Comics Forum

Americas

United States

Culture

Nick Sousanis has created a comic on Columbia University’s comics librarian and curator, Karen Green. Link (English, WG)

Research

The International Comic Arts Forum has advertised the John A. Lent Scholarship in Comics Studies, and is accepting submissions from post-graduate students to be considered for this award. Link (English, WG)

Jim Shooter: Conversations, edited by Jason Sacks, Eric Hoffman, and Dominick Grace, has been published through the University of Mississippi Press. Link (English, WG)

Comic Shop: The Retail Mavericks Who Gave Us a New Geek Culture, by Dan Gearino, will be published through Swallow Press in October. Link (English)

There is a call for papers for a special issue of the journal Studies in American Humor entitled, Funny in the Funnies. The deadline for submissions is the 1st July. Link (English, WG)

There is a call for papers for a Special Session, The New Women: Superheroes and Anti-heroes, which will take place at the Conference of the Popular and American Culture Association (PCA/ACA), in Indianapolis on the 28th March 2018. Abstracts are due by the 1st October 2017. Link (English, WG)

Osvaldo Oyola interviews comics scholar Brian Cremins. Link (English, WG)

There is a call for submissions for the edited collection, Bodies/Borders in Jewish Women’s Comics. Link (English, WG)

Media Res seeks proposals for posts that examine any aspect of webcomics as their subjects, and the deadline is the 28th August. Link (English, WG)

Europe

Germany

Culture

An exhibition of regional comic artists is shown in Wiedensahl until the 27th August. Link (22/06/2017, German, MdlI)

A Marc-Antoine Mathieu exhibition is shown in Frankfurt until the 15th October. Link (29/05/2017, German, MdlI)

A Wonder Woman exhibition is shown in Cologne until the 4th November. Link (06/06/2017, German, MdlI)

A Mosaik exhibition is being bshown in Pirna until the 29th October. Link (08/06/2017, German, MdlI)

An exhibition of the Hong Kong comics collective, Ping Pong, was shown in Berlin until the 2nd July. Link (19/06/2017, German, MdlI)

An exhibition of the comics publisher, MamiVerlag, is shown in Berlin until the 8th July. Link (19/06/2017, German, MdlI)

An Inga Steinmetz exhibition was shown in Berlin until the 2nd July in conjunction with the festival, Anime Berlin. Link (German, MdlI)

Research

A new edition of Friedrich Schiller’s Avanturen des neuen Telemachs will be published by Bachmann. Link (15/06/2017, German, MdlI)

The topic of the current newsletter issue of the Research Center for literature written in exile at Universität Hamburg, exilograph, is comics. Link (German, MdlI)

A book edited by Nina Heindl and Véronique Sina on Holocaust representations, including comics, has been published. Link (26/06/2017, German, MdlI)

A comics panel and workshop will take place at the annual GfM Gesellschaft für Medienwissenschaft conference in Erlangen from the 4th until the 7th October. Link (29/06/2017, German, MdlI)

Portugal

Culture

Until the 3rd September, the exhibition “Quadradinhos Portugueses – Olhares & Estilos” (Portuguese Comics – views and styles) is being held in Citadela Art District in Cascais. The exhibit includes works from Portuguese authors. The exhibition is free and curated by José de Matos-Cruz. Link (20/06/2017, Portuguese, RR)

Spain

Culture

The exhibition València en vinyetes, about the portrayal of the city of Valencia in comics, can be seen at MuVIM (Valencia) until the 8th September. Link (08/06/2017, Spanish, EdRC)

The exhibition “Spirou en Madrid” can be seen at Matadero until the 11th July. Link (01/06/2017, Spanish, EdRC)

There is an increasing debate of whether or not there should be a Museum of Comics in Valencia. Link (16/06/2017, Spanish, EdRC)

The Basque government has announced the allocation of new funds (105.000 euros) to help the publication of seven projects related to comics and illustration. Link (28/06/2017, Spanish, EdRC)

Research

A new issue of the journal Tebeosfera, on the history of comic strips, has been published. Link (13/06/2017, Spanish EdRC)

A new issue of the free online comics journal CuCo. Cuadernos de cómic has been published. Link (30/06/2017, Spanish, EdRC)

