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Sally Ingraham

Posted on November 9, 2017November 10, 2017

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Art Trip: At the Magic House

MardouAugust 25, 2016Art Trip / EssaysThe notion of a Children’s Museum just didn’t exist in the 1980s when I was a child and let’s face it, it’s a complete misnomer. There’s nothing “museum-like” about St Louis’s Magic House, enjoyable as it is (for children). When I was a kid, the Museum meant the Manchester Museum, with impressive items pillaged from the British Empire and it’s protectorates during the Victorian Era. The Manchester Museum still has that same collection of Ancient Egyptian artifacts and I remember them perfectly, on school trips pressed up against the glass, staring at partially unwrapped mummies with horrified fascination. One of the mummies was a male with a 2000 year bandaged up penis. You just don’t forget seeing that as a child. Very unlike the Children’s “museums” of today, which are more or less interactive play palaces. That’s not a criticism, it’s fine, my kid had a great time. But unlike the Milwaukee Public Museum, where we took a family trip earlier this summer, I’m assuming she won’t remember much about the Magic House, except that she had fun. Nothing was learned, it’s an “in the moment” experience only. But this cool tamarind monkey with its little hairdo at the Milwaukee Public Museum might be remembered for a lot longer. It already has legendary status in our family unit. (Note: Milwaukee Public Museum is perhaps the best museum I have ever been to. It’s like stepping into a lurid 1970s text book. Everyone should go there.) In Milwaukee I didn’t get to draw anything, as my participation in looking at stuff was required. At the Magic House you just sit around and wait for your kid to be done playing. Which works out great if you take a sketchbook. Maybe these pages will serve as a memory book for my child, now that summer is all but over. ————————————————————————————————— Art Trip is a series that features reflections on art and comics, and the adventures that transform those who seek it out. ————————————————————————————————— Sacha Mardou is a Brit making comics in St Louis, Missouri. Sky in Stereo is her most recent comic. Share this page: [...]

01/25/2018

Comics WorkbookJanuary 25, 2018NewsSam Ombiri on Coco Moodysson’s Never Goodnight – plus other news and comics! ————————————————————————————————— Sam Ombiri here: I’ve been reading a splendid comic called Never Goodnight by Coco Moodysson. I found out about this fantastic book through Coco’s husband, Lukas Moodysson. Lukas Moodysson is my favorite living movie director as it stands right now. His movies have received praise from Ingmar Bergman as well as Harmony Korine, and those two directors really speak to the sensibility of Lukas. Those are two filmmakers he admires, and from my understanding this admiration was independent of the praise he receives from those two directors. He made a great adaptation of Coco’s Never Goodnight entitled We Are The Best. I just don’t know where to start with this book. This comic is one of the most fun autobio comics I’ve ever read. The drawings are spectacular, it’s great that she was able to summon enough of this creative energy for every panel, and deliver consistently. Her drawings are like candy that don’t lose their sweetness when eaten too much. The drawings are simultaneously so expressive, but all done with that line that Sammy Harkham always talks about, where every drawing has the same weight to it and it doesn’t deviate. It’s easy to see why this book has the cult following it has. The storytelling is so clear, and I can see that the whole was considered, as opposed to some parts. The jokes in this book are really funny. The jokes don’t even seem like jokes, or funny observations made by a distant person reminiscing. Which is not to say that there’d be anything wrong if that, were it the case – in fact it’s commonly the case with autobio, or even non-autobio work (although people say all work is ultimately autobio). I guess this just speaks to the nature of life, but it’s really interesting how Coco’s comics don’t have that reminiscing attitude, despite that being what she’s doing throughout the whole work(reminiscing I mean). It’s a really curious thing that when I read the comic it just feels like I’m watching life unfolding, and all the fun moments and funny moments unfolding with it. There is of course clear, concise timing in the way Coco leads us through the story, but I don’t feel the least bit, shall we say, “manipulated”. There are those moments in the book where it’s so cute I want to hurl, but I’m still completely sold. For example, where Coco talks about how she bought dog food and hid it under her pillow in case she ever got a dog, (this was after they went around begging for money to buy a guitar and instead just splurged on a bunch of snacks). I don’t know what to blame though: is it because Coco was such a likeable character to follow? Did I relate to it somehow? Are the drawings so charming that it’s disarming my suspicion? It definitely seems earned because this specific brand of sentimentality doesn’t pop up until the 78th page, and the comic hasn’t demanded as much of an emotional response to be reciprocated to the work up until that point. It’s become the trend in some comics that the author just demand that the reader reciprocate an emotional response, just because they’re being courageous in expressing themselves in comics. I can’t speak for every case, but people making comics should realize that you can’t and shouldn’t blame the reader. If what you’re doing is independent of the reader, that’s a different story. You can’t just mumble some words and expect someone to read your mind and guess the rest of the sentence. You are responsible for making the sentence. Part of what’s enjoyable (and at times it can be detrimental to me) is the ambiguity in experiencing and then re-experiencing work. This is with all art forms, though, and I really hesitate to say it’s especially so with comics because of how it’s words and images that you’re looking at. You’re also looking at the line work, you’re looking at the design. Makers should consider all this and perhaps accept this when making work and not let their vain guise of “how courageous they are for expressing themselves” be where the value of the work is derived. Coco’s book made me think of this because of how good it is. I didn’t feel cheated for reciprocating the emotional response Coco called for. I feel that I should mention that it was surprisingly easy to separate the movie from the book whenever they would intersect. This goes deeper than them being different mediums, or what couldn’t be in the movie due to Lukas and Coco’s difference in sensibility. Even when I’m reading the exact same scene play out in the book that was in the movie, they seem so separate and this book is so distinguished that I don’t even think about the movie. There’s an aspect to this book that I have no idea how to approach. I don’t know how comics are perceived in Sweden. It seems that there they have a tighter relationship with the literary world, maybe? I really don’t know. Anyway, there’s a panel in the book where Coco just coldly mentions how a friend’s friend killed himself with a guitar chord. I’m rather puzzled at the intention of this. From what I understand, she was doing some work behind the scenes with Lukas’ films, and they made some kind of comic together (which someone should translate!) so I can’t help but to think there’s this lyrical element to her including this in the comic, something that’s similar to the lyricism in Lukas’ movies. In contrast to this, though, there’s a sequence where the girls run out and there’s a homeless person with a syringe stuck in his arm, and he’s just there as a gag to convey how loud the girls are being about a bunch of nonsense, and yelling “We Are the Best!” It’s like he’s just there to be annoyed, but there’s a whole cute aspect to this. It’s funny because of how certain elements that were in the book were taken out of the movie, probably because of how it would evoke a completely different feeling, and completely change the atmosphere. The sensibility of Never Goodnight feels a lot like a YA book, but introduces bleaker elements than those found in the adaptation made by Lukas (whom people sometimes liken to a more trustworthy incarnation of Lars Von Trier and who is associated with “the New Extremity” movement). It’s just really funny how I don’t know what to make of this. Not that the comic is any less fun to read as a result, it only makes it more interesting to read. In a lot of ways, and obviously this comes as no surprise, there’s a lot of match up in terms of sensibility between Lukas and Coco. Maybe it’s because of how Lukas described his creative process as different from Coco’s that I anticipated a bigger difference. For example, Coco will say things like there’s not enough brown, or whichever color. This is strange because her comic are done in black and white! I feel that however many accolades I can try to give this book would be a futile attempt at describing how great this book is. It’s just such a wonderful book! – Sam Ombiri ————————————————————————————————— Other News Ben Passmore animated – check it out HERE. Ron Wimberly on Radix Media, talking the sensual experience of paper, among other things – HERE. Philippe Leblanc reviews Carta Minor’s Passing for The Comics Beat. Zora Gilbert writes about Bingo Love by Tee Franklin, for Women Write About Comics – read the article HERE. ————————————————————————————————— Collected from the thousands of pages of material that Frank has left scattered all over the digital landscape, these 4 PDF collections contain Frank’s best writing on comics and comics making from the past decade. Theory and process, reviews and discoveries, journeys both physical and spiritual. Check out the “Best of Frank Santoro” PDF collections, available HERE! ————————————————————————————————— Joanie and Jordie – 1-25-2018 – by Caleb Orecchio Share this page: [...]

