Sara K. Diesel is the Kevin Workman Foundation's 2015 Sponsored Artist. She comes to us as the clear winner from a highly competitive group of applicants for the 2015 Sponsorship Program, and we're excited that she accepted our offer for sponsorship at this year's San Diego Comic Con. Sara will join us in the Foundation's booth on the dealer's room floor to exhibit her work, promote, and network.

Read on with us for a minute and let's take a look at one of the most exciting digital portfolios we've seen in a long time.
 

With great pleasure, and no small amount of excitement, we're very happy to announce Sara Diesel's selection as KWF's 2015 Sponsored Artist.

Sara emerged from the pack as a clear winner with the strong, professional quality of her portfolio and excellent undergraduate work as a recent graduate of the Columbus College of Art and Design.

As the recipient of this year's artist sponsorship, Sara's attendance at San Diego Comic Con and an exhibitor spot in the KWF booth will be fully funded by the Foundation. We'll also collaborate with Sara to find the best ways to showcase her work and network with other artists and creative professionals.

Most of all, we'll look to get to know Sara and her art, and do all we can to make Con a place where she can take the next step in her journey as an up-and-coming artist.

Final artist reviews and interviews are complete, including portfolio reviews by an industry professional. Now on to deliberation, which won't be an easy task. We expect to make an announcement early next week. In the meantime, we hope everyone enjoys a relaxing Memorial Day weekend. More to follow after the break! 

Artist selection is down to the "Final Five" candidates for sponsorship! We continue to be very, very excited by the quality of applicants-- there were tough choices as we narrowed the field down to a handful that we'll now contact to verify their ability to attend SDCC 2015. Emails and calls will go out to the final five candidates as we work towards final selection by the end of this month.

Many thanks to everyone who referred or applied, and please stay tuned for more news next week!

The application period for this year's Artist Sponsorship Program closed last week, and we're excited to review the artists who submitted their work for consideration. This year's selected artist will receive an opportunity to display their work at San Diego Comic Con in the Foundation's booth on the convention floor. We'll also look to introduce and network the selected artist with other creators, artists, publishers, and notable professionals in their creative field.

We've spent the last few days reviewing portfolios and artist bios. Lots of thoughtful writing was submitted along with really striking media and personal and professional visions. Applicants will be narrowed down to a final group of 3 within the next 72 hours, and calls will go out for phone and Skype interviews. We'll post updates here by the end of the week. Stay tuned!

Here at the beginning of things, I feel compelled to write a few words about the remarkable path that's led the Kevin Workman Foundation's creation. For while the Foundation exists to continue the life's passion of a truly singular individual, what I've found most striking about its start-up journey has been the incredible loyalty, generosity, and passion in the extended network of those Kevin knew and touched. An incredible amount of support has flowed from this rich tapestry of Kevin's former friends and acquaintances.

There are many, many crucial supporters who I'll let introduce themselves in their own time, but here I want to specifically thank Brian for his outstanding advice and mad web skills, and René for being our partner in crime at X-Sanguin with a deeply insightful eye for artist and industry outreach. Meeting, collaborating, and generally being in-cahoots-with such a fine cast of characters has been my greatest joy in launching the Foundation. For me, this labor of love is all about the people and the stories that brought them here.

Creative people have always fascinated me, certainly at least as much as their art. Now sure, the creation, the art, this was what captured my attention first, especially in my youth: That mind-blowing video game, grand sci-fi novel, soaring anime saga, gritty manga and graphic novel. Yet for me what's most compelling is the person behind the art. I devour book jacket back covers, blogs, essays, and panels with a particularly focused level of geekery. Artists, writers, game developers (Especially back when they were called "programmers" and you only needed one to write a game)-- I idolized them when I was young, emulated them when I could, envied them when I "grew up". I wanted to know their origin stories. And sometimes I got a chance to ask them on occasions when, often through Kevin, I was introduced to this or that actor, special effects producer, author. (Mostly I just stammered along, nodding and smiling in partial radio silence). Yet from these experiences crystallized a desire to shape the Foundation in very specific ways geared towards nurturing and promoting creative individuals who might not otherwise get a chance to fully express themselves.

I'm also fascinated by the idea of transitions. These are the moments of irreversible commitment when planning moves to execution, when thinking moves to doing. Something irrevocably changes, condenses, in these transitions. When a plane's wing bites the air, it is suddenly and irrevocably flying. When a fire performer lights a prop, the performance has unmistakably started. And when a writer or artist first puts pen to paper (virtual or otherwise), something similarly magic happens. Outwardly, not much has occurred-- a jet barely off the ground, a performance only a few beats into its opening track, a collection of fragmented words or strokes on paper-- but inwardly, nothing will ever be the same. One moves completely and irretrievably from the mode of getting ready to doing. An idea takes shape into reality, with irreversible commitment. You can erase a word, click UNDO, but the shift has already occurred. This fleeting moment is magical to me.

And so as the Foundation steps across the brink of this transition, I'm excited and humbled. The Foundation was an idea I voiced at Kevin's favorite restaurant to a few friends on the evening after his passing. I can't rightly claim it as my idea. I think I channeled it, moved to give voice to an idea that I felt needed to be made real and work that needed to continue. I'm surprised and inspired that so many would be so supportive of the Foundation and its vision. My deepest thanks to all of them (to you!) for this support. I promise that with the Foundation we'll see some amazing things and be part of some amazing stories of creativity and uplift-- Best of all, meet some amazing people. And I suspect we'll be reintroduced to some people we already know along the way, maybe even ourselves. This time in a new context as discover our own creativity and passion together.

--Paul 

We are happy to announce that our new website is live.   The website includes more information on our Programs, a Blog for updates, and most importantly, a way to Donate to the Kevin Workman Foundation.   Many of you have been asking for this, and with the KWF achieving 501(c)3 tax exempt status as of January, your tax deductible donations can now go to helping the Foundation grow and prosper.   Please help us spread the word about KWF via your friends and family.   We have many initiatives planned and with the help of our generous donors and KWF community, 2015 is going to be an exciting year for us.

Best,
Brian and Paul