Top panel picks for Toronto Comic Arts Festival 2013

There is lots happening this weekend at TCAF. Programming on both Saturday and Sunday is strong. And there is an entire kids programming stream that looks fantastic if you’re bringing the little ones.

Also: hurray, 10 years!

SATURDAY

The State of Small Press
Small press comics publishers are like mushrooms – over the past five years, more and more of them have been springing up all over the US and Canada.  What does the market look like for these small presses today?  And how is the market changing? Join representatives from Secret Acres, Domino Books, Koyama Press, Grimalken Press, and Rebus Books in answering these and many more questions.

(The Marriott High Park Ballroom – 10-11am)

Blown Covers: The New Yorker and Francoise Mouly
The Blown Covers blog has become a must-visit space for illustrators and illustration aficionados, being a behind-the-scenes peek at the New Yorker covers that you were never meant to see! Join The New Yorker Art Editor Françoise Mouly and cover artist Frank Viva as they discuss what goes into making a cover for The New Yorker.

(The Marriott High Park Ballroom – 11-12pm)

Spotlight: Michel Rabagliati
Michel Rabagliati is known for his thoughtful, true-to-life stories of teenager life; the latest, Paul Joins the Scouts, debuts this year at TCAF.  In this spotlight, Rabagliati will discuss his process, his work, and his newest graphic novel with librarian and journalist Eva Volin.

(The Marriott High Park Ballroom – 12:15-1:15pm)

Moebius, Past and Future
Jean Giraud, also known as Moebius, was a legend in the comics industry – his lush, whimsical art and creative storytelling inspired a generation of cartoonists around the world to take the comics medium to new directions and new heights.  Four cartoonists discuss Moebius’ life, work, and his role in inspiring the industry today – as well as their own books. With Frederik Peeters (Sandcastle), Paul Pope (THB), David B. (Black Paths), Glyn Dillon (The Nao of Brown). Moderated by Xavier Guilbert (du9.org)

(The Marriott Forest Hill Ballroom – 1:30 – 2:30pm)

Comics & Politics
Looking beyond the political cartoon – that humorous, satirical, often exaggerated form of political comics storytelling – to the political graphic novel – a form that approaches those same subjects with a different level of gravity, emotion, and depth.  What makes the difference between the two?  Sarah Glidden (How to Understand Israel in 60 Days or Less), Rutu Modan (The Property), Matt Bors (Cartoon Movement), and Josh Neufeld (A.D.: New Orleans After the Deluge). Moderated by Nicole Marie Burton.

(The Marriott Forest Hill Ballroom, 4 – 5pm)

SUNDAY

I did my best to avoid suggesting two panels in the same time slot, but I can’t avoid it here. I don’t know who designed the programming, but for me, this is torture. The Seth/Spiegelman conversation could be really interesting, but the Comic blog panel is very timely considering AOL shut down Comics Alliance two weeks ago:

Is Comics Blogging Over?
The comics blog: the dominant conversation forum for comics in the late 90s and through the 2000s, is certainly changing, possibly mutating… but is it ‘over’? Social media, new content distribution methods, and a lack of paying outlets may just have changed blogging forever. Join Deb Aoki (Manga.AboutGuide.com), Heidi McDonald (ComicsBeat.com), Tom Spurgeon (ComicsReporter.com), Andrew Wheeler (Freelance/Comics Alliance), and moderator Brigid Alverson (Robot6) in a lively discussion of this contentious topic.

(The Pilot Tavern, 11am-12pm)

Spotlight: Art Spiegelman and Seth, in Conversation
Art Spiegelman is the author of Breakdowns, Maus, In The Shadow of No Towers, Meta Maus, and the editor and subject of TCAF debut CO-MIX, a retrospective of Art’s vast career in comics and illustration, from RAW to The New Yorker. At this special TCAF presentation, Art Spiegelman will sit down with his friend and fellow cartoonist Seth (Palooka-ville, George Sprott) in a wide-ranging interview on Art’s career.

(The Marriott Forest Hill Ballroom, 11-12pm)

TCAF’s Debut Book Spotlight: DeForge, CF, Fink, McEowen, Kindt, & Modan
The TCAF Debut Book Spotlight shines on six of the most exciting books and authors of this year’s show, giving them a chance to talk about their own work, and each other’s. Featuring Michael DeForge for Very Casual; CF for Mere; Jess Fink for We Can Fix It; Matt Kindt for Red Handed; Patrick McEown for Hair Shirt, and Rutu Modan for The Property.

