Category Archives: News Review

Americas

United States

Culture

The New-York Historical Society has awarded its annual American History Book Prize to Jill Lepore’s  The Secret History of Wonder Woman. Link (17/02/2015, English, WG)

The Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum will celebrate women’s history month and their international holdings with the opening of World of Shojo Manga! Mirrors of Girls’ Desires. The exhibition takes place between the 28th March and the 5th July. Link (English, WG)

Research

The MLA Discussion Group on Comics and Graphic Narratives has published a call for papers for three panels at next year’s MLA Convention in Austin, Texas (7th to the 10th January 2016). The panels are Satire and the Editorial Cartoon, Latina/o Comics, and Charlie Hebdo and its Publics. Link (14/02/2015, English, WG)

Scholars Kathryn La Barre, Carol Tilley, and John Walsh are collaborating on a digital archive analysing comics readership from 1961-1973. Link (03/02/2015, English, WG)

Asia

Japan

Culture

Yonezawa Yoshihiro Memorial Library is showing the exhibition “Mihara Jun, Revival Festival” between the 8th February and the 31st May. Link (Japanese, JBS)

Education

The works of students graduating from Kyoto Seika University’s Faculty of Manga and Graduate School of Manga will be exhibited at the Kyoto International Manga Museum during Anime Week (18th to the 22nd February). During this period, access to the museum is free. Link (Japanese, JBS)

Europe

Austria

Culture

Nextcomic Festival is going to take place in Linz from the 19th until the 27th March; guests include Anke Feuchtenberger and Nicolas Mahler. Link (19/02/2015, German, MdlI)

Belgium

Obituary

Belgian artist Géri, known for his work on Tintin magazine, has died aged 80. Link 1 (05/02/2015, French, LTa), Link 2 (05/02/2015, French, LTa)

France

Culture

Joann Sfar, creator of The Rabbi’s Cat, has began publishing columns and illustrations in the French edition of the Huffington Post. Link 1 (05/02/2015, French, LTa), Link 2 (05/02/2015, French, LTa)

Obituary

Jacques Kamb, cartoonist for the newspaper L’Humanité and bande dessinée artist for Pif Gadget, has died at 81. Link (06/02/2015, French, LTa)

Germany

Culture

Scott McCloud is going to present his latest comic, The Sculptor, in Berlin and Leipzig from the 11th-13th March. Link (05/02/2015, German, MdlI)

Guests at Leipzig Book Fair and the simultaneous comic festival, The Millionaires Club, from the 12th until the 15th March, include Achdé, Judith Park, and Sascha Hommer. Link (12/02/2015, German, MdlI)

Comicfestival München is going to take place from the 4th until the 7th June 2015. Guest country is the UK; guest artists include Frank Quitely, Don Rosa, and Bryan Talbot. Link (19/02/2015, German, MdlI)

An exhibition on Atze and Mosaik is shown in Leipzig from the 24th February until the 18th March. Link (23/02/2015, German, MdlI)

Brigitte Helbling and Sarah Burrini are going to talk about contemporary comics and their production in Stuttgart on the 14th April. Link (26/02/2015, German, MdlI)

Research

There is a Call for Papers for the second issue of Closure. Kieler e-Journal für Comicforschung; the deadline is the 11th March. Link (08/02/2015, German, MdlI)

Greece

Culture

The Athens Comics Library, the first comics library in Athens Greece, is now open. Link (15/02/2015, Greek, LTs)

Hungary

Culture

The Hungarian comic artist and designer Zorro the Bianco’s exhibition, Are You In Our Story?, was opened as part of the LGBT History Month on the 18th February at Roham Bár, Budapest. Zorro’s work was featured in the 2014 campaign film of the LGBT History Month. Link 1 (Hungarian, ES), Link 2 (Hungarian, ES)

Netherlands

Research

The inaugural Amsterdam Comics international conference, Comics Interaction, will take place between the 1st and 3rd July in Amsterdam. Abstracts are due by the 17th April. Link (English, WG)

Portugal

Culture

On the 19th February the Latvian magazine S! published an issue inspired by the book Livro do Desassossego by Fernando Pessoa. The issue includes some comic works from 17 portuguese authors and an introduction by Marcos Farrajota. Link (26/02/2015, English, RR)

Spain

Culture

The winners of the 2015 prizes of the AACE (Asociación de autores de comic de España -Spanish Comics Authors Association) have been announced. Link (11/02/2015, Spanish, EdRC)

The third edition of KBOOM!, an event about comics and self-publishing, will take place in Espai Jove La Fontana (Barcelona) on the 14th and 15th March. Link (24/02/2015, Spanish, EdRC)

The IVAM (Institut Valencià d’Art Modern -The Valencian Institute of Modern Art) is hosting an exhibition by Francesc Ruiz about Valencian comics, from the 19th February until the 30th August. The Universitat Politécnica de Valéncia will also celebrate a seminar parallel to the exhibition from the 4th to the 6th March. Link (22/02/2015, Spanish, EdRC)

A crowfunding project is looking for contributions to produce a documentary about the comics industry in Spain. Link (20/02/2015, Spanish, EdRC)

Sweden

Research

There is a call for papers for a conference regarding the Future in Comics. The event will take place in Stockholm between the 3rd and 5th September, and abstracts are due by the 15th April. Link (English, WG)

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  News Editor: Will Grady (comicsforumnews@hotmail.co.uk)

Correspondents: Jessica Bauwens-Sugimoto (JBS, Japan),  Enrique del Rey Cabero (EdRC, Spain), Martin de la Iglesia (MdlI, Austria & Germany), Renatta Rafaella (RR, Portugal), Eszter Szép (ES, Hungary), Lise Tannahill (LTa, Belgium & France), Lida Tsene (LTs, Greece).

