| Birth Date: | 7 July 1984 |
| Birth Place: | Merchantville, New Jersey, U.S. |
Noah Van Sciver (born July 7, 1984) is an independent American cartoonist who resides in Columbia, South Carolina.
Van Sciver grew up in a large family in New Jersey.[1] A self-taught artist,[2] he was influenced by many comics, including Ralph Snart Adventures and comics by Joe Matt and R. Crumb.[3] He and his family were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), but he is no longer a member. His brother Ethan[4] is a comic book artist and an internet personality.
Van Sciver began producing his one-person anthology Blammo in 2006, originally selling them for one dollar. His 4 Questions strip in Denver's alternative weekly, Westword, helped publicize his work when he started publishing it in 2007. After four issues of Blammo, Kilgore Books & Comics published subsequent issues.[5]
In 2010, he briefly campaigned to write and draw Howard the Duck as part of Marvel's Strange Tales series, but was turned down.[6]
His short story "Abby's Road," which originally appeared in Blammo #6, was selected for the Best American Comics 2012 anthology. Van Sciver's work has appeared in Mad magazine,[7] and has been featured in The Comics Journal, Mome, and Mineshaft.
In October 2012, Fantagraphics Books published The Hypo: The Melancholic Young Lincoln, a narrative biography of Abraham Lincoln that spans the years 1837–1842. The Hypo, Van Sciver's first full-length graphic novel, earned positive critical praise, and made it onto several "best-of" lists for 2012, including MTV Geek (#3),[8] Boing Boing (tied #3),[9] Publishers Weekly Critic's Poll (#4),[10] and was ranked as one of the Best Graphic Novels of 2012 by the Library Journal.[11]
In 2015, Fantagraphics released two Van Sciver graphic novels, St. Cole and Fante Bukowski. Van Sciver stated in an interview that he based the character Fante Bukowski's experiences partially on his own experiences.[12] The character Fante Bukowski is an aspiring writer hungry for recognition, and his name is a combination of the surnames of John Fante and Charles Bukowski.[13] In a 2018 interview, Van Sciver said that he did not have plans to draw more Fante Bukowski books.[3]
Also in 2015, Kilgore Books released Van Sciver's autobiographical mini comic My Hot Date, which won the 'Best Story' Ignatz Award at the Small Press Expo.[14]
For the 2015–2016 school year, Van Sciver was a fellow at the Center for Cartoon Studies in White River Junction, VT.[15] He stopped publishing 4 Questions in 2015.[16]
In Van Sciver's autobiographical comic, One Dirty Tree (2018), he examined his childhood. He reported that his family was not happy with the comic, and Van Sciver felt bad for making his father a villain, when his father suffers from mental illness.[3] John Wenzel at The Know described the comic's imagery as "uncanny, [and] deceptively casual."[17]
Van Sciver drew the artwork for the graphic novel Grateful Dead Origins, which was written by Chris Miskiewicz. The book tells the story of the early days of the rock band the Grateful Dead. It was published by Z2 Comics in 2020.[18]
Van Sciver uses Photoshop along with traditional media like radiograph pens, Higgins inks, colored pencils and watercolors.[2] He keeps regular hours drawing, working each day from 9am until 5pm. He has used social media like Patreon and Twitter in the past to get immediate feedback on his work.[3] He moved to Columbia, South Carolina, in 2018.[3]
Van Sciver won the 2016 Ignatz award for Outstanding Story with the one-shot stand alone comic My Hot Date. He has been nominated for an Ignatz award many times:
2010 Outstanding Comic - Blammo #6 (Kilgore)
2012 Outstanding Minicomic - The Death of Elijah Lovejoy (2D Cloud)
2014 Outstanding Comic - Blammo #8 (Kilgore), 2015 Outstanding Graphic Novel - Saint Cole (Fantagraphics)
2015 Outstanding Artist - Saint Cole (Fantagraphics)
2015 Outstanding Graphic Novel - Saint Cole (Fantagraphics)
2016 Outstanding Artist - Disquiet (Fantagraphics)
2016 Outstanding Story - My Hot Date (Kilgore)
2020 Outstanding Collection - The Complete Works of Fante Bukowski (Fantagraphics)
In 2016, his graphic novel Fante Bukowski was nominee for a Best Writer/Artist Eisner Award.[19]
Van Sciver has been shortlisted for two AML Awards from the Association for Mormon Letters: in 2015 for My Hot Date and 2018 for One Dirty Tree.[20] [21] He received the AML Award for One Dirty Tree.[22]
The following is a mostly complete list of comics which contain solely content by Van Sciver. Collaborations, anthologies, and collections are listed in the table that follows.