UK

Culture

Mangasia: Wonderlands of Asian Comics, is a current exhibition running at the Barbican, London. Link (English, WG)

Education

There is a Psychology PhD Studentship Bursary available at Sheffield Hallam University, for the research project: “Is a picture worth a thousand words? The representation of meaning in comic books.” The submission date for applicants closes on the 5th July. Link (English, WG)

Research

Journal of Graphic Novels and Comics 8.3 has been published, and is a special issue focused upon sexual violence in comics. Link (English, WG)

A Theory of Narrative Drawing, by Simon Grennan, has been published through Palgrave MacMillan. Link (English, WG)

Dominick Davies reports on ‘Documenting Trauma: Comics and the Politics of Memory’, a symposium that took place in Oxford on the 22nd June. Link (English, WG)

Comics, Trauma, and the New Art of War, by Harriet E. H. Earle has been published through the University of Mississippi Press. Link (English, WG)

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Correspondents: Enrique del Rey Cabero (EdRC, Spain), William Grady (WG, UK and United States), Martin de la Iglesia (MdlI, Germany), and Renata Rafaela (RR, Protugal).

Click here for News Review correspondent biographies.

Click here to see the News Review archive.

Americas

Mexico

Culture

The Conque comics convention took place in Querétaro between the 5th and 7th May, with Stan Lee and Sergio Aragonés leading a list of guest artists that also included the Mexicans Bachan, Tony Sandoval, Edgar Clément, Bernardo Fernández “Bef”, Jis y Trino, and Luis Fernando, among many others. An estimated 20,000 people attended the event. Link (07/05/2017, Spanish, FGG)

Eva Cabrera and Claudia Aguirre (Kim&Kim, Black Mask Studios) and Mauricio Caballero (Helm) were nominated for the Eisner Awards 2017. Link. (23/04/2017, Spanish, FGG).

The documentary ‘Materiales para resistir la realidad’, which tells the story of legendary Mexican comics magazine El Gallito Inglés, was screened as part of the 2nd International Forum on Film and Comics (CINECOM) on the 27th and 28th  in Mexico City. Link (Spanish, FGG)

Comikaze featured an article on the history of legendary magazine El Gallito Inglés (aka Gallito Comics) on the 25th anniversary of its first issue. Link (FGG, Spanish, 5/5/17)

Bernardo Fernández Bef’s new graphic novel, El instante amarillo (Océano Historias Gráficas), a reissue of Juanele’s comic Banquete Familiar (Editorial Resistencia), and Tony Sandoval’s Entre Brujas y Vientos (Editorial Resistencia) were among the new publications presented at the Conque comics convention in Querétaro. Link. (08/05/2017, English, FGG)

Augusto Mora’s new documentary/graphic novel Grito de Victoria will be published by La Cifra Editorial. Mora’s new comic La Caída, is about the encounter between a vigilante and a migrant in the Mexico-US border. Presentations of both works are planned for June. Link (Spanish, FGG)

An exhibit on the 15th anniversary of Cintia Bolio’s Puras Evas held at the Museo de la Mujer will conclude next month. Link. (23/04/2017, Spanish, FGG).

Cuautla, a historic digital comic created by students and faculty at the Universidad de Artes digitales de Guadalajara was presented at Casa de Morelos museum in Cuautla, Morelos. Link (05/05/2017, Spanish, FGG)

Revista Marvin invited participation in the comics contest Viñetas por Mis Calles Vol. 2, co-sponsored by Transcómic and the Goethe Intitute. Four winners will have their comics translated into German and exhibited in Berlin, Germany. Link (05/05/2017, Spanish, FGG)

United States

Culture

The exhibition “Pulp Art: Out of the Gutter and on the Wall”, runs until the 8th July at the Carnegie Center for Art and History, in New Albany. Link (English, WG)

The 2017 Eisner Awards nominations have been announced, including nominees for the Best Academic/Scholarly Work category. Link (English, WG)

Research

Noah Berlatsky’s article, which discusses the problems with fair use in Comics Studies, has been published in The Chronicle of Higher Education. Link (10/05/2017, English, WG)