Click here for News Review correspondent biographies.

Click here to see the News Review archive.

Suggestions for articles to be included in the News Review can be sent to Will Grady at the email address above.

Americas

Canada

Research

Twelve-Cent Archie, by Bart Beaty, has now been published through Rutgers University Press. Link (English, WG)

United States

Business

DC and Marvel top the charts for the Top 100 Comics for the month of December based on total unit sales invoiced for the month. Batman #37 finished first for DC, and was followed by Amazing Spider-Man #11 and Shield #1 in second and third respectively. Link (English, MB)

Image’s Saga Volume 4 hit number 1 for the Top 100 Graphic Novels for December, with Marvels’ Captain America Peggy Carter Agent of Shield #1 in second, and Just the Tips from Image taking the third spot. Link (English, MB)

Diamond Comics reported the Top 100 Comics for 2014 and Marvel almost completely shut out the top ten slots. The top three spots went to Amazing Spider-Man #1 (Marvel), Walking Dead #132 (Image), and Rocket Raccoon #1 (Marvel). Link (English, MB)

All four volumes of Saga placed in the top ten slots for the Top 100 Graphic Novels for 2014. Saga Volume 3 (Image), Saga Volume 1 (Image), and Walking Dead Volume 20: All Out War Part 1 (Image) took first through third respectively. Link (English, MB)

Diamond Comics provided a year-end reporting of unit and dollar shares and top comic book publishers by retail market and unit market share. Link (English, MB)

Research

Central Michigan University’s Third Annual ComiConference will be  held on the 3rd March. Link (English, WG)

The Journal of Comics and Culture, a new peer-reviewed academic journal to be published by Pace University Press, has announced its first call for papers. Abstracts of 500 words are due by the 15th February. Link (06/01/2015, English, WG)

The new issue of the International Journal of Comic Art (vol.16, no.2) is now shipping. Link (05/01/2015, English, WG)

The Comics Arts Conference is now accepting proposals for its 2015 meeting at Comic-Con, taking place between the 9th and 12th July. Submissions are due by the 1st March. Link (English, WG)

There is a call for papers for the conference, Comics in Medicine & Teaching: Rethinking Comics as a Therapeutic and Educational Tool. The event will take place at the University of Nebraska between the 9th and 10th April, and proposals are due by the 23rd February. Link (26/01/2015, English, WG)

Asian Comics, by John A. Lent, has now been published through the University Press of Mississippi. Link (English, WG)

A second edition of The Power of Comics, authored by Randy Duncan, Matthew J. Smith and Paul Levitz, has been published by Bloomsbury. Link (English, WG)

Asia

Japan

Business

The (domestic) market for Japanese manga boomed to about 28.13 billion Japanese yen in 2014, over a quarter of the total book market. Link (23/01/2015, Japanese, JBS)

Culture

Yonezawa Yoshihiro Memorial Library is showing the exhibition “Mihara Jun, Revival Festival” from February until the 31st May. Link (Japanese, JBS)

The Exhibition “Black Jack Stories; Doctors’ Choice”, show medical professionals’ perspectives on Tezuka Osamu’s classic Black Jack, at Kyoto International Manga Museum from the 28th February until the 10th May. Link (English, JBS)

Education

The work of students graduating from Kyoto Seika University’s Faculty of Manga and Graduate School of Manga will be exhibited at the Kyoto International Manga Museum during Anime Week (between the 18th and 22nd February). During this period, access to the museum is free. Link (Japanese, JBS)

Law & Politics

A manga published on the website of Japan’s Health, Labour and Welfare Ministry caused commotion on social media by suggesting that the solution to the aging population crisis that the country faces is for young people to get married and have more children. Link (20/01/2015, Japanese, JBS)

Europe

France

Business

Bande dessinées from publishers Flammarion, Gallimard and Les Humanoïdes Associés are now available on digital comics platform ComiXology. Link (29/01/2015, French, LTa)

Culture

There is no date set for the publication of the next issue of Charlie Hebdo. Link (31/01/2015, French, LTa)

The release date of the next Asterix album has been announced at Angoulême: it will be released on the 22nd October. Link (30/01/2015, French, LTa)

Akira author Katsuhiro Otomo has been awarded this year’s Grand Prix at Angoulême. Link (29/01/2015, English, LTa)

Germany

Culture

This year, the Christoph Martin Wieland translator award will be given to a comics translator for the first time. Link (08/01/2015, German, MdlI)

The festival, Comicinvasion Berlin, is going to take place on the 18th and 19th April; sponsors are sought for a new artists’ award. Link (19/01/2015, German, MdlI)

An exhibition of emerging comic artists is going to be shown in Mannheim from the 7th February until the 8th March. Link (29/01/2015, German, MdlI)

Research

The Winter School Mediality and Multimodality across Media, which took place in Tübingen from the 28th until the 30th January, included several presentations on comics. Link (15/01/2015, English, MdlI)

