 174-177. Also appeared in periodical Drawn & Quarterly 2-3, 1995 and in Vellevision.
PERIODICAL TEXT & GRAPHIC ANTHOLOGY:
Content memoir graphic:
Descant, 164, Spring 2014: “The Best of Everything My New York Romance”: 20-30.
Story graphic:
Taddle Creek, XVII-2, 32, Spring 2014: “Sleeping Giant”: 5.
Taddle Creek, 36, Winter 2015-2016 “Sexperience.”
ILLUSTRATOR:
PERIODICAL GRAPHIC:
Content story & Cover front:
Vortex, 1-13, 1987: “Guilt Comics”: 1-4.
Cover front:
Mister X, 1-11, Nov.1987.
PERIODICAL TEXT:
Content advertisement:
Toronto Life, January 1981: “our streets are hot with summer cool”: 43.
Content essay:
Radio Guide, 7-4, April 1987: “Preview – The Graduates”. Writ., unidentified: 9.
Radio Guide, 7-6, June 1987: : “Jury Duty” & “Vintage Years”. No writers identified: 5.
| Maclean’s … |
| … 5 May 2003: Title unknown. Writ., Suneel Khanna: 41.
… 19 May 2003: Mail. Writ., Various: 6. Illustration repeated. … 23 June 2003: Title unknown. Writ., Unknown: 43. … 14 July 2003: Mail. Writ., Various: 8. Illustration repeated. … 22 September 2003: “City Slickness”. Writ., Shanda Deziel: 50-51. … 24 November 2003: “It’s All In The Details”. Writ., John Intini : 37. … 5 April 2004: “rude awakening” Writ., Charlie Gillis: 29, 31. |
| Saturday Night …: “flavour of the month”. Writ., various: … | |
| … 111-2, March 1996: “…” …: 78, 79, 80.
… 111-3, April 1996: “…” …: 102, 103, 104. |
… 111-4, May 1996: “…” …: 90, 91, 92.
… 111-5, June 1996: “…” …: 86,87 |
Content essay & Cover front:
Saturday Night, June 1995: “Grandpa! Back To Work!”: 19, 20.
PERIODICAL TEXT & GRAPHIC ANTHOLOGY:
Cover front
Taddle Creek, XXIV-1, 46, Winter 2020/21: “The New Normal.”
Cover wraparound:
Taddle Creek, XIII-1, 23, Christmas 2009: “Somebody Always Dies at Christmas”..
SOURCE:
Article periodical:
Descant, 164, Spring 2014: 255-56.
Vortex, 1-13, 1987: “Editorial”. Ed., Deborah Marks: Inside front cover.
Article newspaper:
The Toronto Star, 20 Nov.1988: “Vital Designs.” Writ., Christopher Hume: G1.
The Toronto Star, 15 August 1998: “Drawn to past …and future”. Writ., Mitchel Raphael: K3.
GALLERY:
Toronto Life, January 1981: 43.
Mister X, 1-11, November 1987: Front cover.
Saturday Night, June 1995: Front cover.
Vellevision, Drawn & Quarterly, December 1997: Front cover.
Taddle Creek, XXIV-1, 46, Winter 2020/21: “The New Normal.”
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