11/17/2017

Sally IngrahamNovember 16, 2017NewsSally here with Jillian Fleck’s Lake Jehovah, comics from Glynnis Fawkes, Gabrielle Bell, and Leslie Stein, plus the latest word from Kelly Sue DeConnick – and plenty more! ————————————————————————————————— I had a chance to read Jillian Fleck‘s first book – Lake Jehovah – yesterday, while hanging out at Copacetic Comics. I’ve been a fan of her work for awhile, keeping up with her web comic Bad Thoughtz, and other comics as they appeared on Tumblr. Jillian began Lake Jehovah back in 2012, as a series of scenes, focusing on the visual elements that she was interested in drawing. When I opened the book what jumped out at me immediately was her use – most often – of the nine panel grid, which is a visual element that I am particularly drawn to. She is a student of the Santoro Correspondence Course for Comic Book Makers, so it’s not surprising that she would channel her story through a grid. The second thing that struck me was that this was a story that could only be told through the medium of comics. It seem like a lot of comics may just as well be novels. The images and panels are incidental – they accompany the text as a happy bonus, but take them away and the words would still tell the story. With Lake Jehovah, Jillian has composed a comic where the images and panels tell the story, and words are used as a final detail that ties the rest together – but only where necessary. There are many pages where emotions and mental states are portrayed through image, color, and the careful yet playful use and breakdown of the grid. The way that Jillian uses the comics medium to describe mental anguish and illness is quite brilliant. Lake Jehovah is a good example too of how a comic is an active relationship between the maker and the reader. There is a lot to figure out here, but between the images and panel structure Jillian leaves a trail of breadcrumbs. It’s a strange, post-post-post-apocalyptic world that we’ve stumbled into, but it’s not always clear what disasters are real and which ones take place in the mind of Jay, the genderqueer, thoroughly depressed main protagonist. There are demons in the woods and a bottomless lake that speaks, a fiancee who flees, a friend who wishes he was a spirit fox, and an actual wolf. It’s almost a funny comic, when it’s not horribly serious. And then there’s the whole poetry riff. It’s apparent that Jillian has spent a lot of time thinking about the mechanics of comics, and she is startlingly capable of using the form to explore heavy ideas. The drawing is relatively lively, with some of her influences coming through but not distracting from the tale. The bright color palette is an effective/unsettling juxtaposition against the backdrop of a cold, dark, Northern Canadian setting. Check this one out for sure (available from Conundrum Press if it’s not in your local shop), and you can also see Jillian’s most recent comic – Push Thru, made for the Comics Workbook Composition Competition 2017, HERE. ————————————————————————————————— There’s an excellent interview with Kelly Sue DeConnick in the fall issue of the Matador Review. She is the badass creator/writer behind Bitch Planet, and Pretty Deadly, among numerous other works. She’s been consistently outspoken, especially in the last few years, about better female representation in the comics industry, and the interview dives right into that: “Q: You’ve stated that, as a female creator pushing for female representation in comics, you’re willing to make people uncomfortable so that your daughter doesn’t have to. What can other artists do to make the world better for later generations? KSD: My intention is to make work that expresses some kind of truth. I do so in the hopes that the work will connect me to myself, and to my humanity, my community, and have the same effect on the consumer. But sometimes, finding truths or speaking truths means making yourself and other people uncomfortable. No one likes to be uncomfortable, but I think it’s gotten easier for me with practice. Everybody wants to be liked. Of course we want to be liked. I’m not aiming to be on anybody’s shitlist—but I’m willing to go there. A lot of people will thank you for it later. There’s a difference between art and entertainment. If we hope to continue experiencing growth, we have to let ourselves stretch and get out of the familiar places. We must try to understand how our truths are different from other people’s truths—especially as a woman. On some level, our culture still wants women to be seen and not heard. When you’re not quiet, it makes people uncomfortable. They may not be able to articulate it directly, but they sort of wish you would just be quiet, decorative, agreeable—just smile. I think our culture tends to treat women as not fully human. That’s tragic. It limits human beings as a whole.“ Read the rest of the interview HERE. ————————————————————————————————— Keep an eye on the Daily Shouts feature on The New Yorker – there have been lots of familiar names popping up there recently – just this week Glynnis Fawkes, Liana Finck, and Vanessa Davis have all had comics or illustrations featured. Above is work by Glynnis – see the rest of that comic HERE. Earlier this month Gabrielle Bell had a comic on Daily Shout – see it HERE – along with Miss Lasko-Gross, and Hallie Bateman (a new-to-me cartoonist – check out The United States Post (Apocalyptic) Office). Kudos to Emma Allen, The New Yorker‘s new cartoon editor, who stepped into the shoes of the iconic Robert Mankoff in May of this year – or rather, she brought her own shoes and is walking around in them quite well so far! I should note that she’s been the editor of Daily Shouts for three years, and only added being the cartoon editor to her already full plate. Here’s an article from The New York Times from earlier this year about Emma and her vision for comics in The New Yorker moving forward. ————————————————————————————————— John Seven reviews Leslie Stein‘s new comic Present over on The Comics Beat. “Stein’s narratives are short and qualify as slices of life, though they could just as easily qualify as single thoughts brought to conclusion. They cover small incidents like feeling guilty about not going home for Christmas, or trips to the museum to get away from her own art, or just an encounter with a particularly profound fortune cookie that ties everything together for her. Stein is mostly a lone figure in her comics, which isn’t to say that other people don’t appear, but is to say that they come from the point of view of her, as a stylized figure, navigating the world. Other people might be next to Stein, but they never interfere with her or crowd her out. She is our the reader’s avatar, after all. And yet that doesn’t mean that she hogs the narrative. Not true at all. Stein listens, so we listen. But Stein helps us tie it all together, and in doing so, sometimes she comes off as alone in a crowded comic book.“ Read the whole review HERE. ————————————————————————————————— On the Grape Vine Hyperallergic has a review of GG‘s I’m Not Here (Koyama Press, 2017) – check it out. Nerds of Prey talks to Paloma Hernando and Sunmi, of Dandelion Wine Collective, about publishing marginalized voices and their new anthology project – read about it HERE. The New York Review of Books has a writeup on the Tove Jansson show that is hanging in the Dulwich Picture Gallery in London, through Jan. 28th 2018 – HERE. American Libraries interviews Emil Ferris – she talks monsters and memories. Jessica Plummer lists numerous cases of harassment in comics, over on BookRiot (in response to the recent story about veteran DC editor Eddie Berganza and his history of sexual harassment…) Eve Ewing MIGHT get asked to pick up writing Marvel’s Invincible Iron Man where Brian Michael Bendis left it off (as he switches over to DC, in a shocker/shakeup move!) – full (theoretical) story HERE. ————————————————————————————————— Suzy and Cecil – 11-17-2017 – by Sally Ingraham ————————————————————————————————— Joanie and Jordie – 11-17-2017 – by Caleb Orecchio ————————————————————————————————— Share this page: [...]