A call for papers for a workshop on Mediality and Materiality in Contemporary Comics, which is going to take place in Tübingen from the 24th until the 26th April, has been published. The deadline for submissions is the 15th March. Link (16/01/2015, English, MdlI)

Alev Gönc gave a lecture on WWI and WWII in comics at University of Erlangen-Nuremberg on the 29th January. Link (26/01/2015, German, MdlI)

Portugal

Culture

The municipality of Odemira is organising the 9th edition of BDTECA, that consists of a series of activities related to comics. These include exhibitions, fairs and a contest. The event began on the 12th January with the launch of the annual comics contest, and will end in March. Link (02/01/2015, Portuguese, RR)

The Bookstore Europa-América in Lisbon is hosting an exhibition by the Portuguese comic author Fernando Relvas. The exhibition can be visited until the 6th February and visitors to the exhibition can buy some original comic panels from the author. Link (21/01/2015, Portuguese, RR)

Spain

Business

The publishing house Caramba!, which specialises in humour comics, will now continue working under the publishing house Astiberri. Link (16/01/2015, Spanish, EdRC)

The web Mangaland has published figures about manga sales in Spain. Link (11/01/2015, Spanish, EdRC)

The web Guía del comic has published figures about comic sales in Spain. Link (21/01/2015, Spanish, EdRC)

The website, Whakoom, has published a report about the state and future of digital comics. Link (19/01/2015, Spanish, EdRC)

Culture

Paco Roca, Miguel Gallardo, Zinni Quiros and Ángels Gónzalez Sinde discussed the Oxfam project, Viñetas de Vida: dibujantes on tour, which sent some comic artists to international development projects to later portray their experiences in the form of a comic. Link (14/01/2015, Spanish, EdRC)

The Spanish satirical on-line magazine Orgullo y Satisfacción has published a free special issue after the Charlie Hebdo killings. Link (09/01/2015, Spanish, EdRC)

Switzerland

Culture

The 25th Fumetto festival in Lucerne will take place from the 7th until the 15th March. Link (12/01/2015, German, MdlI)

UK

Culture

On the 7th March 2015 the University of Dundee is hosting the event, Comics, So What?, which seeks to engage the public in the appreciation of comics and graphic novels, and to draw attention to Comics Studies in the UK. Link (English, WG)

Education

The Centre for Language and Communication Research (CLCR) at Cardiff University is seeking applications for one Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) three-year PhD studentship to commence on the 1st October 2015. Although the list of areas covered does not specifically mention comics and graphic novels, Down The Tubes report that the CLCR welcomes applications in this area. Applications are due by the 9th March. Link (24/01/2015, English, WG)

Research

The latest issue of European Comic Art (vol.7, no.2) has now been published. Link (English, WG)

Oceania

Australia

Culture

Melbourne comics creator Katie Parrish has been made the art director of literary journal The Lifted Brow. Link (English, ALM)

The Ledger Awards are accepting nominations for the 2015 ballot. The Ledger Awards will also be compiling “The Ledger Annual”, an anthology that celebrates the best novice comics creators in Australia. Link (English, ALM)

Applications have now opened for residencies at the Comic Art Workshop, which will be in Maria Island, Tasmania, from the 1st to the 14th of November. The workshop directors are Pat Grant and Dr Elizabeth MacFarlane, with Leela Corman and Tom Hart leading the classes. Link (English, ALM)

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News Editor: Will Grady (comicsforumnews@hotmail.co.uk)

Correspondents: Jessica Bauwens-Sugimoto (JBS, Japan), Michele Brittany (MB, North America), Enrique del Rey Cabero (EdRC, Spain), William Grady (WG, UK), Martin de la Iglesia (MdlI, Germany & Switzerland), Amy Louise Maynard (ALM, Australia), Renatta Rafaella (RR, Portugal), Lise Tannahill (LTa, France).

Click here for News Review correspondent biographies.

Click here to see the News Review archive.

Suggestions for articles to be included in the News Review can be sent to Will Grady at the email address above.

Africa

South Africa

Culture

Pop the Culture’s Kunjanimation Expo took place in Cape Town in November. It is a new initiative that looks at doing workshops and events to improve storytelling in comics, cartooning and animation. Link 1 (English, MR), Link 2 (English, MR)

Bliksem! South African Comic Art Exhibition is running until the 24th January. Link 1 (English, MR), Link 2 (Afrikaans, MR)

Americas

United States

Business

Marvel’s Amazing Spider-Man #9 and All New Captain America #1 took the top two spots for Diamond Comics Top 100 Comic Books for the month of November. Rounding out in the third spot was DC’s Batman #36. Link (English, MB)

The Walking Dead Volume 22: A New Beginning (Image) was the highest selling graphic novel for the month of November, according to Diamond Comics. Teen Titans Earth One Volume 1 (DC) and Saga Deluxe Edition Volume 1 hardcover (Image) were second and third respectively. Link (English, MB)

Free Comic Book Day (FCBD) occurs annually on the first Saturday of May with comic book shops participating worldwide. A list of the 50 free comic book titles to be offered in 2015 has been released online and in the January issue of Diamond’s Previews. Link (English, MB)

Research

The 39th German Studies Association annual conference will be held in Washington, D.C. between the 1st and 4th October 2015 and will include the panel series, The German Graphic Novel, focusing on history, adaptations and pedagogy. Proposals are due by the 16th February 2015 and presenters must be members of the association. Link (English, MB)

