KENK - Toronto's Most Prolific Bike Thief

Last night I headed out to the Cadillac Lounge for the launch party of a new graphic novel called KENK. If you've never been to the Caddy its hard to miss the half of a Cadillac that subs for the overhead awning of this Queen Street West staple. With a giant patio, retro fitting and a large stage, it has an interesting mix of clientele, from the local Parkdale crowd, to downtowners looking for a busy watering hole.

The incredible creative team that have worked on this graphic novel were all on hand for the launch party. To see all the blood, sweat and tears of the project finally come into fruition is amazing, and reminds me of the incredible ability of those who strive to make something new that breaks out of the mould. Here is a little blurb I found on it that can better sum up this project than I ever could in my current head cold muddled mind:

"KENK: A GRAPHIC PORTRAIT is a ground-breaking 304-page journalistic comic book detailing the life and times of Igor Kenk, "the world's more prolific bicycle thief" (The New York Times and The Guardian), built from more than 30 hours of never-before-seen intimate footage taken over the year leading right up to his high-profile arrest in summer 2008. KENK is a thought-provoking and surprisingly funny portrait of both an outsize neighbourhood figure and a city in flux."

"Conceived by a producer, shot by a filmmaker, written by and acclaimed journalist and illustrated by a fine artist, KENK is an exciting new hybrid that simultaneously takes the form of documentary film, journalistic profile and comic book."

From the images that I have seen of it, it is haunting and facinating. You keep wanting to turn the page to see what happens next. The gritty images come from taking stills of the documentary footage, photocopying them and then scratching them with a blade. Now the team is working on taking these same stills and creating an intricate animated documentary.

Image from NOW Magazine

Igor Kenk himself showed up to the launch party, mind you he didn't look much like he did on the cover with his deep wrinkles and beard. In fact I walked right past him until he caught my eye when he got into a confrontation with a photographer who wouldn't leave him alone (probably the same guy who took this picture for Now Magazine). Oddly enough, people were lined up to get his autograph on the book, just as much as they were for the actual artists.

If you're in Toronto, be sure to check out store displays at TYPE (883 Queen St W), The Beguilling (601 Markham St) and Curbside Cycle (412 Bloor St W).

The book is also avaliable online thorough:
Amazon and Chapters Indigo (Online and In Stores)