in 2012 Gingko Press published ‘Overkill,’ a collection of over 100 illustrations by artist Tomer Hanuka. Included in Hanuka’s illustration work for novels, magazines, and films was a piece titled ‘Havoc.’ The illustration is a flash of epic violence — a delicate take on the brutality of war, man unraveling at the skin. The piece was attributed to ‘The Divine,’ a graphic novel I later discovered Hanuka had been at work on with fellow illustrator and twin brother Asaf Hanuka and writer Boaz Lavie.
For ‘The Divine‘ Boaz wrote the story followed by directing’ the book with Asaf who also created tight layouts, which Tomer inked and colored. Even in the most abstract and magical moments of ‘The Divine’ you feel the strong tug of reality in their work. Similar to Asaf’s comic work in ‘The Realist‘ which finds true insight and magic in the everyday, ‘The Divine’ does the opposite in bringing truth to the magical.
The brothers Hanuka along with writer Lavie have created an environment in ‘The Divine’ with a sense of the universal known — the images are familiar because we’ve seen war. We’ve watched the news and have witnessed the violent crush of a foreign people. In this common ground they’ve constructed a stunning piece of heartbreaking fiction drenched in myth.
‘The Divine‘ will be released on July 14th from First Second Books, and on Friday July 17th Chris Jalufka of Evil Tender will present ‘The Art of The Divine,’ a gallery exhibition to be held at White Walls Gallery in San Francisco.
‘The Art of The Divine‘ will feature over 30 pieces including pencil sketches, rough drawings, concept art, and final illustrations from the book with limited edition giclee prints available.
***A FEW UPDATES***
With the event over, you can read the ETDC interview conducted with Asaf Hanuka and Boaz Lavie that took place in San Diego during Comic-Con 2015 here —
Interview: Asaf Hanuka & Boaz Lavie Talk ‘The Divine’
Also, here is a video walkthrough of the event the afternoon before the doors of the exhibition opened —
‘Havoc’ by Tomer Hanuka for ‘The Divine’
‘Ghost Warriors’ by Tomer Hanuka for ‘The Divine’
Pencil by Asaf Hanuka for ‘The Divine’
Page from ‘The Divine’ by Asaf Hanuka and Tomer Hanuka
‘Wind Riders’ by Tomer Hanuka for ‘The Divine’
‘The Divine’ by Tomer Hanuka for ‘The Divine’
Good morning,
Will these art pieces be available online? Sorry if you already stated that they would be. It looks like a great exhibition!