Contributors are being sought for the Encyclopedia of World Comics: Manga, Anime, Tintin and More Comics From Around the Globe, a comprehensive A-Z of entries (500-1,000 words) and essays (1,500-2,500 words). The first wave of entries are due by the 1st March 2015, with full details and email address found through the link. Link (20/12/2014, English, MB)

Noah Berlastsky, editor of the blog The Hooded Utilitarian and author of several books, has penned Wonder Woman: Bondage and Feminism in the Marston/Peter Comics, 1941-1948, a new publication from Rutgers University Press. Berlastsky’s book analyses the comics for themes that include lesbianism, cross-dressing, rape, and incest. Link (English, MB)

Exploring the comics of the 1940s and 1950s, Michael Barrier’s Funnybooks: The Improbably Glories of the Best American Comic Books focuses specifically on children’s comics published through Dell Comics. In particular, Barrier’s historical narrative tours titles such as Donald Duck, Uncle Scrooge, Little Lulu, and Pogo from the likes of Carl Barks, John Stanley and Walt Kelly. Link (English, MB)

The annual edition of Mechademia 9 Origins, edited by Frenchy Lunning, turns the table around and utilises manga, anime and other texts in which to analyse and challenge the concept of “Japan” as a product rather than the producer. Link (English, MB)

There is a call for papers for the 6th International Conference Comics and Medicine, which takes place between the 16th and 18th July 2015 at the University of California, Riverside. The conference theme is “Spaces of Care”, and proposals are due by the 30th January. Link (English, WG)

A new critical anthology, The American Comic Book, has been published through Grey House Publishing and Salem Press. Link (English, WG)

Insider Histories of Cartooning: Rediscovering Forgotten Famous Comics and Their Creators, by Robert C. Harvey, has been published through the University Press of Mississippi. Link (English, WG)

Europe

France

Business

The annual report of the ACBD (Association des critiques de bandes dessinées) has been published for 2014. The report looks back on the state of the bande dessinée publishing industry over the previous year: notably, 2014 saw more titles published than in 2013, but smaller print runs. Link 1 (29/12/2014, French, LTa), Link 2 (French, LTa)

Germany

Culture

A Batman exhibition is shown in Cologne until the 5th February 2015. Link (01/12/2014, German, MdlI)

An exhibition on war illustration, including comics, is shown in Albstadt until the 19th April 2015. Link (11/12/2014, German, MdlI)

Tagesspiegel names its top 10 comics of the year; Irmina by Barbara Yelin takes the top spot. Link (11/12/2014, German, MdlI)

The comics festival, “Neue Wege”, takes place in Kassel from the 14th until the 18th January 2015. Link (15/12/2014, German, MdlI)

An exhibition of comics from the magazine, Le Monde diplomatique, is shown in Berlin from the 9th until the 31st January 2015. Link (22/12/2014, German, MdlI)

Education

A seminar for librarians on reading promotion through comics is given in Hildesheim, Nordenham, and Lüneburg on the 5th, 6th, and 7th May 2015, respectively. Link (German, MdlI)

Obituary

Marie Marcks died. Link (08/12/2014, German, MdlI)

Research

The 10th Comic Kolloquium took place in Hamburg on the 11th December. Link (08/12/2014, German, MdlI)

Paul Gravett’s opening speech at the exhibition, Art-Comics: Artists’ Lives As Graphic Novels, in Ludwigsburg in November is available in English on his website. Link (10/12/2014, English, MdlI)

Hungary

Culture

Hungarocomix 2014, a one-day festival of Hungarian comics and their creators took place with great success on the 6th December in Budapest. Link (Hungarian, ES)

The first crowd funded comics project in Hungary entitled “Nyugat+Zombik” is about to start in January 2015. The one-month Indiegogo campaign aimed at collecting the one-year income of the creator, Olivér Csepella, but it closed on the 7th December with 232% of the desired support. The greatly anticipated graphic story features canonical Hungarian poets from the beginning of the 20th century fighting an invasion of brainless and aggressive ex-readers. Link (English, ES)

Italy

Research

There is a call for papers for the panel, The Sequential Art: Comics as a Cultural Nexus. It is attached to The Third Global Forum of Critical Studies: Asking Big Questions Again, organised by Euroacademia and taking place in Florence between the 6th and 7th February. Details can be found through the link. Link (English, WG)

Norway

Research

There is a call for papers for the NNCORE 2015 International Conference in Comics Studies, which will take place at the University of Oslo, between the 11th and 12th June. The conference theme is “War and Conflict in Sequential Art”, and proposals are due by the 15th February. Link (English, WG)

Spain

Culture

The exhibition, Mujeres de tinta. Antología de autoras de comic (1926-2014), which explores the work of Spanish women comic artists, was shown at the Pabellón de Cristal de Casa de Campo (Madrid) between the 12th and 14th December 2014. There was also a cycle of conferences on the topic at Museo ABC (Madrid) as part of the comics festival Expocomic. Link (09/12/2014, Spanish, EdRC)

Moi, assassin, the new work by Antonio Altarriba (El arte de volar) and Keko, has been awarded the Grand Prix de la Critique ACBD 2015. Link (07/12/2014, French, EdRC)

