The 20th annual Baltimore-Con is returning to the Baltimore Convention Center in the Inner Harbor on October 18-20, 2019. Also making its return to the 2019 show for the eight year is the Baltimore Comic-Con Yearbook!
Their annual tradition, celebrating creators appearing at the show, will feature interpretations of characters from Juan Díaz Canales and Juanjo Guarnido's award-winning Blacksad. Designed by returning guest and Cupid’s Arrows, Warning Label, and Time and Vine creator Thom Zahler, the book comes in a standard and, for VIP ticket holders, a limited VIP cover edition.
This film noir style series follows John Blacksad through stories set in late 1950s, reflecting a dirty, realist outlook and a dark cinematic style through fairly clean, realistic lines. The series’ art features detailed watercolor drawings, including real life places and cities, which contribute to the realistic feel of the series. Blacksad is a private investigator whose cases entail researching murders, child abductions, and nuclear secrets. Guarnido’s painted art and rich cinematic style bring 1950s America to life on the page of his books, and Canales’ storytelling of conspiracy, racial tension, and the “red scare” Communist witch hunts of the era make for compelling storytelling.
“I’m thrilled that the Baltimore Comic-Con Yearbook theme is Blacksad for 2019,” said Guarnido. “I am very much looking forward to seeing what the other guests of the show do when creating Blacksad art, and am honored to have had our character considered.”
The Baltimore Comic-Con scavenger hunt will also be back in 2019. When fans buy the yearbook, they’ll get a list of Yearbook contributors and their table numbers. Participants succeeding in acquiring the appropriate quota of autographs from contributors can then get their choice of bonus prints. The book will be sold in the Exclusives Booth in the lobby for $29.99.
“As soon as we received confirmation that Juanjo would be joining us as a guest in 2019, we knew what we wanted our theme to be,” said Marc Nathan, show promoter for the Baltimore Comic-Con. “When we received confirmation from Juanjo that we would be using Blacksad as our theme this year, we were ecstatic. Blacksad is such a distinctive figure, and Juanjo’s art is so beautiful. Artists love these books in general, and we knew our guests would be excited. We’ve already seen a few of the submissions, and we think our fans will agree that 2019’s yearbook is going to be a must-have item!”
Art created for the 2019 Baltimore Comic-Con Yearbook celebrating Blacksad will be auctioned off at the Baltimore Comic-Con Art Auction. The art auction will be held at 5 PM on Saturday, October 19, in the Main Hall.