| COMIC | YEAR | PUBLISHER | NOTES | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The War | 1989 | Self-published | Features Spider-Man, Ziggy, and Gumby. | |
| Blammo Funnies | 2006-2007 | Self-published | 1 (2006) & 2 (2007). Forerunner to Blammo. | |
| Blammo | 2007-2018 | Self-published & Kilgore Books Comics | Self-published: 1 (2007), 2 (2008), 3 (2009), 4 (2009), 7.5 (2011). Kilgore Books & Comics: 5 (2009), 6 (2010), 7 (2011), 8 (2013),8 1/2 (2014), 9 (2016), 10 (2018). | |
| Various Self-Published one-shot mini-comics | 2007-2019 | Self-published | Chicken Strips (2007), Hep (2007), The Work of Young, Unfed, and Unknown Cartoonist (2008), More Work from an Unknown Cartoonist (2008), The Limited and Very Rare Noah Van Sciver mini-comic (2009), Chapbook (2009), Judgments (2009), I want to be special to you (2010), Dueling (2011), The Hypo mini promo (2011), More Mundane (2013), In the Thick of It (2019) | |
| Complaints | 2010 | Poopsheet Foundation | Included in Treasury of Mini Comics Vol. 1. According to the Poopsheet foundation website: "Print run is 50 even though it says 100 on back cover." | |
| Noah novella | 2010 | Grimalkin Press | "The People's History of Noah Van Sciver. A selection of autobiographical comics" Includes stories Pair of Pants, My First Date, Being Skinny, My Life in Quotations, I am a Rotten Hateful Bastard, The Worst Winter, Process, The Incident, Fame, Complaints, Christmas as a Third Wheel, and Eight Things I Hate. | |
| The Death of Elijah Lovejoy | 2011 | 2dcloud | B&W. Deleted chapter from The Hypo. Reprinted in color in Disquiet. | |
| 1999 | 2012 | Retrofit Comics | Self-published bootleg in 2013, and Re-published in Youth is Wasted | |
| Noah Van Sciver in Conversation With Charles Forsman | 2012 | Oily Comics | ||
| The Hypo: The Melancholic Young Lincoln | 2012 | Fantagraphics | ||
| Who Is Dead in the White House? mini | 2012 | Fantagraphics | ||
| St. Cole promo mini | 2013 | Kilgore Books & Comics | ||
| Weekend Alone | 2013 | Tinto Press LLC | Sketchbook | |
| Weekend For Two | 2014 | Tinto Press LLC | Sketchbook | |
| Youth Is Wasted | 2014 | Adhouse Books | Contains unpublished and previous published work. Excerpts from BLAMMO #s 6, 7, & 8 as well as 1999 minicomic, and stories originally published in Illustrated Journal of Humor Vol. 1, Alternative Comics #4, and MOME #22. | |
| I Don't Hate Your Guts | 2014 | 2D Cloud | ||
| The Lizard Laughed | 2014 | Oily Comics | Reprinted in Disquiet, self-published and reprinted as stand-alone one shot in 2021 | |
| Cheer Up | 2014 | Hic & Hoc Publications | 500 copies printed, rarest fully produced Van Sciver book | |
| Slow Graffiti | 2014-2017 | Alternative Comics (#1 only) & Self-published | 1 (2014), 2 (2016), 3 (2017) | |
| St. Cole | 2015 | Fantagraphics | ||
| My Hot Date | 2015 | Kilgore Books & Comics | Reprinted in 2021 as My Hot Date (and other embarrassments). Includes new intro strip "The Power of the Force" and bonus strip "Holly Hill" | |
| Fante Bukowski | 2015 | Fantagraphics | ||
| Disquiet | 2016 | Fantagraphics | Contains unpublished and previous published work. Includes The Lizard Laughed, The Cow's Head, Down in a Hole, Punks V. Lizards, Death of Elijah Lovejoy (in color), previously published Christmas story from unnamed mini-comic, and previously unpublished art & stories. | |
| Fante Bukowski Two | 2017 | Fantagraphics | ||
| His Last Comic (mini-kuš #60) | 2017 | kuš! | ||
| One Dirty Tree | 2018 | Uncivilized Books | ||
| Fante Bukowski 3: A Perfect Failure | 2018 | Fantagraphics | ||
| Constant Companion | 2018 | Fantagraphics | Sketchbook, part of "Fantagraphics Underground Series" | |
| For Art's Sake | 2020 | self-published | Includes a broader story around some strips published in The Introvert's Club weekly strip | |
| The Complete Works of Fante Bukowski | 2020 | Fantagraphics | Collects Fante Bukowski 1–3 with bonus material | |
| Please Don't Step on my JNCO Jeans | 2020 | Fantagraphics | Reprints from weekly strip "The Introvert's Club" as published in Columbus Alive. | |
| Boring | 2021 | Self-published | Autobiographical one-shot floppy | |
| Blammo Issues 1-5 | 2021 | Kilgore Books & Comics | Collection of Blammo Issues 1-5 plus bonus strips: Process, Christmas as a 3rd Wheel, Dueling, Day in the Life of My Father, The Van Sciver Factory, Pair of Pants, My First Date, Embarrassing Story, This Comic Should Be Read in Slow Motion, My Life in Quotations, Winter is a Time to..., Fontano the Chicago Sub, Cowtown Comix Fest, and assorted sketches and notes. | |
| Joseph Smith and the Mormons | 2022 | Abrams ComicArts | ||
| Maple Terrace 1-3 | 2023 | Uncivilized Comics | Autobiographical three issue floppy |
The following is a list of collaborations, anthologies, and collections that feature Van Sciver's work.