The exhibition, Gastronomía y tebeos, dealing with the presence of food in comics (mostly Spanish), is being shown at the Palacio de Villauso (Vitoria) from the 4th December 2014 until the 17th January 2015. Link (04/12/2014, Spanish, EdRC)

The exhibition, Mafalda 50 años, which celebrates the 50th anniversary of Quino’s famous character, is being shown at La Térmica (Málaga) from the 11th December 2014 until the 15th February 2015. Link (01/12/2014, Spanish, EdRC)

Obituary

The illustrator and political cartoonist Máximo died on the 28th December. Link (29/12/2014, Spanish, EdRC)

UK

Research

Scholars Carolene Ayaka and Ian Hague have edited a collection of essays,Representing Multiculturalism in Comics and Graphic Novels, which delve into the representations of multiculturalism in the medium of comics. The collection is part of the Routledge Research in Cultural and Media Studies series. Link (English, MB)

The Comics Grid: Journal of Comics Scholarship has published an open call for contributions to the journal. Link (English, WG)

Oceania

Australia

Culture

There was a lot of activity at Squishface Studio in Melbourne this December, with the art exhibition Yeeha! on the 1st, the Squishface Coaster show on the 7th, and the launch of Tim Molloy’s latest graphic novel Mr Unpronounceable and the Sect of the Bleeding Eye on the 13th. Grants are also available to cover printing costs for the Homecooked Comics Festival next year. More information can be found through the link. Link (English, ALM)

Pikitia Press have begun their annual ‘Year in Review’ interview series, with Matt Emery interviewing comics creators from Australia and New Zealand (scroll down). Link (English, ALM)

Alisha Jade has started a comprehensive directory of women making comics in Australia. Link (English, ALM)

Research

The ebook of Daniel Best’s study, Newton Comics – The Rise and Fall, is now available. Link (English, ALM)

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News Editor: Will Grady (comicsforumnews@hotmail.co.uk)

Correspondents: Michele Brittany (MB, North America & UK), Enrique del Rey Cabero (EdRC, Spain), William Grady (WG, UK), Martin de la Iglesia (MdlI, Germany), Amy Louise Maynard (ALM, Australia), Moray Rhoda (MR, South Africa), Eszter Szép (ES, Hungary), Lise Tannahill (LTa, France).

Click here for News Review correspondent biographies.

Click here to see the News Review archive.

Suggestions for articles to be included in the News Review can be sent to Will Grady at the email address above.

 

Americas

Canada

Research

Bart Beaty will speak about his research into Archie at the Modern Literature and Culture Research Centre, Ryerson University, on the 8th December. Link (English, WG)

United States

Business

The publisher that has brought the franchise, Assassin’s Creed, to the video game console has signed a distribution agreement with Diamond Comic and Diamond Book Distributors. Ubisoft currently offers their game-inspired graphic novels to book markets such as Amazon and Barnes and Noble, but these will soon be available at the local comic book stores as well. Link (English, MB)

Walking Dead #132 (Image), Death of Wolverine #4 (Marvel) and Thor #1 (Marvel) took the top three spots of Top 100 Comics for October, based on total unit sales invoiced. Other superhero stories to finish in the top ten included Avengers, X-Men, Batman, Spider-Man and Harley Quinn. Link (English, MB)

Marvel’s Ms Marvel Volume 1: No Normal and Hawkeye Volume 3: LA Woman placed in the top two spots for the Top 100 Graphic Novels for the month of October, based on total unit sales invoiced. Batman Volume 4: Zero Year Secret City from DC Comics rounded out in the third spot overall. Link (English, MB)

Culture

The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund and the Museum of Comic & Cartoon Art will host a holiday celebration at the Society of Illustrators Hall of Fame Gallery on the 10th December in New York City. Special guests include Paul Pope, Chip Kidd, Bob Fingerman, and Gregory Benton. Link (25/11/2014, English, MB)

Ohio State University’s Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum will be celebrating the opening of the exhibition, King of the Comics: William Randolph Hearst and 100 Years of King Features, which takes place between the 13th December and the 15th March 2015, with a series of events taking place on the 13th December. Link (20/11/2014, English, MB)

Diamond Comic Distributors has announced they will partner with Baltimore Comic Con to bring the 2015 Retailer Summit to Baltimore. The show, in its 15th year, will take place between the 25th and 27th September 2015. Link (English, MB)

The Columbus, Ohio based Cartoon Crossroads Columbus (CXC) has announced its formation and intention to stage a four-day, yearly comics festival beginning in Fall 2016. Link (English, WG)

Research

Andrews McMeel Publishing just released the hardcover of The Art of Richard Thompson, by Bill Watterson, Nick Galifianakis, Chris Sparks, David Apatoff, and Michael Rhode. Thompson was the creator of the comic strip Cul de Sac. Link (25/11/2014, English, MB)

Michigan State University has announced its annual Comics Forum will be held between the 20th and 21st February 2015, with guest speaker the award winning cartoonist Sergio Aragones. The deadline for proposals for the conference is the 20th December. Link (24/11/2014, English, MB)

The Modern Language Association has announced it is seeking proposals addressing various approaches to teaching comics in the upcoming meeting titled, Developments in Comics Pedagogy, which is being held in Austin, Texas between the 7th and 10th January 2016. Statements summarising approaches are due by the 1st March  2015. Link (19/11/2014, English, MB)