(The Marriott Forest Hill Ballroom, 12:15-1:15pm)

Spotlight: Taiyo Matsumoto
TCAF is proud to welcome one of the most exciting and acclaimed manga creators in the world, Taiyo Matsumoto, as he celebrates his first international art exhibition and the North American debut of his new graphic novel SUNNY. Please join Taiyo Matsumoto in conversation with TCAF Festival Director Christopher Butcher, as they discuss Matsumoto’s career, his forays into new media, and his new graphic novel series.

(The Marriott Forest Hill Ballroom, 1:30-2:30pm)

ADVENTURE TIME!
By popular demand, TCAF’s awesome ADVENTURE TIME panel returns for 2013! Featuring Ryan North, Shelli Paroline, Braden Lamb, and Mike Holmes (Adventure Time: The Comic Book), Meredith Gran (Adventure Time: Marceline and the Scream Queens), Danielle Corsetto (Adventure Time: Playing with Fire), and Michael Deforge and Steve Wolfhard (artists on the Adventure Time cartoon).

(The Marriott Forest Hill Ballroom, 4-5 pm)

Comics from an Author’s Perspective
Creator-owned comics have grabbed the imagination of the comic-reading public and publishers are looking for fresh ideas from a new generation of talent. Listen closely as Jim Zub (Skullkickers, Street Fighter, Legends of the Dark Knight) discusses pitching his comic series to publishers and offers advice on how to climb to the top of the treacherous submission mountain, along with comic writing techniques and amusing anecdotes.

(Fortuna Ristorante, 2:45-3:45pm)

(Top, TCAF 10th anniversary poster by Maurice Vellekoop. Right, commemorative TCAF 2013 poster by Taiyo Matsumoto. More poster info.)

More TCAF stories:
Hernandez brothers vs Matt Bors – TCAF 2013
5 tips for Toronto Comics Arts Festival newbies
‘Comics are trash’ and other lessons from TCAF 2012

Hernandez brothers vs Matt Bors – my first TCAF 2013 scheduling dilemma

The 2013 Toronto Comic Arts Festival is still days away and already I’m faced with a scheduling dilemma.

I picked up tickets to the official kick-off event, this year featuring the Hernandez brothers, Gilbert and Jaime. It’s a tradition I share with Derek Evernden, who created the cool banner on this blog. Last year, we heard from Jeff Smith and brothers Gabriel Ba and Fabio Moon. Comics owe a lot to Gilbert and Jamie for raising the profile of this medium. There will be lots of material and stories to mine in the hour-plus conversation.

But over at The Comic Book Lounge & Gallery is  The Political Cartoons of Matt Bors. I really love me some political cartoons. And while I’m not familiar with Bors, the material on his site is pretty funny. Also it’s being held at The Comic Book Lounge, which I’ve been meaning to check out for some time. We could sip a few beer while we listen to him talk about his work.

So if you like all kinds of comics, here are a couple of events worth checking out on Friday:

The Political Comics of Matt Bors – Reading/Presentation

On the eve of the Toronto Comic Arts Festival (TCAF 2013), join award-winning, nationally syndicated political cartoonist and comics editor Matt Bors as he cracks open the subject of political comics. From gun control to women’s rights, climate change to the War in Afghanistan (where he traveled as a comics journalist in 2010), Bors shows us how, in a world of controversy, political comics have become a surprisingly effective way to make a point.

Bar Opens at 7PM
Program Begins at 7:30PM

TCAF 10th Kick-off event featuring Gilbert and Jamie Hernandez

Come kick-off the 10th Anniversary of the Toronto Comic Arts Festival with us on the evening of Friday, May 10th! TCAF will welcome to the stage alt-comix legends Gilbert Hernandez and Jamie Hernandez, as they engage in a lively career-spanning conversation with The Comics Reporter’s Tom Spurgeon! Both artists will also sign autographs and meet with fans at the event. Selections from their complete comics library will be available for sale at the event.

Plus! A look back at ten years of TCAF with some very special guests.

Presented by Toronto Reference Library and The Beguiling Books & Art, with support from Drawn & Quarterly Books and Fantagraphics Books.

Please note: Reserved seating with Eventbrite ticket is only valid until 7:20pm. After that time, all tickets admission will be rush-line admission.

–
About the Authors:

Gilbert Hernandez was born in 1957 in Oxnard, California, the middle child in a family of six children. Alongside his brothers Jaime and Mario, Gilbert co-created and contributed to the acclaimed comic book series Love and Rockets, which celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2012. Gilbert has won numerous awards for his stories, including the Kirby Award, Inkpot Award, Harvey Award, and the 2009 United States Artists Literature Fellowship.