The University Press of Mississippi now offers a paperback edition of Asian Comics, by John A. Lent. Link (English, WG)

The guest speakers have been announced for ICAF 2017, which takes place at the University of Washington between the 2nd and 4th November. Link (English, WG)

Europe

Austria

Research

A conference on comics, comic film adaptations and religion took place in Graz from the 25th until the 27th May. Link (11/05/2017, MdlI, German)

Belgium

Culture

Jidéhem, Belgian BD artist and writer, has died aged 81. As well as his own series, Ginger, Sophie, he also collaborated with Franquin on Spirou & Fantasio and Gaston Lagaffe. Link (02/05/2017, French, LT)

Research

A conference titled ‘Tintin au XXIe siècle: territoires et temporalités’ took place in Louvain-la-Neuve between the 17th and 20th May 2017. Link (15//05/2017, French, BC)

France

Research

The francophone comics studies network, ‘La Brèche’, held its constituent assembly on the 15th May 2017 and will open its membership in September. The association strives to foster the development of French-language comics scholarship. Link (19/05/2017, French, BC)

Germany

Culture

A Denis Kitchen exhibition is shown in Munich until the 1st July. Link (12/05/2017, German, MdlI)

This year’s DoKomi festival is taking place in Düsseldorf on the 3rd and 4th June; guests include Satoshi Shiki. Link (18/05/2017, German, MdlI)

Research

A lecture by Björn Hammel on webcomics has been recorded, edited and broadcast on the radio, and made available as a podcast. Link (18/05/2017, German, MdlI)

The German Society for Comics Studies has published an overview of German, Swedish and Swiss university classes on comics in this summer semester. Link (22/05/2017, German, MdlI)

There is going to be a panel on comics at this year’s DGAVL conference in Bochum from the 6th – 9th June. Link (22/05/2017, German, MdlI)

Portugal

Culture

From the 26th May until the 11th June, the XIII Festival Internacional de Banda Desenhada de Beja (13rd International Comics festival of Beja) will take place. The festival is composed mainly of national and international exhibitions, sketched concerts, book shop, book launches, conferences, and workshops. Link (Portuguese, RR)

Until 10th June, the Portuguese Comic author Xavier Almeida is holding an exhibition of Spray Works in Galeria Sol in Oporto. Link (Portuguese, RR)

Spain

Culture

The Free Comic Day was celebrated on the 13th May. 50000 comics were distributed. Link (10/05/2017, Spanish, EdRC)

Seven Eisner nominations to Spanish authors, including best anthology (Spanish Fever: Stories by the New Spanish Cartoonists), best American edition of a foreign work (Wrinkles, by Paco Roca) and best digital comic (Universe!, by Albert Monteys). Link (03/05/2017, Spanish, EdRC)

There is still no agreement to move forward in the creation of the Museum of Illustration, Comics and Art in Badalona (Catalonia). Link (09/05/2017, Spanish)

Research

Cuadernos de Comic, a free on-line academic journal, has launched its annual crowdfunding campaign. Link (15/05/2017, EdRC, Spanish)

UK

Jobs

There is a job listing for a Course Leader on the BA (Hons) Comic and Concept Art course at Leeds College of Art. Link (English, WG)

Research

The call for papers for Comics Forum 2017 is online now. This year’s conference will focus on the theme of space, and will take place in Leeds on the 21st and 22nd of September. Link (English, WG)

Details (including the conference programme and registration) are now available for The Eighth International Graphic Novel and Comics Conference. The conference will take place between 26th and 30th June at the University of Dundee and the University of Glasgow. Link (English, WG)

Comics and Critique: Invigorating Critical Study of the Medium, is a one day symposium featuring a range of comics scholars, taking place at St Mary’s University on the 3rd July. Link (English, WG)

Frame:Works, a one day symposium featuring a mix of comics practitioners and professionals, will take place on the 16th June in Central St Martins, London. Link (English, WG)

Details (including the conference programme and registration) are now available for the Comics and Nations Conference, which takes place between the 13th and 14th July, at Bangor University. Link (English, WG)

There is a call for papers for an edited collection entitled, Drawing the Past: Comics and the Historical Imagination. Abstract proposals are due by the 15th July. Link (16/05/2017, English, WG)

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Correspondents: Enrique del Rey Cabero (EdRC, Spain), Felipe Gomez Gutierrez (FGG, Mexico), Benoît Crucifix (BC, Belgium and France), William Grady (WG, UK and United States), Martin de la Iglesia (MdlI, Austria and Germany), Renata Rafaela (RR, Protugal) and Lise Tannahill (LT, Belgium).