11/03/2017

Sally IngrahamNovember 2, 2017NewsSally here with Mickey Z in FORGE.; political cartoonists in Africa, the UK, and the US; a reminder to watch She Draws Comics – and more! ————————————————————————————————— The new issue of FORGE. is out, and it is quite amazing – it is huge, for starters. More artists, more cities, more pages than ever before. Matthew James-Wilson, who single-handedly makes the magazine, recently quit a full-time job at VICE, so the theme of Issue 17 – Risk – seemed especially apt for him. He seems to have gone off the deep end with this issue – but in a good way! Here’s a brief idea of what it includes: “Issue 17: Risk includes submissions by Sarah Mason, Leesh Adamerovich, Corrinne James, Jessica Pettway, Brian Ejar, Louise Reimer, Alexa Viscius, Will Dereume, Graham Lister, Ross Jackson, Chris Nordahl, Sophia Schultz, Melisa Cola, Sander Ettema, Alexander Laird, and Disa Wallander. This issue also includes interviews with cartoonist, Mickey Zacchilli, Dustin Payseur of Beach Fossils, photographer, Laurence Philomene, show promoter and booker, Yiwei Meng, and Rene Contreras of Viva! Presents. Issue 17 features comics by Patrick Kyle, Becca Tobin, and Patrick Edell in its OP-ED section. Lastly, Issue 17 also includes the FORGE. Summer Review, documenting several concerts and events that took place in New York, Los Angeles, and Providence during Summer 2017.“ You can read the whole thing online HERE. Among the things I’m excited about with this issue is the TWENTY PAGE LONG interview with Mickey Z (one spread shown above, complete with an appearance by Bread). I just read it at high speed (there are lots of pictures!) and will have to go back to actually digest it, but I must say that Mickey Z proves to be a constant source of inspiration to me. She’s like a complete package of creative forces, doing a lot of different things at once – but only the things that make her happy and hold her interest. Comics, printing, jujitsu, massage therapy, video games – whatever she wants to do. In this interview she mentions that she’s actually “anti-productivity” at the moment, which I find compelling. You’ll have to explore her reasoning. There’s a bunch of other good stuff in this issue, so take some time with it – and kudos to Matthew James-Wilson for getting it out there! (Be sure to check out Mickey Z’s current comics project – Space Academy – available to read online HERE.) ————————————————————————————————— Abraham Riesman released his list on Vulture of the 8 Best Comics to Read (and One Comics Movie to Watch) in November. On the list is Leslie Stein‘s new comic Present, Julie Maroh‘s Body Music (which I wasn’t aware of, oops!) and the new version of Runaways, written by beloved YA novelist Rainbow Rowell. Abraham also reports that Netflix has added the 2014 film She Makes Comics this month, so schedule a movie night and invite your friends over to listen to some of comics’ female heavyweights talk about the industry and their place in it. Check out the list and it’s other offerings HERE. ————————————————————————————————— I was perusing a list from 2016 of Africa’s top 10 cartoonists and came across the names of Doaa Eladl (Egypt’s most famous female cartoonist), Siham Zebiri (an Algerian cartoonist), and Nadia Khiari (Tunisian creator of the character Willis). All 3 women are political cartoonists, and as such they often face difficulties in their countries that are only exacerbated by their sex. However they all continue to work, draw, and speak out about topics that are important to them, from female genital mutilation (Doaa Eladl), to immigration (Siham Zebiri), to male guardianship (Nadia Khiari). Here is a sampling of work by each of these radical women: I have been repeatedly reminded recently that political cartooning is an ancient art form, and remains an important (and somewhat terrifying) space for artistic expression. I listened to Signe Wilkinson (the Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist) speak at CXC in September, and she talked about “the trenches” in a way that gave me goosebumps. For herself and other political/editorial cartoonists, reality includes the possibility of bombed offices, arrest and lengthy imprisonment, and a regular, brutal dose of spite, malice, and outrage. You have to be pretty tough to deal with that, and pretty resilient, to find the power within to turn that harsh edge, somewhat, so that you can engage with people on a humorous level. I really admire and respect Signe, and Ann Telnaes, (who spoke about her similar work and experiences at CXC last year), and of course the African female cartoonists I’ve mentioned here, who are wielding their pencils and brushes