About the Author

Zak Smith was born in Syracuse, New York, in 1976. In addition to theGravity's Rainbow illustrations, which were shown in the 2004 Whitney Biennial and are now in the collection of the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, Smith's recent projects include the multipanel painting 100 Girls and 100 Octopuses and an ongoing series of portraits of friends and acquaintances in the sex industry entitled Girls in the Naked Girl Business as well as a number of stand-alone paintings and drawings, abstract and otherwise. His work has appeared in numerous publications worldwide and is held in many public and private collections, including the Museum of Modern Art and the Whitney Museum. He is a frequent contributor to several independent comics and zines, including Papingand See How Pretty, See How Smart. His first monograph, Zak Smith: Pictures Of Girls, was published in 2005.

Reviews

"The end result of his endeavor is less an illustrated novel than a series of eerie, high art interpretations." Marcela Valdes, "Washington Post"
"The drawings are surprisingly detailed, colorful and contemplative, adding new layers to the text and potentially earning Pynchon some new fans." -Whitney Matheson, "USA Today""["Pictures Showing What Happens on Each Page of Thomas Pynchon's Novel Gravity's Rainbow"] can be enjoyed on its own or read simultaneously with the 1973 novel, putting smith's art next to those discursive, intricate, elusive, overwritten sentences." -Jeff Baker, "The Oregonian""