Click here for News Review correspondent biographies.

Click here to see the News Review archive.

Americas

Mexico

Culture

Augusto Mora was awarded the Memorial 68 prize in the comics category by the Centro Cultural Universitario de Tlatelolco for his new book En busca de una voz. In this book, Mora uses the graphics employed by the student movement to tell its story and talk about the violent repression it suffered in 1968. Link (Spanish, FGG)

After a 15-year hiatus, Kaliman, the best-selling superhero comics published between the 1960s and the early 2000s, are being relaunched with stories featuring present-day Mexican problems and situations. An exhibit featuring 70 Kaliman pieces opened at the Museo de la Ciudad in Querétaro, and will continue until mid-July. Link (23/04/2017, Spanish, FGG)

“El pelón“, a comic by Octavio Jiménez on an iconic and nomadic barrio character who is followed by stray dogs, competes with trash recyclers, and about whose origin nobody knows, was published in Marvin magazine. Link (24/04/2014, Spanish, FGG)

Augusto Mora, Chubasco, Rafael de Loera, and Rubén Lara illustrated regional legends live at the Serafín Hotel in Querétaro in an event organized by the Conque. Link (23/04/2017, Spanish, FGG)

Education

Cintia Bolio, Jimena Sanchez, Augusto Mora, Frik, Edu Molina, Juanele, and Luis Fernando lead a comics workshop at the Auditorio Nacional in Mexico City on the 16th April. Link (Spanish, FGG)

Karine Bernadou lead a workshop organized by the French Embassy in Mexico City. Link (French, FGG)

Obituaries

Ramon Valdiosera, former director of the comics magazine Pepín, died at age 98.His death was considered the closing event of the Golden Age of Mexican comics. Link (Spanish, FGG)

Research

The Literature Department at Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City hosted its First graphic narratives international conference: “Memory and oblivion in Comics, Manga and Roman Graphique,” on the 5th and 6th April. Keynote addresses were given by Drs. José Manuel de Amo, Laurence Grove, and Paul Gravett, and there were presentations by guest artists Luis Fernando, Axur Eneas, Alejandra Gámez, Alejandra Espino, and Augusto Mora, among others. Link (Spanish, FGG)

Lucha Castro, Josefina Larragoiti, and Adam Shapiro gave a talk on Front Line Defenders and the book La Lucha. La historia de Lucha Castro y los Derechos Humanos en México as part of the 1st Graphic Novel Colloquium at Universidad Iberoamericana. Link (Spanish, FGG)

Papers on diverse examples and aspects of Mexican comics, including analyses on political cartoons, Hermelinda Linda, feminine and feminist characters and comics, and on representations of drug trafficking and the war on drugs were presented at the Congreso Internacional de Historia de las Mujeres en Latinoamérica in Bogotá, Colombia and at the Latin American Studies Association congress in Lima, Perú. Link (Spanish, FGG).

United States

Research

There is a call for papers for Mechademia 2017: Science Fictions conference, which takes place at Minneapolis College of Art and Design between the 22nd and 24th September. Abstract submissions are due by the 1st September. Link (English, WG)

Osvaldo Oyola interviews comics scholar Dr Leah Misemer. Link (English, WG)

Reading Lessons in Seeing: Mirrors, Masks, and Mazes in the Autobiographical Graphic Novel, by Michael A. Chaney, has been published through the University Press of Mississippi. Link (English, WG)

Retcon Game: Retroactive Continuity and the Hyperlinking of America, by Andrew J. Friedenthal, has been published through the University Press of Mississippi. Link (English, WG)

The Lent Comic Art Classification System, by John A. Lent and Mike Rhode, has been published through Lulu Press. Link (English, WG)