| COMIC/MAGAZINE | YEAR | PUBLISHER | NOTES | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 Questions | 2007-2015 | The Denver Westword | Weekly feature in free weekly paper. Mostly interviews with bands but also cartoonists such as Gary Panter and Joseph Remnant. Also included Denver-themed and autobiographical strips. | |
| Mineshaft | 2008-2019 | Mineshaft Magazine |
| |
| The Comics Journal | 2008–2009, 2020 | Fantagraphics | Series of seven three-page cartoon interviews conducted and drawn by Van Sciver. #293 Joe Matt, #295, Liz Prince, #296 Johnny Ryan, #297 Frank Stack, #298 Peter Bagge, #299 John Porcellino, #300 Gary Groth. Also, issue #305 contains a two part tribute to Clare Briggs. 15 full page Clare Briggs comics colored by Van Sciver plus one page comic "A Tribute to Clare Briggs." | |
| Not My Small Diary | 2008 | Self-published by Delaine Derry Green | Two different issues: #14 Part Two Story: My First Date (Tells the story of the date later revised and expanded to become My Hot Date), #16 Story: I Don't Drive. Reprinted in The Portable Not My Small Diary (2014) | |
| MOME | 2009 | Fantagraphics | Two different issues: Summer 2009 (#15) Story: The True Tale of the Denver Spider-Man, Fall 2011 (#22), Story: Roommates (later collected in Youth Is Wasted) | |
| Apartment 307 | 2009 | Self-published by Josh Blair | Also contains stories by Josh Blair, Pete Borrebach, and Nick Marino | |
| side b: the music lover's comic anthology | 2009 | Poseur Ink | Story: My Bohemian Dream | |
| Apartment 307: One Year Later | 2010 | Self-published by Josh Blair | Also contains stories by Josh Blair, Pete Borrebach, and Nick Marino | |
| Khaki Shorts #26 | 2010 | Braw Books | Scottish anthology. Cover and story: Process. Also collected in The Khollected Khaki Shorts (2015). | |
| Hive 5 | 2010 | Grimalkin Press | Contains excerpt from The Hypo | |
| Sunstone | 2010 | Sunstone Education Foundation | Three different issues: #360 Special Comics Issue. Story: Fame, #363 Van Sciver's Book of Mormon Origins. Black & White, #364 Van Sciver's Book of Mormon. Full color. | |
| K.B.C. #2 | 2010 | Self-published mini comic anthology | ||
| Wulvereen vs Star Trekk | 2010 | self-published | Collaboration with John Porcellino made at a superhero convention. Parody of superhero and geek culture. | |
| Bound & Gagged | 2010 | IWDY Comics | Comic: Hell. Anthology of one-page comics | |
| The Best American Comics 2011 | 2011 | Houghton Mifflin Harcourt | Story: Abby's Road from Blammo #6 | |
| So Buttons | 2011-2019 | Alchemy Comix | Four issues and two compilations. #4 Story: So...Loyal (art only). Also collected in So Buttons: Man of, Like, a Dozen Faces, Story: Noah Van Sciver Tells All (story and art), #5 Story: So...Escalated (art only). Also collected in So Buttons: Man of, Like, a Dozen Faces, #8 Van Sciver did the cover art (Homage to Crumb's cover of American Splendor #4) and the art for story: So...One Halloween. Story also included in So Buttons: Man of, Like, A Dozen Faces, #9 Story: So...Carl (art only), and So Buttons: Slice of Cake (2nd compilation) | |
| š! #10 "Sea Stories" | 2012 | kuš! | ||
| Little Heart: A comic anthology for marriage equality | 2012 | 2dCloud | Story: Loving | |
| Devastator #6 | 2012 | Devastator Press | Story: Scenes from a New and Used Bookstore | |
| MAD Magazine | 2012-2017 | DC Comics |
| |
| Digestate: A Food & Eating Themed Anthology | 2012 | Birdcage Bottom Books | Story: 3 Bowls of Raisin Bran, also published in birdy #14 | |