in defense and celebration of themselves and the things they love. Here’s a recent comic by Signe Wilkinson – check out more of her work on GoComics. ————————————————————————————————— In related news, the BBC recently published an article by Becky Morton about the “boys club” of political cartooning in the UK. Not surprisingly, there are only 6 full-time editorial cartoonists employed by national newspapers in the UK, and none of them are women. Becky Morton details why, and digs up a wealth of female cartoonists who have resorted (willingly or grudgingly) to publishing their comics online or outside of national media. Read the article HERE. ————————————————————————————————— Not Last and Not Least Kevin Bramer reviews Jenny Zervakis‘ The Complete Strange Growths on Optical Sloth – calling it a “remarkable achievement”. Marnie Galloway has a new comic up on Mutha Magazine – read part 1 of Burrow HERE. Tom Spurgeon reviews The Wendy Project by Veronica Fish and Melissa Jane Osborne on The Comics Reporter. Marc Sobel interviews Ulli Lust for The Comics Journal and discusses her new book, Voices in the Dark, and how comics are a “musical medium” to her – read it HERE. ————————————————————————————————— Suzy and Cecil – 11-3-2017 – by Sally Ingraham ————————————————————————————————— Joanie and Jordie – 11-3-2017 – by Caleb Orecchio ————————————————————————————————— Cozytown- 11-3-2017 – by Juan Fernandez Share this page: [...]

06/27/2018

Juan FernándezJune 27, 2018los Cómics / NewsToto Duarte y Camila Barrales, Rutu Modan entrevistada y Frank’s Cosmic Corner – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – La Polola #78 -Toto Duarte y Camila Barrales Sol Díaz Castillo y Marcela Trujillo tienen una nueva edicion de La Polola Podcast! Las chicas conversan los dibujantes Toto Duarte y Camila Barrales. Conversaron sobre formas de narrar, de mirar, de criticar y de cuestionar lo establecido a través de la gráfica, el fanzine y las auto publicaciones. – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – Entrevista con Rutu Modan: Jelena Arsić, Jotdown.es En tu cómic-blog del New York Times, Mixed Emotions, hablas simplemente de tu familia. ¿Son historias reales? Lo más que hago es cambiar los nombres, por lo general son historias reales. Toda ficción no deja de ser una mezcla de experiencias reales. Yo solo escondo un poco la realidad en una ficción. El origen es que me hicieron el encargo en el New York Times a modo de columna mensual. Trabajo muy despacio, vi que no me iba a dar tiempo y decidí tomar los guiones prestados de la realidad. Así iba a ser más fácil que se me ocurrieran ideas. Le fui dedicando una historia a cada miembro de mi familia. Como era en inglés, pensaba que nunca lo verían y me solté. Pero lo vieron. Por supuesto, lo encontró uno de mis primos y directamente se lo envió a toda la familia. Tengo un tío que todavía está enfadado conmigo porque le puse de «oveja negra». Cada vez que me ve me pregunta por qué. El resto, en cambio, están muy orgullosos de que cuente historias sobre ellos. Soy muy cercana a mi familia, a mis tíos y tías, y también a mi abuela, que ya está muerta, la protagonista de La propiedad. Cuando estaba escribiendo esa novela gráfica les preguntaba mucho por cosas, les pedía información, porque mi abuela ya había fallecido. Les hice como entrevistas a cada uno, porque sabían todas las anécdotas e historias que les había contado mi abuela. Cuando luego se vio que era un libro sobre Polonia y sobre la abuela, se quedaron muy decepcionados, porque pensaban que iba a ser sobre ellos. Se enfadaron, además, porque le cambié el nombre a la abuela. Un primo mío, que sale en la historia, ya se refiere siempre a la abuela por su nombre en La propiedad. Mi tío y su hija me decían que no les gustaba cómo la había representado, que ella no era así, que ni siquiera era su nombre. Pero es que no era la historia de mi abuela, era una historia construida a partir de la personalidad de mi abuela. Y ellos: «Ya, pero es que no es ella». – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – Frank’s Cosmic Corner At Comics Workbook we are testing what it means to be a new kind of learning institution for comic book making. One of the many things we do at Comics Workbook is resell comics. Hop on over to @frankscosmiccorner on instagram and check out all the comics Frank Santoro has up for sale. You name it, we’ve got it! Lots of great mainstream and inside comics – lots of good-bad comics. All proceeds go to helping keep the lights on here at Comics Workbook, so your support is much appreciated! – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – Suzy and Cecil – 06-27-2018 – by Gabriella Tito Share this page: [...]

