Gillian Fox from the Southbank Centre in London has been in touch with news of what sounds like an absolutely fascinating exhibition which will mix ‘fine’ art with the world of comics art, exploring the influences the different artforms have exerted upon the other. The list of artists involved will get any serious comics reader excited: Julie Doucet, Dan Clowes, R. Crumb, Joe Sacco, Killoffer, Melinda Gebbie and more; even the catalogue to accompany the exhibit is designed by Jacob Covey of Fantagraphics and features essays from contributors including Paul Gravett (on which note have a look at Paul’s events section for some more upcoming comics and graphic novels events). From the official press release:
“Cult Fiction explores the reciprocal relationship between comics and art. Featuring the work of 16 contemporary artists, including Raymond Pettibon, Laylah Ali, Marcel Dzama, Olivia Plender and David Shrigley, and 12 leading comics artists and graphic novelists, the exhibition explores links between the two genres. Among the comics artists are underground legend R. Crumb, the innovative French graphic artist Killoffer, award-winning investigative comics journalist, Joe Sacco, and renowned illustrator Posy Simmonds. This new Hayward Gallery Touring exhibition will open at New Art Gallery Walsall on 4 May before touring nationally.
The visual language of comics and graphic novels has influenced many contemporary artists who have used its conventions of pictorial narrative and unique fusion of word and image. Fine artists Adam Dant, Kerry James Marshall and Olivia Plender have published their own comics while others, like Glen Baxter, Raymond Pettibon and David Shrigley employ a combination of word and image in forms that are reminiscent of popular cartoons. The recurring themes and characters typical of comics iconography can be seen in Laylah Ali’s cast of bowling-ball headed characters, or the ragged furry felines that appear in Jon Pylypchuk’s sculptural tableaux. Kerstin Kartscher and Paul McDevitt employ graphic elements from comic book imagery to create works that suggest narrative without using words.
(untitled by Laylah Ali, 2002, courtesy 303 Gallery, New York)
The comics artists in Cult Fiction are mainly from the generation of independent author-draughtsmen whose subject matter tends to be autobiographical, offbeat and sometimes transgressive. In her New York Diary, Canadian comics artist Julie Doucet’s portrays herself in vulnerable and compromising situations, exemplifying the comic medium’s ability to communicate difficult emotional themes, as do Debbie Drechsler’s candid personal explorations of childhood abuse. The realities of life within a war zone are sensitively charted in Joe Sacco’s Palestine, while everyday characters such as R. Crumb and Harvey Pekar’s file clerk in American Splendor and Daniel Clowes’ misfit David Boring become unlikely heroes of everyday tales. Classical literature gets a makeover for the twenty-first century in Melinda Gebbie and Alan Moore’s epic Lost Girls (shortly to be published in the UK), which charts the sexual awakening of three characters from children’s literature – Alice from Alice in Wonderland, Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz and Wendy from Peter Pan.
(Sally by Travis Millard, 2004, courtesy the artist and Richard Heller Gallery, Los Angeles)
Cult Fiction has been originated by artist and curator, Kim L Pace and is co-curated with Hayward curator Emma Mahony. A fully illustrated catalogue, designed by Jacob Covey, Art Director of Fantagraphics Books, features essays by Paul Gravett and Emma Mahony and a picture-essay by Kim L Pace. All of the participating artists in Cult Fiction have contributed a drawn self-portrait together with their handwritten answers to questions posed by the curators. The book is distributed by Cornerhouse Publications.
Artists: Laylah Ali, Glen Baxter, Stéphane Blanquet, Daniel Clowes, Liz Craft, R. Crumb, Adam Dant, Julie Doucet, Debbie Drechsler, Marcel Dzama, Melinda Gebbie in collaboration with Alan Moore, Mark Kalesniko, Kerstin Kartscher, Killoffer, Kerry James Marshall, Chad McCail, Paul McDevitt, Travis Millard, Kim L Pace, Raymond Pettibon, Olivia Plender, Jon Pylypchuk, James Pyman, Joe Sacco, David Shrigley in collaboration with Yoshitomo Nara and Chris Shepherd, Posy Simmonds, Richard Slee and Carol Swain.”
Cult Fiction opens at the New Art Gallery, Gallery Square, Walsall, WS2 8LG on May 4th and runs through to July 1st before going on a tour which includes:
14 July – 16 September 2007 Nottingham Castle
21 September – 11 Nov 2007 Leeds City Art Gallery
17 November – 13 January 2008 Aberystwyth Art Gallery
19 January – 9 March 2008 Tullie House, Carlisle
Sadly there doesn’t seem to be any Scottish dates arranged yet, so I will just have to hope one gets added a bit later because it sounds like a terrific exhibition. The New Art Gallery has a website here.
April 10th, 2007 at 5:56 pm
Public Programmes at The Hayward are looking for mini-comics made by people aged 25 years or under to accompany Cult Fiction.
If you use words and images to communicate subjects of importance to you – be they real life experiences, unlikely heroes, politics, humour or offbeat ideas – then we want to see your work.
Selected mini-comics will form part of the education resources for the exhibition and will be displayed in a space with books and materials for making comics.
We are accepting submissions from now until 15 February 2008.
Please submit two copies of your mini-comic to:
Cult Fiction Mini-Comics, Public Programmes, Hayward Touring, Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London, SE1 8XX, UK
enclosing your name, address, email address and telephone number.
Please note that we are unable to return any submissions, so advise you not to send originals.
For information on the exhibition visit southbankcentre.co.uk and search for Cult Fiction.
For information on submitting mini-comics email cultfiction@southbankcentre.co.uk
Thanks for reading.
Natasha Smith
Public Programmes Co-ordinator
The Hayward