| Swayback, Double Four Time | 2012 | LGL Records | Front and back cover art | |
| Suspect Device | 2012-2014 | IAMWAR |
| |
| Deep In The Woods | 2013 | 2dCloud | "Double header" split comic with Nicholas Breutzman on oversized newsprint. Story: The Cow's Head. Reprinted in Disquiet | |
| Treasury of Mini Comics Volume One | 2013 | Fantagraphics | includes Complaints mini comic | |
| Henry & Glenn Forever & Ever #4 | 2013 | Microcosm/IWDY Comics | Story: Henry & Glen V. Lizards. Also collected in Henry & Glenn Forever & Ever. | |
| Scene But Not Heard | 2013 | Top Shelf Productions/Alternative Comics | Collection of wordless comics by Sam Henderson. Van Sciver wrote & drew a 2-page introduction explaining Henderson's impact on his career. | |
| Unknown Origins & Untimely Ends | 2013 | Hic & Hoc Publications | Story: Meat Shower | |
| Alternative Comics #4 | 2013 | Alternative Comix | Story: Hallelujah! | |
| Real Good Stuff #1 and #2 | 2013 | Poochie Press Publications | Story: Eligibility (Writing by Dennis Eichhorn) | |
| Short Arms, Long Pockets | 2014 | Oily Comics | An Oily Comics sampler made for free comic book day 2014. Contains 3 page excerpt from The Lizard Laughed. | |
| Pratfall | 2014 | Self-published zine by Robert Kirby | Anthology featuring "The lighter side of accidents, pain, blood and humiliation." | |
| Cringe: An Anthology of Embarrassment | 2014 | Birdcage Bottom Books | Illustration: Punk Chasing Wig | |
| The Graphic Canon of Children's Literature: The World's Greatest Kids' Lit as Comics and Visuals | 2014 | Seven Stories Press | Two stories: Star Dollars and The Water Sprite, both by Brothers Grimm | |
| Subcultures | 2014 | Ninth Art Press | Story: What is a Juggalo? | |
| Kilgore Quarterly | 2014-2017 | Kilgore Books |
| |
| birdy. | 2014-2021 | Birdy magazine | Contributions to nine different issues: #9 Cover art, #13 Four page interview with various reprinted artwork, #14 Story: 3 Bowls of Rain Bran, also published in Digestate: A Food & Eating Themed Anthology, #21 Cover art, #22 Story: The Floating Head with Bad Breath, #37 Back cover art: Cats, #48 Back cover art: Holiday, #67 Front cover art: Color, #85 1/2 page color art: El Gato (series) | |
| A City of Whiskey & Fire | 2015 | Red Earth Trace | Story by Daniel Landes, art by Van Sciver. Reprinted in Disquiet. | |
| The Fantastic Four No.9 Project | 2015 | Self-published by Jason Young | Given away at S.P.A.C.E. 2015. Jason commissioned a different artist to re-draw one page of FF #9. Van Sciver did page 2. | |
| Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Amazing Adventures #2 | 2015 | IDW | Backup story, also collected in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Amazing Adventures Vol. 1 TPB | |
| The Hic & Hoc Illustrated Journal of Humor | 2015 | Alternative Comics | ||
| Schmuck | 2015 | Alternative Comics | Story: Night at the Museum (art only) | |
| Cinema Sewer Volume Five | 2015 | Fab Press | Illustrations for story "Rosario 1930: The vintage porno journalism of Curt Moreck" | |
| Taddle Creek #36 | 2015 | Vitalis Publishing | Story: Home | |
| Extra Good Stuff | 2015 | Last Gasp | Story: Gold Dust Twins (art only) | |
| Hip Hop Family Tree, Volume 4 Treasury Edition | 2015 | Fantagraphics | Pinup of rap group Gravediggaz | |
| Smoke Signal #23 | Fall 2015 | Desert Island | Story: Dress Up | |
| Study Group Magazine #4 | 2016 | Study Group | Standard and Deluxe editions. Story: Star Fights (Star Wars parody) | |
