by Vihn-Luan Luu
Kristian Donaldson, local to the Dallas/Ft. Worth area, made a huge splash on the comic world over Wizard World Texas weekend with is one-man show at Zeus Comics. Known for his slick style and skillful usage of bright, vibrant colors, Donaldson is relatively new to the comic industry. His new book Supermarket is causing quite a stir in the business, getting press on Newsarama, The Dallas Observer, and other media outlets. And over the Wizard World weekend, he got to put the "artist" in "comic book artist".
First off, Zeus Comics is the ultimate comic shop in the Dallas area. Winner of Will Eisner Spirit of Comics Retailer Award for 2006, Zeus is the go to place in DFW. Located within the streets of Dallas trendy, Zeus is the comic shop straight out of the movies. Clean, organized, well lit, and stocked full of really cool stuff. Zeus also is a strong presence in the Dallas comic book scene. They sponsor many events like their Lesbian and Gay Comic Mixer, the annual CAPE mini-convention held on Free Comic Book Day, and live art show benefits. And for them to host Kristian’s art show was a given.
The art show was a great turnout of local comic book fans as well as art connoisseurs. Strewn about the shop were original paintings as well as original pages from Supermarket and DMZ. The event might as well been held at the hippest art gallery in Deep Ellum, but having it at Zeus really added a flavor and ambiance that could only be experienced first-hand. It was an art show about the art itself and not the artist statement. In fact, there was no artist statement. Kristian poured himself into these pieces, his vision and whatever message he wanted to convey was on the walls, in the paint and pencils. The unassuming Donaldson mingled with fans and friends alike. He was obviously tired and worn from prepping the show and working the convention, but it was clear that he was proud and happy with his work on the walls.
The event showed great promise for future art showing at Zeus. With the plethora of magnificent artist in the Dallas area, it would be awesome to see them featured in this unique gallery setting.