11/10/2017

Posted on November 9, 2017November 10, 2017 by Sally Ingraham

Sally here with Cricket magazine, work by Madeleine Witt and Audra Stang, your CAB reminder, and tons more comics and news!

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There is an article about the “secret history of Cricket magazine” on Electric Literature. Written by A. J. O’Connell, it details the creation and life of the beloved children’s magazine, with insights from founder Marianne Carus, quotes from long time art director Trina Schart Hyman (my FAVORITE illustrator as a child), and lots of love from authors and illustrators who read the magazine when they were kids.

I myself found Cricket in my local library and enjoyed every new issue I read – and was lucky in that the library had an archive of many of the old issues. It was the very best sort of magazine, full of stories and glorious illustrations by the greatest working creators of the time – and it never really felt like it was “for kids” – which was Marianne Carus’ goal, after all. She felt like kids could handle stories that were darker, that might make you cry, just as well as funny, lighthearted stuff. Like many others, I was inspired by Cricket to make my own “magazine” and published some of the stories I wrote along with illustrations for my family.

Read all about Cricket HERE.

Trina Schart Hyman was a Caldecott Medal winner for her work on St. George and the Dragon by Margaret Hodges, and earned a couple of Caldecott Honors as well. I adored her fairy tale illustrations and wrote her a long letter when I was 11 or 12 (and received a lovely response and an autographed book in return). I think I didn’t know that she was the art editor for Cricket magazine until later – I just knew that her illustrations showed up in the magazine frequently. I also didn’t really understand that the SAME Trina Schart Hyman drew the Cricket and Ladybug comic in the magazine.

The first *Cricket and Ladybug* cartoon, by Trina Schart Hyman and John Grandits (courtesy of John Grandits)

Each issue had a four-panel strip, and additionally the characters Cricket, Old Cricket, Ladybug, and Sluggo would scamper and scurry throughout the magazine, popping up to comment on the stories or merely harass each other for a moment.

” “[Trina] just had such a wonderful way of drawing them,” said Leonard. “They served as explanation of difficult words so if there was a vocabulary word that might stop a kid reader the crickets would explain what that word meant. They also had their own little life in the four-block cartoon.” “

They were great, and a big part of what made the magazine beloved to me and so many others.

Again, read all about it HERE!

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Madeleine Witt has been making a comic a day this month. She and a number of others I know are doing the “30 Days of Comics” challenge that was begun by Derik Badman in 2009 or 2011 (depending on how you count it). Madeleine’s take on the challenge offers a good insight into why things like this can be good for creators:

“I’ll be drawing 1 comic a day for the month of November. I admire & bless all those who draw a comic a day EVERY day, but especially for people who can be paralyzed by internal expectation (me) / aren’t sure of their voices (also me, particularly circa 2014), Novembers have been a fruitful time to experiment and grow. If you’re a young cartoonist or an old cartoonist or a not-yet-cartoonist looking to explore an artistic practice, I think November is a very good time to pick some constraints and try doing 1 thing a day for a little while.

Big general caveat: This sort of thing is not healthy for everyone—you know yourself & your needs and please don’t do this if it isn’t be healthy for you! Everyone please care for yourselves! Thank you! Goodbye!“

I like that Madeleine has expanded the context of the challenge beyond just “draw a comic everyday” to include formal restraints. She suggests picking colors, medium, panel setup, or subject matter and then sticking to those choices for the whole month. From my own experience over the past year of drawing a Suzy & Cecil comic every other day, I can vouch for the freedom and creative rush that (perhaps surprisingly) comes from forced structure, discipline, and regularity.

I like the work that Madeleine has been making – you can see all of it HERE. The hashtag #30dayscomics will lead you to more work, both on Instagram and Twitter, and you can follow the 30 Days of Comics Tumblr to keep up with many of this year’s participants.

Audra Stang is another cartoonist who is releasing her latest comic in this fashion (hot on the heels of the comic she made during the month of October – not necessarily for “Inktober”…!) Her comics all exist within the world and lengthy timeline of “Star Valley”, and this current story catches up with her character Owen (who appeared in last month’s Little Minnow, as a significantly younger version of himself – read that story HERE) and the irrepressible Adelaide, last seen, briefly, a year ago in Secret Knowledge and in April 2008 (in April 2016). Read the new story so far HERE.

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Katie Ball a.k.a. Katbus has a new endeavor – My Lucky Sticker Book is a monthly newsletter that showcases sticker artists from around the world. You can check out issue #4 – Halloween edition! – HERE, and subscribe to the newsletter HERE.