| Guido Crepax Valentina Tribute Art | 2016 | Fantagraphics | One-page pinup, limited to 150 numbered copies | |
| The Introvert's Club | 2017-2019 | Weekly feature in Columbus alt-weekly newspaper and website. Some of the strips were eventually republished as Please Don't Step on my JNCO Jeans and For Art's Sake | ||
| NOW: The New Comics Anthology | 2017-2020 | Fantagraphics | Five issues: #1 Story: Wall of Shame, #3 Story: Wolf Nerd, #7 Story: I'm Punk Now, #8 Story: Saint Cole, #9 Story: Spacehawk | |
| Galago #126 | 2017 | Ordfront | Story: White River Junction, Vermont (Story is in Swedish) | |
| Johnny Appleseed | 2017 | Fantagraphics | Written by Paul Buhle | |
| Bottoms Up! True Tales of Hitting Rock Bottom | 2017 | Birdcage Bottom Books | Story: Marigold | |
| Taddle Creek #40 | 2017 | Vitalis Publishing | Story: Cool Comics Club (Of Ohio) | |
| World's Greatest Cartoonists | 2017 | Fantagraphics | Free Comic Book Day. Cover by Van Sciver. Also includes deleted scene from Fante Bukowski book 2. | |
| Suspect Press | 2017-2019 | Suspect Press | Four issues: #14 Story: Letter from 1998, #17 Story: Mark Twain Lecture on Artemus Ward (Also printed in Blammo #10), #21 Story:Introvert, #22 cover only | |
| Blind Justice #2 | 2018 | Fantagraphics | Van Sciver did pencils. Three different covers. Also collected in All Time Comics Season 1 TPB | |
| Kramers Ergot 10 | 2019 | Fantagraphics | Story: Lakewoood, Colorado | |
| Eugene V. Debs: A Graphic Biography | 2019 | Fantagraphics | Written by Paul Buhle & Steve Max | |
| Full Bleed: The Comics & Culture Quarterly, Vol. 3 | 2019 | IDW Publishing | ||
| Stripburger #74 | 2019 | Stripburger | Contains reprint of Artemus Ward (His travels) Among the Mormons from Blammo #10. | |
| Broken Frontier | 2020 | A Wave Blue World Inc | Story: "Down in a Hole". Reprinted in Disquiet. | |
| Grateful Dead Origins | 2020 | Z2 Comics | Written by Chris Miskiewicz. Deluxe edition includes LP record. | |
| Peace for Pepe | 2020 | Dale Zine Shop | One page illustration of Matt Furie's Pepe The Frog | |
| Oh Man! By Clare Briggs | 2021 | self-published | Collection of prohibition-era comics by Clare Briggs, compiled, published, and with an introduction from Van Sciver. | |
| Freaky #8 | 2022 | Freaky | Reprint of The Floating Head story from birdie. #22 | |
| Cheech And Chong's Chronicles: A Brief History of Weed | 2022 | Z2 Comics | Anthology and collaboration though the majority of pages are drawn by Van Sciver. | |
| Longform 2022 | 2022 | Penguin Books | "An Anthology of Graphic Narratives" Story: Holly Hill (Reprint from 2021 reprint of My Hot Date) | |
| Paul Bunyan:The Invention of an American Legend | 2023 | TOON Books |
The following is a list of webcomics and illustrations published online.
| COMIC | YEAR | WEBSITE | NOTES | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Who are you, Jesus | 2010 | Top Shelf 2.0 | Reprint story from Blammo #7 | |
| Abraham Lincoln | 2010 | Top Shelf 2.0 | Reprints 7 pages from The Hypo with slightly different coloring | |
| The End of an Artist's Career | 2010 | Top Shelf 2.0 | ||
| Six different classic comic covers redrawn by Van Sciver | 2009-2011 | Covered Blog | ||
| St. Cole webcomic | 2012-2014 | Archived version of The Expositor Comics | Collaborative website with Joseph Remnant | |
| Noah Van Sciver's Diary Comics | 2012 and 2015 | The Comics Journal | Two different five-day diary comics for tcj.com. First in 2012, then in 2015 |