The collection edited by Joseph J. Darowski, The Ages of the Avengers: Essays on the Earth’s Mightiest Heroes in Changing Times, has been published through McFarland. Link (English, WG)

Death, Disability, and the Superhero: The Silver Age and Beyond, by José Alaniz, has now been published through the University Press of Mississippi. Link (English, WG)

American Comics, Literary Theory, and Religion: The Superhero Afterlife, by A. David Lewis, has now been published through Palgrave Macmillan. Link (English, WG)

Asia

Japan

Culture

Kyoto International Manga Museum’s exhibition “Crossing Borders: Mahler’s Manga Park”, showcasing works by Austrian cartoonist Nicolas Mahler, is running from the 2nd December until the 8th February 2015. On the 6th December, there is a related event, where the artist will talk about his views of cartoons, comics, and manga. Link (English, JBS)

The exhibition “Yasuko Aoike’s 50th anniversary; A world of beautiful artwork from Eroica to Falco”, at Kyoto International Manga Museum is open until the 1st February 2015. On January the 17th, the artist will hold an autograph session. Link (Japanese, JBS)

Literary and poetry magazine, Eureka, published a special issue on the Yuri genre on the 27th November. The special issue contains essays by both Japanese and foreign experts. Link (27/11/2014, Japanese, JBS)

Professor and manga artist Keiko Takemiya, President of Kyoto Seika University, received the Purple Ribbon Award (by the Japanese government) for outstanding performance in the field of academic or artistic invention, improvement, and creation. Link (Japanese, JBS)

Research

The gender and sexuality group of the JSSCC (Japanese Society for Studies in Cartoons and Comics) is holding its 40th research meeting on the 21st December. Link (Japanese, JBS)

Europe

Austria

Culture

A 30 minute documentary feature on Nicolas Mahler was shown on German-language television. Link (23/11/2014, German, MdlI)

Belgium

Business

Bande dessinée publisher Dargaud is in talks to open a bande dessinée school to train artists in Marcinelle, Belgium. Link (27/11/2014, French, LTa)

France

Business

A watercolour of Corto Maltese auctioned in Paris has sold for €391,800, beating the “world record” for works concerning Hugo Pratt’s iconic character. Link (23/11/2014, French, LTa)

Satirical BD newspapers Charlie Hebdo and Siné Mensuel are both in serious financial difficulties, and are calling on readers for support. Link 1 (18/11/2014, French, LTa), Link 2 (14/11/2014, French, LTa)

Culture

Titeuf creator Zep and satirical cartoonist Plantu have both launched bande dessinée blogs on the website of Le Monde. Link (13/11/2014, French, LTa)

The programme for the 2015 Angoulême Festival has been revealed. Link (27/11/2014, French, LTa)

Germany

Business

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung has ceased publishing comic strips. Link (02/11/2014, German, MdlI)

Culture

The Intercomic comics fair took place in Cologne on the 8th November; guests included Sarah Burrini and Burkhard Ihme. Link (02/11/2014, German, MdlI)

An exhibition of artists’ biographies in comics is shown in Ludwigsburg from the 23rd November until the 8th February 2015. Link (06/11/2014, German, MdlI)

Keith Knight held a series of lectures on ethnicity and police violence at universities in Siegen, Bremen, Osnabrück, Bochum and Berlin. Link (17/11/2014, English, MdlI)

The 15th annual comic market report, COMIC!-Jahrbuch, has been published. Link (20/11/2014, German, MdlI)

Obituary

Mosaik creator Hannes Hegen died on the 8th November. Link (13/11/2014, German, MdlI)

Research

Björn Hammel has published a book on webcomics. Link (German, MdlI)

The first issue of Closure, a new comics studies journal from Kiel, has been published and is available online. Link (German, MdlI)

Daumenkino, an online film magazine, has published a series of essays on comics-to-film adaptations. Link (German, MdlI)

Portugal

Culture

From the 5th to the 7th December, the city of Matosinhos will be hosting Comic Con Portugal, the first mega-event of pop culture. The program includes a range of national and international artists. Link (English & Portuguese, RR)

On the 21st November, João Amaral published the comic book, A Viagem do Elefante (The travel of the elephant). The book consists of the comics version of the book with the same title by well-known Portuguese author José Saramago. Link (12/11/2014, Portuguese, RR)

Romania

Culture

The first edition of ICE Comic Con took place in Bucharest. It featured American and European cartoonists, as well as workshops, exhibitions, gaming and cosplay competitions. Link (English, MP)

Spain

Culture

The exhibition Francisco Ibáñez, el mago del humor, which explores the work of the most successful Spanish comics author, is being shown at Círculo de Bellas Artes (Madrid) from the 21st October until the 18th January 2015. Link (20/10/2014, Spanish, EdRC)

The 15th edition of Encuentro del cómic y la Ilustración de Sevilla, which includes talks, exhibitions and workshops, will take place between November and December in Sevilla. Link (15/11/2014, Spanish, EdRC)

Juan Díaz Canales and Juanjo Guarnido have been awarded 2014’s Premio Nacional del Cómic (National Comics Prize) for their album Blacksad 5: Amarillo. Link (11/11/2014, English, EdRC)

