#comix creatrix

Comix Creatrix: 100 Women Making Comics - House of Illustration, Kings Cross

“People like to look at beautiful things, but once they're drawn in they can get shocked”

I recently visited House of Illustration in London, the UK’s only art gallery that is completely dedicated to illustration. I've always wanted to visit this gallery since it opened in 2014, purely because it was founded by one of my favourite illustrators, Sir Quentin Blake. Whilst there, we found out from people that work at the galley, that they will soon be opening a permanent exhibition of Quentin Blake’s work, which is exciting and would be lovely to see!

In the smaller exhibition space is currently a new body of work by David Lemm, called ‘Mapping Kings Cross’. The set of unconventional maps show the King’s Cross area in a new creative light, as it is being renovated. He has created them using a range of different collaged materials, stuck on bits of wood. I really liked the pastel colour scheme that makes his work seem soft. it has actually inspired something I'm currently working on in another module. The interesting shapes and patterns on the paper that he’d decided to use to depict various landmarks around that area on London, contrast really well with the wooden background. I really like them because they don’t look like traditional maps, they are pieces of art in there own right, with a slightly hidden meaning/use. They worked really well in the smaller space, I think that was because they were lots of small pieces, with lots of little bits of detail - the smaller gallery space allowed you to get up close to see all that detail.

The main exhibition displayed comics created by many very talented women. I enjoyed seeing all the varying styles of these illustrators in one place. It was actually interesting to see how differently they all approached a simple comic, and what stories they chose to illustrate. One of my favourite comics was actually part of exhibition, ‘Soppy’ by Philippa Rice (the red and black comic in the pictures). I'm so glad that I have my own copy to look back at; her work continues to be an inspiration to me. She is an illustrator and animator, who experiments with lots of different mediums and ways of working. I just love her fun little knitted characters! Most of her work can be found here. It was great to be able to notice her comic in the exhibition. Another comic that really caught my eye was ‘Greasy’s Guide to Nookie’ by Comic Book Slumber Party. It stood out to me because it focuses on an unusual topic, in an unusual way - each page is illustrated by a different artist with completely different artistic styles, but it all works together to creatively tell the story of the main character, Greasy. It was interesting to see the different ways that each illustrator drew the character, and what elements had to stay the same in order for the audience to recognise her throughout the book. After seeing this book in the exhibition, I went on to research Comic Book Slumber Party, and found that they are a collective of female illustrators that work together to create these amazing comics. They describe themselves as “an international girl gang of comic creators making comics and anthologies as bad ass as we are.” I loved the comic so much that I bought it as soon as I got home, along with another one of their comics, ‘CBSP Fairy Tales for Bad Bitches’. It will also be a good opportunity to see what promotional stuff they send to help with my self promotion brief. 

Next Thurs! Feminism! Beer!

COMIX CREATRIX AT THE HOUSE OF ILLUSTRATION

The House of Illustration dispels the myth that the world of comics is a male dominated affair in their latest exhibition Comix Creatrix. The title’s unusual spelling borrows from the underground comic scene that emerged in the late 1960s, but this show goes much further than the well-known heyday of counterculture zines to show an incredible array of work made from 100 different women between the 1800s and now.

Beginning in a firmly historical setting, the first gallery highlights groundbreaking careers such as that of Jackie Ormes, who introduced the USA to its first black female leads including Torchy Brown in the Pittsburg Courier in the 1930s. Although the strip followed the well-known trope of a modern woman looking for love it also focused on environmental, social and civil rights issues.

The show also showcases artists that are telling often overlooked stories of cultural and gender identity. Leela Corman’s Unterzakhn reveals the life of Jewish immigrant twin sisters who are struggling to get by on the Lower East Side circa 1910, while Jackie Fleming’s The Trouble With Women examines why there are so few historical records of some of history’s most powerful and influential women.

The success of this show also lies in the fact that there is such an enormously rich variety of graphic styles, both in their visuals and story-telling narratives. One one side you have the exquisite, densely coloured artwork of Fay Dalton’s Reaper Files, while on the other the bold, gestural lines of Kate Beaton’s Borgias. Such a well-rounded selection of graphic novels, daily strips and zines is a testament to the female creators of today and their older counterparts, and will certainly leave you with a long reading list.

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