At the cusp of second decade of the 21st century, if the word “webcomics” still sounds strange to some, it is clear the reason is not the prefix web. It is the word “comics” that is problematic for several reasons. In spite of their ubiquity in the mainstream cultural landscape, comic books are still the object of a widespread prejudice that has two main expressions. One is the debatable disqualification of any texts addressed or appealing to children as lacking “seriousness”. The “infancy/maturity” binary set is a recurring topos of comics scholarship, explained amongst other reasons by the field’s struggle to convince the general public that “comics are not just for kids”. Echoing Bart Beaty’s assessment of “contemporary comics scholarship” (2004) , Craig Hight writes:
Category Archives: Guest Writers
Women in Comics by Sarah Lightman
Women in Comics I and II have been unique events inspiring, informative and celebratory. We are committed to honouring women’s contribution to comics, and hosting women comics creators from the UK and abroad – both those who have been pioneers in the field and those currently forging new directions in the medium today.
In 2009 Women in Comics I was held at The New Hall Art Collection, Murray Edwards College, University of Cambridge. We welcomed from Belgium, author of Faire Semblant C’est Mentir, Dominique Goblet, and also Melinda Gebbie, artist of Lost Girls, who noted of the day: “I never knew Cambridge could be so much fun!”
In 2010 Women in Comics II was hosted as part of Comics Forum, in Leeds Art Gallery. We heard from Suzy Varty who edited the first all-women comic in the UK in 1972, and we borrowed the front page of her publication “Heroine” for our programme’s cover image. We also hosted Maureen Burdock from Santa Fe, New Mexico, whose comics “The F-Word Project” have social consciousness as their message and take superheroines into a whole new dimension. Penneviender (The Penfriends), a Danish feminist separatist comic book art group showed us what women comic artists are producing both individually and collaboratively in Denmark. We also had an exciting array of comics scholars including Professor Teal Triggs, author of Fanzines, and Dr Mel Gibson, National Teaching Fellow and a great supporter of Women in Comics conferences.
Women in Comics III will take place at the University of Glasgow in Autumn 2012. We look forward to seeing you there!
Sarah Lightman (Chair),
Catriona MacLeod, Rikke Platz-Cortsen Nicola Streeten, Hattie Kennedy and Emily Rabone (Committee)
Genre Conventions by Clark Burscough
Mention the term “comic convention” to your average man or woman on the street and certain stock images will instantly spring to mind. Many of these will have been gleaned from the less than glamorous portrayal of cons in the popular media, and some may be downright fabrications, but there is a certain stigma attached to these events by the public. Were these the bad old days of terrible events simply designed to prise cash from the hands of hardcore fans you could forgive this lack of acceptance, however, the modern iteration of the humble convention is, at its best, an entirely different animal. A quick glance across the pond to established titans, such as Toronto’s Comic Arts Festival and the New York Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art’s Festival, demonstrates that quality events attracting a diverse audience are not mere flights of fancy.
Since its expansion in 2008, Thought Bubble has referred to itself as a “sequential arts festival”, an admittedly verbose term, but an accurate one nonetheless. As an organisation we are dedicated to promoting comics, animation, and other types of illustrated storytelling as an important cultural art-form, aiming to cater to both long-time fans and those who are completely new to the medium. Part of this involves putting on free workshops and other such events to try and engage with young people who may be interested in comics, but don’t know where to start; and the other is bringing a variety of events to the general public to showcase as many of the different faces of sequential art as we possibly can. This year we’ve expanded the festival to run for a week in November (14th – 20th), devising a programme which will include workshops, exhibitions, book give-aways, screenings, academic talks, and a “traditional” comic convention – all for the cause of promoting funny books as a legitimate art-form.
Comics Forum 