Black is Beltza, a multimodal exhibition project about the comic of the same name, written by Herkaitz Cano and Jorge Alderete, is being shown at La Alhóndiga, Bilbao, from the 13th November until the 2nd February 2015. Link (05/11/2014, Spanish, EdRC)

Paco Roca. Dibujante ambulante, an exhibition about the work of Paco Roca, is being shown at Fundación Telefónica, Madrid, from the 20th November until the 15th February 2015. Link (10/11/2014, Spanish, EdRC)

Antonio Altarriba and Iosu Mitxelena will be hosting Cómic. Tertulia literaria, a cycle of conferences and analysis of major contemporary international comics from October 2014 to June 2015 in San Sebastian. Link (20/10/2014, Spanish/Basque, EdRC)

Issue 110 of the literature magazine, Peonza, is dedicated to international graphic novels. Link (22/11/2014, Spanish, EdRC)

Education

El cómic: nueva y poderosa herramienta en ética y comunicación, a seminar about the role of comics in medicine and ethics took place on the 12th November at the University of Zaragoza. Link (12/11/2014, Spanish, EdRC)

Research

Javier Mesón has started a crowd-funding project to self-publish Historia de un gángster sin alma, a book about the famous Spanish comic Torpedo. Link (25/11/2014, Spanish, EdRC)

Manga: Made in Japan, the eleventh and last volume of the encyclopedic Del tebeo al manga. Una historia de los comics, by Antonio Guiral, has been published and was presented on the 21st November. Link (18/11/2014, Spanish, EdRC)

UK

Culture

Forbidden Planet report on Thought Bubble 2014. Link (26/11/2014, English, WG)

Education

The University of Dundee has advertised places for AHRC-funded PhD studentships available in English. Specifying research proposals relative to Comics Studies, applications are due by the 22nd December. Link (14/11/2014, English, WG)

Research

The Inaugural Lecture of Professor Laurence Grove, “How to Get Away with Reading Comics in an Ancient University”, will take place on the 17th December at 5.15pm in The Humanity Lecture Theatre, University of Glasgow. Details can be found through the link under the “Inaugural Lectures” tab. Link (English, WG)

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News Editor: Will Grady (comicsforumnews@hotmail.co.uk)

Correspondents: Jessica Bauwens-Sugimoto (JBS, Japan), Michele Brittany (MB, North America), Enrique del Rey Cabero (EdRC, Spain), William Grady (WG, UK), Martin de la Iglesia (MdlI, Austria & Germany), Mihaela Precup (MP, Romania), Renatta Rafaella (RR, Portugal), Lise Tannahill (LTa, Belgium & France).

Click here for News Review correspondent biographies.

Click here to see the News Review archive.

Suggestions for articles to be included in the News Review can be sent to Will Grady at the email address above.

 

Americas

Canada

Education

Nancy Pedri at Memorial University is seeking an MA student and a PhD student who are interested in working on comics and/or photography in literature. Those interested in this funding opportunity should apply by the 15th January 2015 for a September 2015 admission. Link (English, WG)

Job

The Department of English at the University of Calgary invites applications for a tenure-track position at the rank of Assistant Professor, in Children’s Literature and/or Young Adult Literature. The position explicitly seeks a secondary research and teaching area in “graphic novels.” Link (08/10/2014, English, WG)

The English Department at the University of Windsor is seeking a Cartoonist-in-Residence for fall 2015 (September-December). Link (English, WG)

Research

There is a call for papers for the annual conference of the Canadian Society for the Study of Comics, taking place at the Toronto Reference Library on the 7th and 8th May 2015. The deadline for submissions is the 15th December. Link (English/French, WG)

United States

Business

Diamond News reported that Marvel’s Death of Wolverine #1 and #2 took the top two spots for September total unit sales invoiced. Batman Future’s End #1 from DC rounded out the top spots. Link (English, MB)

Batman: Death of the Family Book & The Joker Mask Set (DC) took the top spot for Diamond News’ Top 100 Graphic Novels, based on total unit sales invoiced for the month of September. Forever Evil and Yu-Gi-Oh! 5DS Volume 6 were second and third respectively. Link (English, MB)

Culture

Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act, Congressman John Lewis, Nate Powell and Andrew Aydin will discuss the movement and the graphic memoir, March, which tells Congressman Lewis’ experience. The event is free and is being held at the Archie M. Griffin East Ballroom at The Ohio State University on the 15th November. Link (English, MB)

Research

The International Comic Arts Forum is being held between the 13th and 15th November at the Bill Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum at The Ohio State University in Columbus. The keynote speaker is Dr. Bart Beaty and attendance is free. Link (English, MB)

Historian and New Yorker writer Jill Lepore has penned the book The Secret History of Wonder Woman, published recently by Knopf. In it, she discusses newly found private papers of William Moulton Marston, the creator of Wonder Woman and seeks to tie Marston’s superheroine with that of the feminist movement of the 20th century. Link (English, MB)

There is a call for papers for the conference, Queers & Comics, taking place at the City University of New York between the 7th and 8th May 2015. Link (English, WG)

Europe

Belgium

Research

The ACME Comics Research Group at the University of Liège has announced the launch of its scholarly book series.The two titles published to date include: La bande dessinée en dissidence. Alternative, indépendance, auto-édition / Comics in Dissent: Alternative, Independence, Self-Publishing, edited by Christophe Dony, Tanguy Habrand & Gert Meesters; and Mythologies du superhéros. Histoire, physiologie, géographie, intermédialités, edited by François-Emmanuël Boucher, Sylvain David & Maxime Prévost. Link (English/French, WG)

