Getting Ready for the Degree Show

For the 4th year the BA Hons Cartoon and Comic Arts students will be putting on a degree show with the Opening Night on Friday 2nd June at 6pm in the Cadman Building.

So there has been a lot of preparation work needed to get the studio in a position ready to be made ready for the show boards to be installed.

Keep an eye on the Twitter account CartoonandComic for the show build up date.

MCM London October

Another October
Another Comic Convention at MCM Expo
London Docklands

Cartoon and Comic Arts will once again have a stand at the London MCM Expo Comic Con. We Are at stand CC5

We are also taking 21 students to the event, so keep an eye open for us. Some are serious Coplayers as well.

We are hoping to meet up with the graduating students from July and see what they have been working on while away from the University.

I'm hoping this will form a stepping stone so in May we can head over to the MCM event with 2nd year students who should be setting themselves up as publishing companies and devising and selling their work.

Other events we want to make you aware off 

Cartoon & Comic Arts is developing strong Academic roots with the Cartoon Museum in London, V&A, British Library, The Cartoon Archive at Leeds, Dundee University MA in Graphic Novels and DC Thomson of Dandy and Beano fame. Over the next 3 years we will be developing links and co hosting events at the university to include members of the community and build links with other institutes.

I've recently been in touch with the Twinning committee for Stoke-on-Trent City Council and the Germany town of Erlangen. They hold their own Cartoon Saloon once every 2 years, so we are hoping to link up with them and hold some thing internationally.

Because of the success of the Stoke Con run by Six Towns Radio we are currently planning on doing a 2nd event, with a bigger comic village run by Cartoon & Comic Arts. If anyone is interested in selling their work at the event keep a check on the blog. Once we have a date and everything confirmed we will be posting religiously.

Adrian Tooth

Editor in Chief Cartoon & Comic Arts

Degree Show

Cartoon and Comic Arts 

17th June 

5.30 pm 

Staffordshire University

This year we see the first graduating students from Cartoon and Comic Arts and we are in full swing. The amount of work that we are currently undertaking is phenomenal.

We are calling the event Issue #1 so if you are available, have spare change in your pocket and fancy a drink or three, then pop along. 

Tempus Noble Digitally Remastered.

Tempus Noble Digitally Re-mastered.

 

 

I'm currently working on re printing my comic Tempus Noble with an eye on getting the work into MCM May and even Thought Bubble in November.

The story is 6 Chapters long and I'm looking at trying to get a big hard backed version of Volume 1 printed. If not I'm working on getting a few Chapters of the comic printed so they can go on sale in May.

Keep an eye open for it!

Pop Up Comic Shop

Pop Up Comic Shop

Wednesday 19th February 

10.00 - 4.00

 

Henrion Gallery

 

New stock will be on Sale this Wednesday in the Henrion Gallery from 10.00. This year we see students tackle Shakespeare and make comic books of a range of his plays. This Wednesday sees a selection of artwork on sale in the Henrion Gallery by 2nd Year Cartoon & Comic Arts, Illustration and Games Concept Design Students. 

 

 



Tempus Nobel Reboot

Tempus Nobel

This is my comic strip that I've been working on and off with for the last couple of years. Initially based around the time of the Royal Wedding (Kate and Will, remember that?) It was suppose to be topically having an Olympic Mystery as part 2 of the adventure. The character Tempus Nobel is a mixture of James Bond and Sherlock Holmes. He incorporates that logical deduction alongside a suave and sophisticated appearance. The story also gave me an opportunity to draw political characters, from David Cameron to Barrack Obama.

 

 

Comics and Magazines

Cartoon & Comic Arts are in Print

This is just a quick round up of where you can read more about the exploits of the Cartoon and Comic Arts Award. The Fringe Festival had its own magazine out where we were interviewed by a range of journalist students to gather information about the award and what were had done and what we are going to do in the future years. 

I was also delighted that we were allowed to have an article published as part of the degree Show magazine.

Some time next week I'm going try and do a summary of what we did as an award from September 2012 to May 2013, so that we've got a record of whats happening and how we can go on and improve the award.

Later on this week I'm in London where I'm hoping to meet up with some independent artists as well as visiting Orbital Comics to try and get them sell the Students work. A visit to the cartoon Museum and also booking a table for the MCM Expo in London in October. When we hit London with the new intake I want to be in a position where we can blow them off their feet and show them what we've managed to do in 2 years and what they have to live up too.

Big Times Ahead !

 

UniQ Selling Comics

UniQ Comic Stall

As well as the Pop Up Comic Shop, we also had an attempt at selling work at the first university UniQ market stall.

