Comic publisher | |
Industry | Comics |
Predecessor | Tragedy Strikes Press |
Founded | 1992 |
Founder | Michel Vrana |
Defunct | 1998 |
Headquarters | Montreal, Quebec, Canada |
Website | www.BlackEye.com |
Black Eye Productions (also called Black Eye Books) was a short-lived but influential Canadian comic book publishing company founded by Michel Vrana. Under the auspices of Vrana, Black Eye was known as a publisher of artfully designed alternative comics and graphic novels, most of whose cartoonists have gone on to successful careers with fellow Canadian publisher Drawn and Quarterly. Vrana still acts as Drawn and Quarterly's exclusive outside design consultant.
Vrana's first publishing venture was Tragedy Strikes Press, which operated out of Guelph, Ontario, from 1991–1993. Comics published by Tragedy Strikes Press included Nick Craine's The Cheeseheads, the anthology series Reactor Girl, Jay Stephens' Sin Comics (later picked up by Black Eye), Carol Swain's Way Out Strips, and the first issue of Dylan Horrocks' Pickle. Sin and Pickle were picked up by Black Eye Comics; Way Out Strips was picked up by Fantagraphics.
Black Eye acted as a comic book publisher from 1992 to 1998, when Vrana turned the business into a design company.