France

Culture

Jean-Claude Fournier, best known as the artist behind Spirou from 1969-79, has been made a chevalier of the French Order of Arts and Letters. Link (11/10/2014, French, LTa)

A new Corto Maltese album will be published in October 2015, 20 years after the death of the series’ creator Hugo Pratt. Link 1 (06/10/2014, French, LTa), Link 2 (07/10/2014, French, LTa)

Germany

Business

CAMP, a new “comics, illustration and trivial culture” magazine, is launched by Edition Alfons on the 12th November. Link (02/10/2014, German, MdlI)

Culture

Josh Elder gave a talk on Reading With Pictures in Berlin on the 21st October. Link (09/10/2014, German, MdlI)

A comics exhibition on childhood in the German Democratic Republic, including works by Flix, Mawil and others, opened in Berlin on the 1st November and runs until the 22nd November. Link (13/10/2014, German, MdlI)

An Uli Knorr exhibition is shown in Munich from the 16th October 2014 until the 3rd February 2015. Link (23/10/2014, German, MdlI)

Research

The Roland Faelske awards 2014 go to Beeke Hadeler and Jochen Ecke for their respective comics-related thesis. Link (27/10/2014, German, MdlI)

The “Holocaust im Comic” exhibition in Bochum is accompanied by a lecture series from the 6th November 2014 until the 29th January 2015. Link (30/10/2014, German, MdlI)

Portugal

Culture

The Library of Odivelas (Biblioteca Municipal D. Dinis) is hosting an exhibition titled “O fantástico na obra Eternus 9 – Um Filho do Cosmos” (The fantastic in Eternus 9 – A cosmos son). The exhibition is dedicated to the work of Victor Mesquita, and featured the author and some other illustrators and authors talking about their projects, their life, and their techniques of making comics. Link (22/10/2014, Portuguese, RR)

The Art Center of São João da Madeira is organising a comics workshop guided by Sofia Neto, alongside an annual course of comics. The workshop will take place on the 1st November in Oliva Creative Factory, whereas the course will begin on the 5th November. Link (Portuguese, RR)

From the 10th October until the 31st December, the bedeteca of Beja will be hosting an exhibition titled “Notícias da frente” (Early News), dedicated to works that portray some scenes from WWI and the following hundred years. Link (15/10/2014, Portuguese, RR)

Research

The third edition of CONFIA has released its call for papers. Those interested are instructed to submit a full paper in English or in Portuguese by the 31st December. The conference will take place in Braga, between the 10th and 12nd April 2015. Link (01/10/2014, English & Portuguese, RR)

Spain

Business

A new publishing house specialising in Spanish comics, Grafito Editorial, has been created. Link (01/10/2014, English, EdRC)

Planeta de Agostini Comics, the biggest comics publisher in Spain, has been renamed as Planeta Comics. Link (18/10/2014, Spanish, EdRC)

Culture

Komikigunea, a new public library with a collection of more than 30,000 documents (including comics, fanzines and comics studies material), is now open to the public in Donostia. Link (09/10/2014, Spanish, EdRC)

Spanish comic artists Juan Díaz Canales and Rubén Pellejero have been announced as the authors of the new album of Corto Maltese, which will be released in October 2015 (the last one was published in 1988). Link (07/10/2014, English, EdRC)

Spanish comic specialist Yexus hosted a conference about the history of comics in Cantabria (a region in the north of Spain) at Ateneo de Santander on the 21st October. Link (21/10/2014, Spanish, EdRC)

Education

The UNED, the National Spanish Open University, is organising a university seminar called “Una mirada antropológica al mundo de la viñeta”. It will take place in Gran Canaria (and online) from the 3rd to the 14th November. Link (01/10/2014, Spanish. EdRC)

Switzerland

Culture

A Joost Swarte exhibition is shown at Cartoonmuseum Basel from the 15th November 2014 until the 23rd February 2015. Link (06/10/2014, German, MdlI)

UK

Culture

Plymouth University is hosting an exhibition on Pat Mills and Joe Colquhoun’s Charley’s War, taking place between the 3rd and 14th November. On the 4th November, Mills will be giving a talk on the series in the Levinsky Building (same venue as the exhibition), at 7pm. Link (English, WG)

Additional information on the exhibition, Southeast Asian Comics, taking place at The Proud Archivist – Library, London, between the 24th October and 2nd November (reported on last month), can be found on the Facebook page. Link (English, LCT)

Downthetubes has published a photo review of Dundee Comics Day 2014, which took place at the University of Dundee in October. Link (02/11/2014, English, WG)

*                    *                    *

News Editor: Will Grady (comicsforumnews@hotmail.co.uk)

Correspondents: Michele Brittany (MB, North America), Enrique del Rey Cabero (EdRC, Spain), William Grady (WG, UK), Martin de la Iglesia (MdlI, Germany & Switzerland), Renatta Rafaella (RR, Portugal), Lise Tannahill (LTa, France), Lim Cheng Tju (LCT, UK).

Click here for News Review correspondent biographies.

Click here to see the News Review archive.

Suggestions for articles to be included in the News Review can be sent to Will Grady at the email address above.