This was a place where other students with a range of work on sale were also encourgaed to try and sell their work as well. It was a good day though it started off slowly, but using our enterprise and entreprunerual skills we managed to over come the slow start and got a range of people coming overand showing and interest in our work.

We also attempted face painting and doing caricatures of people in various Super heroes costumes.

Overall it was a fun experience just doing the carticatures and chatting to people who wouldnt usually have thought about buying comics

Pop Up Comic Shop

Pop Up Comic Shop

Well the Pop Up Comic Shop was finally finished. This is a picture of the final shop front with the range of Comics that were for sale at the event.

As you can See Jack Baker was there selling his comics which included "Spore" "Return to the Beagle" and his own creation "The March Of Winter!"

The price list of the comics where the average price is £2.00 though there were some cheaper and we also had discount if you brought the work in bulk. The Spore and War of the Worlds comics were £1.20 each, but if you wanted to buy all three copies of a series we offered them at £3.00 rather than £3.60.

A big thanks to all those who stayed and helped make the Comic Book Stall the success it was. From Left to Right Millie, Jack, Verity, Tom and Becci. I should also mention Esme and Henrietta who also tagged along for the ride. Obviously there were some quiet days where we didn't really sell that much but other days we had a good turn over. Overall we raised £230

I think it gave the students present a real life encounter into the industry that they want to enter. It got them talking to people about their work and more importantly it got them practising their selling technique to an audience who wouldn't be the normal demographic of comic book readers! 

Getting Ready

Getting Ready. 

A check list for our London Trip 

New Art

So we are well on our way prepping for the London Super Comic Con. I thought it would be a great idea to take our Mascot for the award Stanley Staffordshire to the event!!! Then I thought ...How the hell are we going get him there. Anyway, Alice is back and she volunteered to give Stanley a splash of paint and he's looking good!

I also got the artist together for a photo shoot with their work, so if you've ever wanted to know what a bunch (Is that the right term, a panel, a gag, a page!!) of Cartoonist looks like, well feast your eyes on this bunch!

As ever we are adding things to the selection of work that we are taking to Comic Con. Claire Smith has started her own website iworkwithcats.com and is planning on promoting both herself and the website at the event. Its a must for people who like cats...... Or think that people who like cats are a bit weird!

Esme Baran has produced her long sought after project, "Mischief and Marauder!" a tale based on her trip to London in the 1st Semester in the First year of her studies at Staffs Uni. Well Done Esme! Actually joking apart it is a good read and it is well produced!

Staffs Uni London Super Comic Con

Staffs Uni  London Super Comic Con

Claire Smith is an up and coming comic artist who has branced out into the world of web comics as well. Iworkwithcats.com shows this young artist work and sense of humour off to its full potential.

 Claire worked on her comic novel for Love or Money at Staffordshire University and it demonstrates that love can be found anywhere.

 Set during the Victorian ages, it tells a story of how a young thief helps a couple to come together.

Staffs Uni London Super Comic Con

Staffs Uni London Super Comic Con

Nigel Morey or Cheshire Morey is a young and up and coming artist from the Isle of Wight. With a love of steam punk and the slight macabre, this is a story to send shivers down your spine. 

Cheshire Morey has a love of musicals and the comic "Monster Nature" opens up with the theatre company just finishing of their recital of a Gilbert and Sullivan play, The story is based around a young lad who has a desire to become the best reporter he can.

Unfortunately due to a working accident when he was very young, he lost both his legs and now thanks to his adopted father type figure, manages to get around using artificial implants. The story takes our young hero to discover what is happening to all the people who are disappearing in the smog. 

 Cheshire Morey "Monster Nature" is available at the London Super Comic Con 2013

Staffs Uni London Super Comic Con

Staffs Uni London Super Comic Con

Keeping up with our previews of artist work, today we look at Verity Hall and her Journey Man Comic. Verity has started to develop her own unique style of illustration for this project and colours add to the overall effect.

Verity's story tells the tale of a young Irish man who is forced to leave his country to find fame and fortune in the boxing ring. 

Along the way he finds companionship in the form of a young pick pocket who knows an easy target and befriends the lone Irish man on his travels. A fantastic adventure with a twist at the end.
Verity Hall Journey man will be on sale at the London Super Comic Con 2013

Staffs uni London Super Comic Con

Staffs Uni London Super Comic Con

Today's Cartoonist is a cartoonist in every sense of the word. If you like the world of Monty Python or outlandish stuff such as family Guy or American Dad then this is an artist who you can definitely get to grips with.

