IMAGE OF THE DAY: Jillian Tamaki’s ‘Best American Comics’ cover art

Tamaki's art for the 2011 edition of "BAC." (Jillian Tamaki - Best American Comics 2011) The annual “Best American Comics” anthology series shepherded by editors Jessica Abel and Matt Madden not only spotlights some of the superior work published within roughly a 12-month period. Sometimes, it also generates original art that’s equally glorious.

For the 2008 edition, for instance, that year’s guest editor — Lynda Barry — drew an absolutely beguiling introduction that delved into, among other things, her fandom of “Family Circus.”

Now, Jillian Tamaki reveals her beautiful cover art for the 2011 edition, whose guest editor is cartoonist Alison Bechdel.

How inspired is it? Well, were it a large print, Comic Riffs would certainly find cherished wall space for it.

Adding to the fun, Tamaki goes behind-the-scenes on her sketchblog site, sharing some of her alternate sketches.

Of particular interest to artists, Tamaki writes: “They’re done completely on the Cintiq. I don’t really use the Cintiq for final art, but I’ve found it a boon to the sketch/planning phase. The embroidered Penguin covers were also completely ‘sketched’ out on a Cintiq.

“I like the ability to scale, rotate, crop, etc. It can be hard to make those big decisions on paper sometimes. Plus, I mean, CMD+Z.”

You can pre-order the book on Amazon. Thanks to Tamaki’s cover, we’ve wheeling our cart to the checkout.