I was pretty excited a while back to discover that Publikat were embarking on a series of books (Part of Rebellion) and that the first one was going to be by Flying Fortress. I posted a link about it a while back but only recently got my grubby mitts on my own copy. As for the title – the book’s been compiled by C100, who compiled two brilliant books a while back; The Art of Rebellion and The Art of Rebellion 2, which, I guesd, is where the name and idea for new series has come from (part of the art of rebellion?).

The majority of Flying Fortress – Part of Rebellion # 1 is packed full of Fortress’s Teddy Troops. It seems that he’s one of a small number of artists that really know how to design a character to within an inch of their lives. Each one if unique but still instantly recognisable. Sight changes make for an ever refreshing iconic image and I never get bored with looking at them. Whether it’s site-specific graffiti styled characters on abandoned buildings or his many amazing collaborative pieces that have been included in this book, you won’t get bored page after page either. Although there’s a great mix of media included (canvas, illegal and legal walls, gallery space, etc.), it always comes down to his work that he does outside for me. These two images give you an idea what I’m talking about and these aren’t the best in the book by far. There are some real beauties.

There’s also a smaller section dedicated to his illustrated work, which is also great. Some of these images rub shoulders with his street-art styled work while others are completely different. I had no idea that he did this kind of thing so it’s broadened my appreciation of his work. Flying Fortress – Part of Rebellion # 1 weighs in at 128 pages and is a soft cover edition. You can still see a couple of book previews here and you can get a copy direct from Publikat or from all the usual places including AmazonUK. If Dave The Chimp’s Part of Rebellion # 2 is anywhere near as good as this one then it’s going to be a cracker.