Gilbert Hernandez will be at TCAF in support of his highly-anticipated, semiautobiographical new graphic novel, Marble Season. Marble Season is Gilbert Hernandez’s his first book with D&Q and one of the most anticipated books of 2013. It tells the untold stories from the American comics legends’ youth, but also portrays the reality of life in a large family in suburban 1960s California. Pop-culture references—TV shows, comic books, and music—saturate this evocative story of a young family navigating cultural and neighborhood norms set against the golden age of the American dream and the silver age of comics.

Jaime Hernandez is the co-creator of the independent comic book Love and Rockets (along with his brothers Gilbert and Mario). Jaime’s main contribution to Love and Rockets is the ongoing serial narrative Locas which follows the tangled lives of a group of primarily Latina characters, from their teenage years in the early days of the California punk scene to the present day. The two central characters of Jaime’s cast are Margarita Luisa “Maggie” Chascarrillo and Esperanza Leticia “Hopey” Glass, whose on-again, off-again, open romance is a focus for many Locas storylines.

In addition to his Locas stories, Henandez has also done occasional work for DC Comics and The New Yorker, and he has done many album covers for such artists as Michelle Shocked.

More TCAF stories:
My top panel picks for TCAF 2013
5 tips for Toronto Comics Arts Festival newbies
‘Comics are trash’ and other lessons from TCAF 2012

 

The ‘All-Star, All-Canadian (plus one American) Super-Villain Art Auction’ (Countdown to TCAF 2013)

So the Doug Wright Awards had a super-cool art auction fundraiser and I nearly missed the entire thing.

This is why I keep telling my wife that I should spend more time with comics: reading them, writing about them and reading about them. Otherwise I miss things like the opportunity to own original art by my favourite Canadian artists like Seth, Michael Deforge, John Martz, Michael Cho, Pascal Girard, Chester Brown and so many more. And it’s for a great cause.

Dr Octopus by John Martz

The Crimes of Two-Face by Chester Brown

Medusa by Michael Cho

Venom by Michael Deforge

Check out the entire collection at Brad MacKay’s Flickr stream. And depending on when you read this, whatever is left for sale is available at this eBay link.

The 2013 Doug Wright Awards will be held on Saturday, May 11. While not an official part of the Toronto Comic Arts Festival programming, it honours and celebrates many of the artists whose work is featured at TCAF.

“Comics are trash” and other lessons from TCAF 2012

This year’s Toronto Comic Arts Festival offered some interesting moments.

Chief among them was a comment from Michael Comeau, the winner of this year’s Pigskin Peters Award for experimental or avant-garde comic. Following some very flattering words about his winning book Hellberta from presenter Jeet Heer, Comeau ended his acceptance speech more or less with: “Comics are trash. And when you’re into trash, you have a lot of friends.”

The words landed with a dull thud and a bit of the air left the auditorium packed with graphic novel types, a small handful of comic journalists, presumably some fans, and professional editorial cartoonists who had shown up to hear the respected and well-known Terry Mosher speak on the night of his hall of fame induction. I cringed a little thinking about the evening’s organizers Brad Mckay and Seth imagining how much effort they put into the affair and its attempts to elevate the work of comic artists beyond the 50 cent bins Comeau referenced in his speech.

There are any number of reasons why Comeau may have said that. (Perhaps he was being a bit of a punk in front of his friends? He has a difficult time taking praise and this is how he defuses it? It’s some sort of inside joke? Who knows?) Whatever the reason, his words handily illustrate the tension within the comic book community — a continuing struggle for recognition of artists who are producing honest, personal and transformational work, while super-soldiers and demi-gods dominate the box office and Wal-Mart aisles. There aren’t many cosplay fans dressing up as Wimbledon Green, that’s for certain.

Lesson #1: Art comic award shows are funky

The Doug Wright Awards were worth attending for the awards show program alone. This year, it was a cute little chapbook styled booklet running two dozen pages or so, reprinting a funny online strip by cartoonist Dustin Harbin about his first trip to the DW awards in 2011. First published on The Comics Journal website.

Also this year, 2011 winner Michael DeForge designed a beautiful limited edition poster. The physical awards handed out include a bowler’s hat sized to the winner’s head. And the organizers produce a rather slick video showcase of the best book category nominees. How often does a comic book get that level of treatment?

Lesson #2: Research!