Katie is putting together an extra large issue for release in late November, and has sent out the message that if YOU include sticker-making in your bag of tricks, and would like some hype leading into the holiday season, let her know! She will finish compiling her list around the 25th, so send her your website and details about your stickers if you want to be listed. Write to Katie at katie.brawl@gmail.com

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Katie Fricas has a “cartoon scrapbook” detailing the first year of Trump’s presidency on The Guardian – read the whole thing HERE.

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artwork by Killer Acid, courtesy Comic Arts Brooklyn

If you’re in NYC go check out Comic Arts Brooklyn tomorrow. Here’s a write-up on the new location of the show – via Hyperallergic.

Comics Workbook will be there, and I will be too with a few copies of Suzy & Cecil. See you Saturday!

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Post Script

Mardou‘s Some Day My Witch Will Come is reviewed by Rob Clough on High-Low – check it out HERE. Rob also reviews recent Santoro Correspondence Course alum Drew Lerman’s course-made comic Boucher’s House, (and his comic Milk Debt) in the same post.
Paste Magazine‘s Hillary Brown talks to Brigitte Findakly and Lewis Trondheim about their comic Poppies of Iraq – interview HERE.
Check out Liana Finck on The Awl – loads of comics and comical commentary.
Sara Lautman illustrates the 280-character “microficitions” that were created for Electric Literature‘s Twitter-inspired contest – HERE.
Sara Lautman is the comics editor for Electric Lit‘s Okey-Panky. Here is a recent comic on that site by Shing Yin Khor, called A Tiny Ritual to Talk to Your Past Self.
Sequential State (Alex Hoffman) reviews Tillie Walden‘s Spinning – HERE.
Part 2 of an interview with Katherine Collins is up on The Comics Journal – read it HERE.
Also on The Comics Journal, Carta Monir reviews Higu Rose‘s Titychop Boobslash.
MariNaomi has a new book coming out from Lerner Publishing – Losing the Girl (May 2018). HERE is a cover reveal and giveaway on The Book Smugglers.
Lauren Purje on Hyperallergic – Is Any Artist Truly Satisfied?
Julia Wertz‘s Drinking At the Movies was featured on Fumetto Logica, for the Italian speakers out there.
Meanwhile the A. V. Club offers their take on Julia Wertz‘s Tenements, Towers and Trash – HERE.

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Suzy and Cecil – 11-10-2017 – by Gabriella Tito

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Joanie and Jordie – 11-10-2017 – by Caleb Orecchio

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Cozytown – 11-10-2017 – by Juan Fernandez

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One thought on “11/10/2017”

Phil Dokes says:

November 10, 2017 at 12:14 pm

Thanks for that Cricket write up, such a wonderful magazine! Wish i had the chance to grow up reading it (i had to deal with Highlights…ugh, not even a contest!)

Reply

Comics Workbook

An online magazine for comics makers

Sally Ingraham

Posted on November 9, 2017November 10, 2017

Explore

Our Reflection in Comics

Gabriella TitoApril 22, 2016Art Trip / EssaysGabriella Tito reports in from Orlando, FL, with this process meditation. ————————————————————————————————— Hi all! I’m here to talk a bit about how we reflect ourselves in comics. Now, I won’t break down the psychology or anything, or go into how “mainstream comics” are a reflection of our society, but I think it’s safe to say that whether we realize it or not, a part of us is “merged” into our comics. The most obvious would be an auto-bio comic. Even if it’s not about a character that looks like you or is intended to be you, they still could represent a certain ideology or interest you may have. So what about comics without characters? Abstract comics? Excellent point! From my own experience in making abstract comics and comics without relatable humans, I realize I have drawn content from a particular emotion or thought I was feeling at the time. Maybe a song inspired me to put something on paper. You probably have done this too, given the nature of abstract works. Usually, the less I thought about the content, the more fluid the comic was. Abstract comics, and it goes without saying, abstract art in general, is filled with more character than meets the eye. Abstract works can be charged with so many emotions, and the thoughts the creator has, and they can grab the audience so much that they might even relate themselves to that specific work. It’s not a mistake that this leads to why good representation is always important, simply because of the fact that the audience is always trying to find themselves in characters or concepts. Where do they fit into this? If the characters are reflections of the creator or intention, what can it say about them? Now, this doesn’t apply 100% of the time, but it is a real possibility that does happen. These are thoughts a creator should always be aware of, but also be mindful of how far they push it. In any case, this brings us back to how we reflect ourselves in creative mediums. I’m aware that what I’m saying may not line up with your opinions and that’s OK. These are just some reoccurring ideas I’ve thought about when in the process of making a comic. I’m curious if other cartoonists think of the same things. ————————————————————————————————— Gabriella Tito is a cartoonist living in Orlando, FL. She is currently contributing to Comics Workbook through her own comics and article tidbits and is a graduate of Frank Santoro’s Correspondence Course. You can find more of her work HERE. Share this page: [...]