The Secret Origins of Comics Studies, edited by Matthew Smith and Randy Duncan, has been published through Routledge. Link (English, WG)

The deadline for proposals for the Northeast Popular/American Culture Association Conference is the 1st June. The conference will take place at the University of Massachusetts on the 27th and 28th October. Link (English, WG)

There is a call for papers for the edited collection The Ages of the Flash. Abstracts between 100-500 words should be submitted by the 15th June. Link (13/04/2017, English, WG)

The University of Oregon website reports on the feature of comics scholar Ben Saunders in the History Channel’s documentary, Superheroes Decoded. Link (English, WG)

Europe

France

Business

Égo Comme X, the independent BD publisher best known for their autobiographical publications, is closing for financial reasons. Link (10/04/2017, French, LT)

Culture

The title of the next Astérix album has been revealed: Asterix and the Race Through Italy. Link (12/04/2017, English, LT)

Germany

Culture

The festival, 1. Erfurter Comic und Mangapark, is taking place on the 6th and 7th May; guests include Martina Peters and Inga Steinmetz. Link (22/04/2017, German, MdlI)

The exhibition on Héctor Germán Oesterheld’s El Eternauta is now being shown in Munich until the 14th July. Link (26/04/2017, German, MdlI)

The exhibition of the latest Max-und-Moritz-Preis winners is travelling on to Schwarzenbach where it will be shown from the 13th May until the 22nd October. Link (30/04/2017, German, MdlI)

Research

The annual conference of D.O.N.A.L.D. took place in Hamburg. Link (03/04/2014, German, MdlI)

Macht der Musik by Christian Bachmann, a book on music in comics, has been published. Link (05/04/2017, German, MdlI)

This year’s conference of the German Society for Comics Studies (ComFor) is going to take place in Bonn from the 1st until the 3rd December. Link (06/04/2017, German, MdlI)

The proceedings of the symposium, Science Meets Comics (Berlin 2015), have been published. Link (24/04/2017, German/English, MdlI)

Portugal

Culture

On the 6th May the Clube Português de Banda Desenhada will host the second half of a lecture by Domingos Isabelinho about Raúl Correia’s book, A Lei da Selva [The Jungle Law]. The first half of the Lecture took place on the 22nd April. Entrance is free. Link (07/04/2017, Portuguese, RR)

Spain

Culture

An exhibition  of La ciudad en viñetas, by Roberto Massó, can be seen at Centro Centro (Madrid) until the 2nd July. Link (07/04/2017, Spanish, EdRC)

The prizes of the 35th edition of the Barcelona International Comic Fair have been announced. Best Spanish work: Jamás tendré 20 años (Jaime Martín). Best foreign work: The Vision (Gabriel Hernández Walta and Tom King). Great Prize: Josep María Martín Saurí. Link (01/04/2016, Spanish, EdRC)

Industry

Tebeosfera has published its annual report about the Spanish comics industry. Link (01/04/2017, Spanish, EdRC)

Penguin Random House has bought Spanish comics publishing house Ediciones B. Link (06/04/2017, Spanish, EdRC)

Research

The exhibition, ¿Qué es una biblioteca para ti? (What is a library for you?), the vision of 20 graphic humourists about libraries, may be visited until the 28th May at the National Library in Madrid. Link (17/04/2017, Spanish, EdRC)

Switzerland

Culture

A Hannes Nüsseler exhibition is shown in Basel until the 20th May. Link (06/04/2017, German, MdlI)

UK

Culture

The Inking Woman, the new exhibition at the Cartoon Museum (London), will run from the 26th April until the 23rd July. Link (English, WG)

Bradford Literature Festival Comic Con will take place at the University of Bradford. Link (English, WG)

Obituary

The BBC reports that comics artist Leo Baxendale has passed away. Link (27/04/2017, English, WG)

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Correspondents: Enrique del Rey Cabero (EdRC, Spain), Felipe Gomez Gutierrez (FGG, Mexico), William Grady (WG, UK and United States), Martin de la Iglesia (MdlI, Germany and Switzerland), Renatta Rafella (RR, Portugal and Lise Tannahill (LT, France).

Click here for News Review correspondent biographies.

Click here to see the News Review archive.