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Nerd Nite #55: The Future Is Non-human: Examples of the Comic Book Mutant, Cyborg, and Alien
Hanah Stiverson — The Future Is Non-human: Examples of the Comic Book Mutant, Cyborg, and Alien
American comics have historically been used as a way of imagining other modes of being. Since the creation of Superman humanity has been allowed an imagined space of greater power, ability, and capability. In recent years comics have transformed to include a wider range of experiences and bodies, and to allow for fuller beyond-human experience. In this talk I will be looking at examples of recent comic books that imagine fantastical ways of being, which allow readers to explore their humanity from new perspectives.
About Hanah:
Hanah Stiverson is currently a PhD student at the University of Michigan in the department of American Culture. Her current research focuses broadly on comics as a mode through which race, gender, sexuality and power can be articulated. Hanah works primarily with Image Comics texts to consider the ways in which access to a profitable creator-owned market has allowed traditionally marginalized voices new space to create dynamic works. Hanah is the co-coordinator of the Transnational Comics Workshop, which brings together scholars from many fields to encourage an interdisciplinary approach to reading and engaging with comics as a medium.
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Fellow Youths: Radiodead
The gang takes on Night School Studio's supernatural mystery video game, Oxenfree! It's time to make some choices (ugh), fight some ghosts, puzzle over archaic technology like radios and tape players, and ask the unanswerable: who put this chair out here?
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Nerd Nite #57 - How to Survive Making a Graphic Novel With Your Spouse
Navigating a relationship with your spouse or partner can be challenging enough–so why would you willingly work together on a project that can take a year or more to complete? Anne and Jerzy Drozd, authors of Science Comics: Rockets, explore how they handled the creative challenges of making a nonfiction comic about science and answer the most important question facing humanity today: WHO. DID. WHAT.
About Anne:
Anne Drozd is a public librarian by day and a cartoonist by night. She’s an avid space exploration enthusiast and a card holding member of the Planetary Society. Her favorite NASA mission is Apollo 12. Anne helps to introduce people to comics through her work at the Ann Arbor District Library and as co-organizer of the Ann Arbor Comic Arts Festival. Follow her @ethelfred.
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Fellow Youths: Anya's Hosts
We discuss two bone-chilling comics about ghosts: Animus by Antoine Revoy and Anya's Ghost by Vera Brosgol. We talk about vengeful spirits, cursed playgrounds, stories with no endings, and how important it is to always pack a snack, just in case you end up spending the night trapped in a hole with a dead body.
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A2CAF | Maris Wicks: Gorillas, Guts, and Gastropods
Maris Wicks will be at AADL to talk about her art exhibit Gorillas, Guts, and Gastropods and to kick off the Ann Arbor Comic Arts Festival (A2CAF). We'll journey to the jungles of Africa, to the inside of human intestines, and to the sanctuary of slugs and snails…all with cartoons! Fascinated by life on this big blue marble we call Earth, Maris Wicks shares the wonders of the world through her science-y comic strips and graphic novels. After the talk, stick around for some hands-on comics-themed activities and mingling.
Her books include Primates (2013) (written by Jim Ottaviani), Human Body Theater (2015) — a 240-page rollicking romp through the major systems of the human body (told in comics format, of course), as well as Spongebob Comics, Marvel Comics, and DC Comics. Her newest book is Coral Reefs (2016). Recently, she was in Antarctica as a part of the USAP Artists & Writers grant, working on a graphic novel about life and science in Antarctica.
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Nerd Nite #52: Is It Cold In Here or Is It Just Me?
Maris Wicks — Is It Cold In Here or Is It Just Me?
Everything you ever wanted to know about Antarctica, and probably some stuff you didn’t (like that time I pooped in a bucket).
About Maris:
Comic book artist and writer with an insatiable appetite for science. Especially science in strange places
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A2CAF Presentation - Judd Winick
Judd Winick, the author of the Hilo series, Pedro and Me, and myriad comics for DC (and Real World: San Francisco alum) joined us at A2CAF 2018! In this talk, Judd demonstrates the process of making stories that people will care about and takes questions from the audience.
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A2CAF | Iron Cartoonist
Watch Maris Wicks, Rafael Rosado, and even more of your favorite cartoonists battle it out in a series of themed drawing rounds with random elements thrown in by attendees! Watch guest cartoonists fight for the title of Iron Cartoonist under the watchful eye of host Zack Giallongo!
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Gene Yang: Reading Without Walls
Cartoonist Gene Luen Yang gives a talk about Reading Without Walls: exploring books about characters who look or live differently than you, topics you haven’t discovered, or formats that you haven’t tried. Drawing on his own experiences as a reader and author, Yang promotes diversity and opens readers’ eyes to new ideas and experiences.
Learn more about the Reading Without Walls Initiative here.
Gene Luen Yang is the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature. He began drawing comic books in the fifth grade, and in 1997 he received a Xeric Grant for his first comic, Gordon Yamamoto and the King of the Geeks. He has since written and drawn a number of titles, including Duncan’s Kingdom, The Rosary Comic Book, Prime Baby and Animal Crackers. American Born Chinese, his first graphic novel from First Second, was a National Book Award finalist, as well as the winner of the Printz Award and an Eisner Award. He also won an Eisner for The Eternal Smile, a collaboration with Derek Kirk Kim. He is the author of the Secret Coders series (with artist Mike Holmes) and has written for the hit comics Avatar: The Last Airbender and Superman. Yang lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.
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A Comics Presentation with Nate Powell
Why are graphic novels so good at capturing history? Find out when Nate Powell stops by AADL for this presentation. Best known for his work on the award-winning March series he co-created with Andrew Aydin and legendary Civil Rights activist Congressman John Lewis, Powell explores many of the unique and immersive storytelling principles used in comics.
Powell’s work also includes You Don’t Say, Any Empire, Swallow Me Whole, The Silence of Our Friends, and The Year of the Beasts. If you’ve ever wanted to tap into the power of graphic novels to explore history, or just wanted a deeper look into why they move us as readers, you won’t want to miss this!
Special thanks to the Conflict and Peace Initiative at the University of Michigan’s International Institute. This event was part of the Fall 2017 social justice events series: Marching Forward.