06/25/2018

Caleb OrecchioJune 25, 2018NewsCaleb Orecchio here with thoughts on Chilling Adventures in Sorcery #3, featuring the art of Gray Morrow, and other news! ——————————————————————————— I was delighted to pull this issue out of the Comics Workbook vault. It’s an all Gray Morrow issue of Chilling Adventures in Sorcery published by Archie Comics’ imprint, Red Circle. I enjoy Morrow’s comics immensely. I just look at the pictures. Morrow’s gift (other than his virtuosic drawing ability) is his knack for making interesting pages. Comics like Orion (for Heavy Metal) and Edge of Chaos (a limited series for Pacific Comics) feel much more from Morrow’s head if you will. Imagined. They’re great. In contrast, comics like the one featured here today, feel more stitched together to me. More collage-y. In a good way. Usually I detest any whiff of photo-reference in comics, but Morrow makes it work. Occasionally the sequencing is a little wonky and the referenced images juxtaposed with the imagined images can be jarring, but overall the pages are pleasing to the eye. There is a dynamism to his work that makes up for a lot. Simply, Morrow’s comics are always interesting. He seemed to have a real desire to “wow” the reader. Every page is crammed with interesting imagery. And those colors! Morrow was one of those cartoonists who seemed to think in color as he made the comic, as opposed to most who only use color as an afterthought. Have you ever seen Orion in those old Heavy Metals? Those are hand painted. Is it just me, or is there a swagger to his work? Like, I can imagine him at the drawing board and drinking a glass of Dewar’s and laughing to himself, knowing how impressed I’d be in however many years I’d be born to see the work. ——————————————————————————— Thee Santoro Correspondence Course for Comic Book Makers Summer Session starts NOW! Floating start date! Apply anytime between now and July 12th 2018 to join the summer course. Email santoroschoolATgmail for more details. Ask about the Fall Course if now is too busy for you! The course is 8 weeks – 500 bux for 8 weeks plus access to Frank’s coaching for as long as you need. Payment plans are available. Put your summer to good use! ——————————————————————————— if you don’t know, now you know There’s a new book of CF drawings and you can get one What Things Do Laura Lannes is the latest guest on TCJ’s Comic Book Decalogue Rob Clough reviews Young Frances by Hartley Lin (Ethan Rilly) Also on TCJ.com, a review by Matt Seneca and a look at Fantom Comics in Washington D.C. ——————————————————————————— Suzy and Cecil – 6-25-2018 – by Sally Ingraham Share this page: [...]

ZONA 01

Juan FernándezJanuary 27, 2016NewsIT’S HERE Zona 01 – January 2016 Frank Santoro Harry Moyer Gabriella Tito Jack Brougham 44 pages of comics – 60 pages total – black and white with color silkscreen covers by Frank Santoro – Edition of 100 – signed and numbered on the covers by FS ===================================== AP Versions available in the School Store ===================================== Zona 01 – twenty bux postaid in the States Zona 01 – forty three bux postpaid outside of the States (sorry – its over 20 bux no matter where it goes outside of US so 43 seems fair) inside cover is silkscreened also – Harry Moyer’s work above Gabriella Tito above Jack Brougham above Frank Santoro above Zona 01 – twenty bux postaid in the States Zona 01 – forty three bux postpaid outside of the States (sorry – its over 20 bux no matter where it goes outside of US so 43 seems fair) ////////////////////////// AP Versions available in the School Store Share this page: [...]

05/18/2016

Juan FernándezMay 18, 2016NewsJuan Fernandez bringing you: Gutter Fest #4; Inés Estrada’s Alienation #1; SAVE THE FANZINE; Feira Dente; El Día de Julio; y Para leer al Pato Donald. ————————————————————————————————— GUTTER FEST #4 – Fira d´Autoedició i de Microedició – It’s right around the corner in Barcelona, the 20-21 of May. Gutter Fest just released this promo videa… watch it. Full screen. Good luck making a promo for your zine fest fresher than this! Stay up to date with Gutter Fest over on their tumblr. ————————————————————————————————— Alienation #1 by Inés Estrada Estrada’s new science fiction series about the future, sex, love, virtual reality, paranoia and rock and roll! It’s available via her shop, GATOSAURIO. Dig into her work. ————————————————————————————————— SAVE THE FANZINE “Who knows their own story? Certainly it makes no sense when we are living in the midst of it. It’s all just clamour and confusion. It only becames a story when we tell it and retell it. Our small precious recollections. That we speak again and again to ourselves or to others. First, creating the narrative of our lives, and keeping the story from dissolving into the darkness…” Nick Cave, 20.000 Days on Earth SAVE THE FANZINE is a digital and online archive for self-published books. Not intended to replace the physical object, its purpose is to pay homage to the self-publising culture and to record these unique publications. It’s a killer record of contemporary zine making in Spain! Make an account and take dip. Water’s fine 😉 Check out SAVE THE FANZINE’s physical home, Sandwich Mixto, if you’re feeling adventurous today. Based in Madrid, they run a shop and workshop space that’s become a hub of Madrid’s self-publishing community. More on that in a future week. ————————————————————————————————— Passion and Militancy: the fanzine’s resistance as an art object. Madrid’s Libros Mutantes Zine Fest has prompted a little reflection on zines and their cultural significance in Spain over at El Confidencial. Smash that translate button 😉 ————————————————————————————————— Feira Dente Coming up in June in Brasilia, Brazil. Mark, your calendars for what’s to come! This is Dente’s second iteration. The programming schedule of workshops and More information to roll out, so keep it locked to their facebook and instagram accounts. ————————————————————————————————— Reseña de El Día de Julio Jesús Játiva reviews Julio’s Day over on Zona Negativa. Es esa capacidad magistral de plasmar en cien páginas cien años de historia familiar lo que hace esta obra tan buena: la muerte de muchos y el nacimiento de otros, la vida retratada en toda su miseria y también en su esplendor. Da la sensación de que Beto Hernández es pesimista, y parece caer en cierto fatalismo mostrando a todos y cada uno de los familiares bajo las más horribles desdichas y envejeciendo y engordando y volviéndose cada vez más feos. El contacto con la muerte y su presencia durante todas las páginas es constante, pero no parece Beto tan interesado en ese momento en el que dejamos de existir como en el momento que nos ha hecho lo que somos y nos ha marcado para toda la vida ————————————————————————————————— Para leer Al Pato Donald – Mass Communication & Colonialism This one is a throw back, but is well worth looking into if you haven’t before. How To Read Donald Duck (1972) by Ariel Dorfman (Argentina-Chile) and Armand Mattelart ( Belgium ), is a key piece of political literature of the seventies. An essay, or a “decolonization manual” in their own words that analyzed comic books published by Walt Disney for the Latin American market from the point of view of mass Marxist literature. Its main thesis is that Disney cartoons would not only be a reflection of the dominant ideology -the ruling class , according to the tenets of Marxism , but also be active and conscious accomplices of the task of maintaining and disseminating that ideology. It highlighted qualities of Disney characters and their world, notably that parents, or ancestors, generally were not present. Hay un desfasaje entre la base económico-social en que vive cada individuo y el estado de las representaciones colectivas, y es precisamente lo que asegura la eficacia de Disney y su poder de penetración en la mentalidad comunitaria en los países latinoamericanos dependientes » ————————————————————————————————— hasta la próxima, chiquillos, Juan Share this page: [...]