I need to start taking my own advice. I didn’t realize Matt Kindt and Luke Pearson were attending. I would have loved take a few minutes to chat with those guys. Pearson’s work I discovered at last year’s TCAF where I picked up his debut book Hildafolk and a Solipsistic Pop anthology in which he contributed. I’ve since added Everything We Miss and the all-ages Hilda and the Midnight Giant to my collection. Kindt is a more recent find from his run on Sweet Tooth (Vertigo), and I’m looking forward to his upcoming MIND MGMT (Dark Horse) based on the preview pages floating around on the Internet.

Lesson #3: Budget more time

This one is difficult for me due to family commitments. But only having 2 hours at the show, one of which I spent listening to Aislin’s funny editorial cartoonist talk, meant missing some favourite artists. And who can blame them? They can’t sit at table all day. But I missed Jason (one of my all-time faves), the previously mentioned Luke Pearson and Gabriella Giandelli, to name a few. I did, however, get to talk to Fabio Moon and Gabriel Ba who were super nice, seemed genuinely excited in Toronto and signed the gorgeous poster they designed for the show.

Lesson #4: Pay more attention to small press

Each year, the show helps me broaden my horizon and my taste becomes a little more indie. I’ve bookmarked Koyama Press and AdHouse Books on my web browser. And I’m now reading Lose by Michael DeForge (Koyama) and Pope Hats by Ethan Rilly (AdHouse).

READ ALSO:

The list of books I bought at TCAF this year

Terry Mosher and the Doug Wright Awards

Five tips for making the most of TCAF

Books I bought at TCAF 2012, aka “the haul”

I’m fortunate to live in Toronto where, between the Beguiling, Silver Snail and my local comic shop, I can find (or at the very least order) pretty near anything I come across in the Previews catalogue.

So as a general rule when I attend the Toronto Comic Arts Festival, I try to avoid the bigger releases to spend more time exploring the booths for indie or very small press books that don’t receive wide distribution and meet their creators.

Because I arrived late in the afternoon this year, I had only two hours to spend at TCAF before the patrons were kicked out because the venue, the Toronto Public Reference Library, was closing for the day. And I spent half of that time listening to this year’s Giants of the North hall of fame inductee Terry “Aislin” Mosher talk about editorial cartooning. Time well-spent, but it meant cruising at full speed through the rest of the space in 60 minutes.

Here is a list of the books I picked up on my whirlwind tour:

Pixu: The Mark of Evil (Dark Horse Comics)
Gabriel Ba, Fabio Moon, Becky Cloonan, Vasilis Lolos

Okay, I know what I just wrote about avoiding “bigger” books. But let me set the scene: I’d been completely unaware of this 2009 horror collaboration until Friday evening’s Jeff Smith/Gabriel Ba/Fabio Moon panel conversation (which was fantastic I must say). Plus, Pixu (pronounced pee-shu) was originally self-published before its Dark Horse re-issue. I was going to pick this one up at some point. But the clincher is that I bought it directly from the Brazilian brothers, who are at the top of my list of favourite artists at the moment.

They were just standing at their booth with nobody else around. We chatted for a few minutes but I couldn’t stick around – I was on a mission. I don’t typically act like a fanboy, but I just had to ask them to sign a copy of the poster they designed for the 2012 show. It’s simply gorgeous.

Easily one of my top comic moments of all-time. Thank you TCAF.

Any Empire (Top Shelf)
Nate Powell

“His new book, Any Empire, is a vivid examination of war and violence, and their trickle-down effects on middle America. First, a group of small-town kids find themselves bound together by geography, boredom, and a string of mysterious turtle mutilations. Years later, with Army tanks rolling through the streets of their hometown, these young adults are forced to confront painful questions of privilege, duty, betrayal, and courage.

Any Empire recalls aimless summers of Nancy Drew and GI Joe, treehouses and army surplus stores… but when fantasy starts to bleed into reality, whose mission will be accomplished?”

I can’t tell you much about Nate Powell except I was intrigued by the cover to Any Empire from browsing the Top Shelf website before even learning he’d won a 2009 Eisner award for his graphic novel Swallow Me Whole.

So there is Nate working a table beside Cecil Castellucci, and they are having a great time. We chat and I leave with a copy of this book.

My Friend Dahmer (Abrams ComicArts)
Derf BackDerf

It was featured on the TCAF website as one of the books debuting at the show, I guess this falls into the camp of one of the bigger releases. So I’ve already broken my rule again, it would seem.

