Features
“It’s Like A Miracle”: An Interview with the Underground Cartoonist and Visionary Artist Barbara “Willy” Mendes
Brian Doherty sits down with a true original of American art, as Barbara “Willy” Mendes discusses underground comics, religious painting, psychedelic music and much more.
In A River Of Trouble – This Week’s Links
I may not be a knight of arts and letters, but I’d make one hell of a squire of article descriptions. Point me at a windmill!
Harold Bloom, Weirdness, and Story Drawings
Where can we look for inspiration in considering the state of graphic novels? Andrew Field suggests the world of literary criticism, and the sense of “strangeness” valued by Harold Bloom.
Time, Zone, J: Temporalities of Memory in Julie Doucet’s New Comic
Comics, in a way, are a depiction of time. Memoir, in a way defies time. Here, Lane Yates explores how Julie Doucet’s new memoir disrupts notions of time at the very heart of the comics form.
“I Always Start A Book From A Single Image: Some Kind Of Vision”: Antoine Cossé on Metax
Valerio Stivé sits down with a truly global cartoonist, Antoine Cossé, to discuss the visionary, allegorical, and popular nature of his huge new book.
Simon Deitch, 1947-2022
Remembering the late underground cartoonist: a complicated natural talent, and a child of 20th century American pop culture.
Illuminate the Main Streets – This Week’s Links
Save us, news! Throw your light down the halls of ignorance! If I am not linked I have only these walls! Ah! News!
Drawing American Comics the Marvel Way
You may know Natsume Fusanosuke the writer, but how about Natsume Fusanosuke the artist? In this new translation of segments from a 1993 book, Natsume recalls an encounter with that classic American text, How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way… and then he draws the Marvel Way.
Tim Sale, 1956-2022
Remembering one of the defining artists of prestige superhero comics from the last 30 years, an intelligent and vivid stylist who rendered age-old characters with rare warmth. Tim Sale died on June 16.
Celebrating a Half Century of Doonesbury
Garry Trudeau’s Doonesbury is approaching its 52nd birthday this year, and R.C. Harvey is your guide to the origins of this American institution.
“I Feel Like I’m Chasing The Thing I See In My Mind”: An Interview with Audra Stang
Andrew Neal chats online with Audra Stang, the author of slice-of-life ensemble stories that span decades in the lives of working class youths. What are the thought processes behind detailing the many characters in The Audra Show and Star Valley Stories? You’ll find out here!
Followers Of Worth And Knowledge – This Week’s Links
Waking up in a pool of sweat and one word glistens in the thick, humid air: NEWSLINKS.
This Thing Without Teeth
A perspective on Crashpad, Gary Panter’s evocation of the underground era, from somebody who was there.
Two By Melanie Gillman: As the Crow Flies and Stage Dreams
Pairing vast natural vistas with LGBTQ characters often denied their own presence in those places, artist Melanie Gillman has become a standout talent in YA webcomics and graphic novels. Tasha Lowe-Newsome examines two of their works.
“Comics For Fun And Comics For Love And Comics To Be Funny!”: The Freak Interview
RJ Casey is back with a freewheeling chat starring the California Bay Area’s Freak Comics, a trio of young artists pursuing their own visions of art in an inclusive group setting. PLUS: See a man’s skin cut right off his body!
Flunkin’ And Bunkin’ School – This Week’s Links
What if… I GOT TIRED OF NEWS. I drop to the floor. But then I hear your claps, your cheers… I rise to my feet… one hand to my ear…
A Brief Interview With United Workers of Seven Seas
Ian Thomas offers this brief chat with United Workers of Seven Seas, a group of workers endeavoring to unionize the popular manga-in-English publisher.
The Enigmatic, The Essential… Kyo Machiko
Manga artist Kyo Machiko is a true 21st century talent, moving fluidly from social media cartooning to traditional magazine serialization. Now, in the era of COVID, she has begun a series of bilingual books depicting the mysteries of the everyday. Matthew Hill presents an interview with the artist, followed by excerpts from her newest book, Essential My #stayhome Diary 2021-2022.
Remembering Justin Green
An extraordinary group of artists, friends and admirers has been gathered by John Kelly to pay tribute to the great Justin Green, one of the most influential and powerful storytellers of the underground generation.