11/01/2016

Aaron CockleOctober 31, 2016NewsAaron here today with NY Comics & Picture-story Symposium events for this week; Wertz at the NYer; Drawing the Unspeakable; more Mould Map 6; ‘An Update on the Largest Prison Strike in US History, Now Ongoing’; Ankeny’s MICE Recapitulation ————————————————————————————————— There are three upcoming events at the NY Comic and Picture-story Symposium, in support of Illustration Week 2016: David Kunzle on Töpffer and Cham: the amateur and the professional The 168th meeting of the NY Comics & Picture-story Symposium will be held on Thursday, Nov. 3, 2016 at 7pm at Parsons School of Design, University Center, 63 Fifth Ave., room L105 (lower level). Free and open to the public. Two caricaturists dominate the emerging field of the French comic strip from the 1830s onward: the Genevan Rodolphe Töpffer and the Parisian Cham (pseud. Count Amédée de Noé). The undisputed father of the modern comic strip or graphic novel, Töpffer always pretended to denigrate his “little follies,” as he called them, among other disparaging terms, and which he executed in spare corners of his life as director of a boys’ school and university professor. Cham, by contrast, inspired by and at one point collaborator with the Swiss, quickly became a dominant figure in the French premier magazine of graphic satire, Le Charivari. He engaged full-time in all the major caricature formats then practiced, including close to 40 comic strips or graphic novelettes, published in albums and magazine instalments. They represent a fine contrast in their lives, graphic style and satirical reach. David Sandlin: Hold Back the Rushing Waters, Make the Wind Lie Still The 167th meeting of the NY Comics & Picture-story Symposium will be held on Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2016 at 7pm at Parsons School of Design, University Center, 63 Fifth Ave., room L105 (lower level). Free and open to the public. Artist David Sandlin discusses the influences of country music on his paintings, prints, and comics. Sandlin was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, in 1956. He currently lives in New York and teaches printmaking, book arts, and illustration at the School of Visual Arts. He has exhibited extensively in the U.S., Europe, Japan, and Australia, and his comics and illustrations have appeared in The Best American Comics 2015, 2012 and 2009; The New Yorker; Raw; and other publications. He has received fellowships and grants from the Guggenheim Foundation, the New York Public Library’s Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers, the New York Foundation of the Arts, the Swann Foundation for Caricature and Cartoon, and other institutions. David Kunzle on Chesucristo. The fusion in word and image of Che Guevara and Jesus Christ: the poetry The 166th meeting of the NY Comics & Picture-story Symposium will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 1, 2016 at 7pm at Parsons School of Design, University Center, 63 Fifth Ave., room L105 (lower level). Free and open to the public. Amid the manifold means by which this fusion was made, in narratives of the life of Ernesto Che Guevara, in word and in image, the poetry stands out, likening Che to Jesus in various moments of Jesus’ life and especially death. In the substance and words of various actions recorded in the Gospels parallels are drawn to Che’s sacrificiality; to his embodiment of the creative forces of a “divine”nature; to his omnipresence post-mortem, even his (spiritual) omnipotence. Extracts from the poetry are intoned simultaneously with projection of some of the infinite variations made of the famous, so often christified visage of Che. Based on Kunzle’s recent book, Chesucristo, The Fusion in Word and Image of Che Guevara and Jesus Christ. ————————————————————————————————— A Friend’s Pregnancy Julia Wertz has a piece at the New Yorker’s Culture Desk. ————————————————————————————————— Drawing the Unspeakable The Cultural Services of the French Embassy and the French Comics Association join Comics@Columbia to present a conversation with French cartoonists Kerascoët, Pénélope Bagieu and Catherine Meurisse, discussing the challenges of conveying powerful emotions in a medium often wrongly dismissed as trivial. This event, moderated by cartoonist Kriota Willberg, is part of the FRENCH COMICS FRAMED festival. November 1, 2016, 7–9:30pm, Butler Library, 535 W. 114 St., NYC ————————————————————————————————— Mould Map 6 Texts More info from the recently concluded TERRAFORMERS exhibition: Prison Abolition + Utopianism + Science Fiction by Miranda Iossifidis Exhibition Guide Text Map ————————————————————————————————— Happening Under Your Nose Eleri Harris and Jess Parker look at the largest prison strike in US history, over at the Nib. ————————————————————————————————— MICE 2016 Kurt Ankeny was at the Massachusetts Independent Comics Expo this past weekend, and wrote about it, here: MICE consistently packs in a widely varied crowd, full of people from every age group and background. Part of this is the fact that it is held in Cambridge, Massachusetts, which has one of the most highly educated and diverse citizenries in the nation (it’s home to both Harvard and MIT.) But MICE just has some magic about it. The show has been steadily growing over the past few years. Last year, they broke the 3,000 attendee mark for the first time, and preliminary figures for this past Saturday’s attendance were over 1600, so they seem on par to keep that streak going. People are there to immerse themselves in the comics culture, and to buy, which is always helpful. Share this page: [...]

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