“We all have that one school friend– the strange kid, the class freak, the guy whose antics amused and entertained, maybe even alarmed us. The one who sticks in our heads even with the passing of the years. That classmate is invariably left behind when we graduate into the adult world, vanishing into memory, filed away with our old yearbooks and other teenage mementos. But every now and then, we wonder, whatever happened to that friend? For one man who grew up in a small town in Ohio, that question was answered by every media outlet in the world on July 22, 1991. For the friend in question was… Jeffrey Dahmer!”

Interesting, yes? I thought so. Can you blame me for picking up a copy.

You can read more blurb material here.

Trashed: True Tales from the Back of a Garbage Truck (Slave Labour Graphics)
Derf Backderf

Derf again.

What can I say? We had an interesting chat even though he doesn’t say very much.

This one actually sounded more interesting to me than Dahmer. So picked up both to avoid regretting buying one and not the other because I’m pretty sure I’m going to fall in love with both books.

Lose #3 (Koyama Press)
Michael DeForge

My introduction to DeForge. He picked up a Doug Wright Award last year and was nominated in the Best Book category this year.

“A new self-contained issue in Michael DeForge’s one-man anthology series. In the issue’s main story, “Dogs 2070,” screenwriter Stephen tries to reconnect with his ex-wife and son in a post-apocalyptic wasteland.”

Lost #3 is difficult to describe despite that blurb. There is one long story – a dystopic tale of a depressed divorced flying dog – and a few short ones. I didn’t realize I had been craving a book like this for so long until I picked it up and read it.

Interiorae #1 (Fantagraphics)
Gabriella Giandelli

I don’t know anything about Gabriella. However, I had seen Interiorae while browsing the Fantagraphics website catalogue.

“A high-rise apartment building in an unnamed European city. Its inhabitants come and go, meet each other, talk, dream, regret, hope… in short, live. A ghostly, shape-shifting anthropomorphic white rabbit roams from apartment to apartment, surveying and keeping track of all this humanity… and at the end of every night, he floats down to the basement where he delivers his report to the “great dark one.”

Nobrow 6 (Nobrow Press)
Various

I happened upon this publisher at last year’s festival where I picked up a few books from their series that debuts new artists, which is where I discovered Luke Pearson. The first five installments of this anthology are art books comprised of two-page pin-up spreads. Beautiful but not my thing. This issue, however, features strips – very cool strips. And the talent lineup is indie nerd-tastic: the aforementioned DeForge, Matt Forsythe, Richard Short, John Martz, and many more.

Nobrow #7 is scheduled for release in June.

Pope Hats #1, 2 (Adhouse Books)
Ethan Rilly

“Pope Hats follows the trials of a young woman named Frances Scarland, whose social circle mainly consists of an alcoholic actress and an inept ghost named Saarsgard. The comic is an engaging slice-of-life story about young people navigating their own daily shortcomings.

“Pope Hats #2 follows the rise of young law clerk Frances Scarland. Frances must survive an unwanted promotion at one of Toronto’s major Bay Street firms, while tending to the regular wake of destruction left behind by her best friend. This eagerly anticipated issue follows what Seth described as “the most impressive debut comic I’ve seen in years” with a surreal exploration of growth and failure in downtown Toronto. Also included is a short story about a long distance relationship.”

A 2012 Doug Wright Award winner! I had no idea it was even nominated when I picked it up earlier in the day.

Everything We Miss (Nobrow Press)

Luke Pearson

I love this guy’s stuff. He does everything from all-ages (Hilda and the Midnight Giant) to this book. At the core, Everything We Miss chronicles the end of a relationship. But it’s so much more. Best if you check out the preview pages to get a feel for it and read the review posted there.

Papercutter (Tugboat Press)

Various

From Portland! What is it with comics and Portland? There must be something in the water there.

Tugboat puts out this neat little anthology series.

There were two people working the booth. (I’m totally blanking on their names.) When I asked if they liked the TV comedy Portlandia, she said “yes” but he said, “No, it’s too smarmy and makes fun of all my friends.” I couldn’t tell whether  or not he was being serious.

Jason Conquers America (Fantagraphics)
Jason + others

I really wanted to meet Danish cartoonist Jason. I can’t get enough of his work.

When I saw he was on the guest list, it was him, Ba and Moon that I was hoping for a chance to meet. But it didn’t work out. Instead, I picked up a copy of this little $5 comic/zine that compiles funny unpublished strips and a few interviews.

For a reader like myself who’s enjoyed as much of his work as I have, it’s a fun little find.

Thanks for reading this unfortunately long post.

Other TCAF coverage you might be interested in:

Five tips when attending TCAF

Countdown to TCAF 2012: guest and event highlights