Millie Harrop produced a fully coloured Graphic Novel which deals with an unusual friendship between the driver and the locomotive. A comic which definitely is aimed at the more mature end of the Graphic novel market. This lovely and well produced story is one of bullying, misery and finally friendship in what can only be considered as an off the wall love story. 
Millie has a strange an unique sense of humour and she is definitely one to watch as her story has had the whole of cartoon and comic arts talking and it has already become a much wanted and desire comic. 

Millie Harrop "The Train Who Couldn't Fly!" will be on sale at the London Super Comic Con 2013

Staffs Uni London Super Comic Con

Staffs Uni London Super Comic Con

Today we look at Esme Baran and her story called Locked in which basically tells us not to mess with the super natural.

Esme tells a story of a young boy and girl who dabble in the supernatural world and the consequences that happen to them both as a result of this. Esme uses some nice manga style images to help tell the story in a black and white format but her use of colour (as above) is very understated and used to great effect.

Esme Baran Book "Locked In!" is available at the London Super Comic Con 2013

London Super Comic Con

Staffs Uni London Super Comic Con.

Over the next few days I'll be posting some of the artwork from  Staffordshire University Cartoonist and Comic Arts Students who's work will be available at London Super Comic Con. the aim is to wet your appetite and also see a range of the art work that will be available at the convention.

First off we have Jack Baker who tells the story of Darwin's return to his Ship the Beagle with secret orders from Queen Victoria.

This is an underwater adventure that shows Darwin in a new light along side his previous captain Fitzroy
A great 12 page adventure that shows inventive steam punk world off and puts the Scientist to the the test as he fights a potential problem that is threatening the safety of the shores in the UK. The story takes place some years after Derwin's initial voyage where he wrote the "Origin of the Species" but sees him being called back to action as an underwater creature threatens the sea routes to the UK, depriving it of its export and imports links.  

Read his Adventure is Jack Bakers "Return to the Beagle" Available at the London Super Comic Con 2013

Farewell to an Old Friend

Barbara Ridley's leaving do. 

This year has seen a few friend move onto new jobs further a field. He is a little ditty written by Mark Garner Head of Graphics for Barbara Ridley. Illustrations by yours truly 

IF YOU’VE EVER BEEN TO GLASGOW

THIS IS WHAT YOU’LL FIND

CLOUDS AND RAIN AND A FOOTBALL TEAM

STRUGGLING FROM BEHIND

THERES MEN IN SKIRTS  - AND HAGGIS

AND BAGPIPES PLAYING SONGS

WOMEN CALLED McTAVISH

WEARING TARTAN THONGS

THERES A DRINK THAT THEY CALL WHISKY

THAT’S DRUNK AT BREAKFAST TIME

AND SOMETHING CALLED SCOTCH EGGS

NOT SCOTTISH—BUT IT RHYMES!

BUT MORE THAN THAT – THERES CULTURE…

HISTORY AND SMILES

AND THERE USED TO BE A LONG WALL

THAT WENT ON FOR MILES AND MILES…

THERES ART, MUSIC…SONG AND DANCE,

AND SOME – HOGMANY

AND VERY SOON IN THE NEW YEAR

THEY’LL BE A B RIDLEY

FROM STOKE TO GLENN

CERAMICS TO MEN….. WHO FLASH US THEIR BEHINDS.

BARBARAS JOURNEY TAKES HER

TO A LAND WHERE SHE WILL FIND……..

A NEW POSITION, THO’ CHALLENGING…

WILL ENRICH HER BEYOND BELIEF.

THEY WILL GAIN A FAIR MAIDEN STRONG

-AND WE WILL LOSE A CHIEF!

FOR BARBARA RIDLEY TO US ALL

HAS BEEN A TOWER OF STRENGTH

AND FROM US ALL WE WISH YOU

WOULD STAY TO DO THE ANNUAL MONITORING,TIMETABLES, BUDGETS,

FLTQC MEETINGS, FLUX, MA,BA,…….ETC

  

FOR 7 YEARS SHES SERVED WITH CHEER

A SMILE. A LAUGH. A SONG.

AND WHEN THE SEAS WERE STORMY

SHE STEERED THE SHIP ALONG.

SHE NEVER LET THE SIDE DOWN

AND FOUGHT FOR WHAT WAS RIGHT.

STARTING WORK QUITE EARLY.

AND LABOURED UNTIL NIGHT.

SO BARBARA – IT’S A FAREWELL FROM ALL

IT’S THE GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART.

WE\LL MISS YOU—AND NOW TOAST YOU

FROM ALL OF OUR BRAVE HEARTS!!!!!