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Lake International Comic Art Festival 2018, update.

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A Quick Guide to the Lakes International Comic Art Festival – plus new guest news!

Kendal, Thursday 13th September 2018: A world of comic art will be arriving in Kendal for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival, 12–14th October, 2018. But what can visitors expect from this year’s Cumbria comics extravaganza?

Well, here’s a quick guide you can use to tempt your comics friends into the depths of the woolly North of England… plus details of recently announced guest, 2000AD and Razorjack artist John Higgins.

This year, the Festival is even bigger and better than ever, with over 70 of the best comic artists, writers and creators heading to the Lake District for a packed comic art weekend spectacular.

Whether you’re a comic art addict, new to the world of comics or just love exceptional art and storytelling – the weekend has something for everyone, with kick-ass super heroes, future worlds, fantastical creatures, zombies, crime fighters, politics, satire, documentary, comedy, manga and much more. The world of comic art is a diverse and spectacular place, bursting with creations that transport us to other dimensions.

The family-friendly Festival takes over the Brewery Arts Centre and many other venues in Kendal, Cumbria for a weekend of wonderful events, activities and workshops for all ages.

The legendary Comics Clock Tower, open on the Saturday and Sunday, is full of independent creators, publishers and retailers, representing a wide range of comics from around the world. And new for 2018, the Festival has also introduced a new zone, the CCT Xtra, with even more creators including the Scottish Comics Bothy. With an Out of Hours line-up, the Festival continues into the evenings with fun-filled antics for pass holders.

“We have a fantastic line-up for the festival this year and even more exhibitors showcasing their creative talent across the town,” says Julie Tait, Festival Director. ”There are artists and creators joining us from many countries including India, Finland, the US, Canada, France, Denmark and, of course, creators from the UK.

“Whether you are new to comics or a serious fan, you’ll find something new to discover at the festival. We look forward to welcoming you all to Kendal in October.”

• Tickets for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival, running Friday 12th – Sunday 14th October 2018 in Kendal at various venues across the town, are on sale now from the event’s web site.

• Web: www.comicartfestival.com | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube | Podcast 

Guest Spotlight: Artist John Higgins

John Higgins
John Higgins

Award-winning artist John Higgins’ career as a freelance comic artist started in 1977 soon after he left art college and has seen him work on such diverse characters as Judge Dredd, Batman, John Constantine and Jonah Hex.

He’s possibly best known for his work on Watchmen and Batman: The Killing Joke. He’s also the creator, writer and artist on Razorjack, an independent comic book published first by Higgins’ own Jack Publishing and later by Com.X.

In 2017, John was commissioned to illustrate a special set of Royal Mail stamps to commemorate the 350th Anniversary of the Great Fire of London, which won the prestigious D&AD award.

A retrospective exhibition of John’s work at Liverpool University’s Victoria Gallery & Museum in 2017, was extended due to popular demand and ran for a full year ending in February 2018.

The exhibition gave John the opportunity to write and design an accompanying autobiographical art book, Beyond Watchmen & Judge Dredd: The Art of John Higgins which includes many examples of his work and also shows how it was produced with illustrated steps on how a comic story develops from an idea to script to printed page.

JOHN HIGGINS ONLINE

• www.artofjohnhiggins.com
• @RazorJackRealm
• Facebook

Beyond Watchmen by John Higgins
Beyond Watchmen by John Higgins
John Higgins cover for Judge Dredd Megazine
John Higgins cover for Judge Dredd Megazine
Razorjack
Razorjack

Festival Guests also include:

  • Joe Kelly, American comic book writer, penciler and editor
  • Cartoonists Graham DurySimon Thorp, the creators of VIZ
  • Mikiko, German-Japanese comic book artist
  • Orijit Sen, an Indian graphic artist and designer and creator of India’s first graphic novel
  • Robbie Morrison, best known for his work on 2000AD
  • Emma Vieceli – critically acclaimed artist, whose work includes Doctor Who and Vampire Academy
  • Charlie Adlard, the Walking Dead artist and curent Comics Laureate
  • Satoshi Kitamura, Japanese children’s picture book author and illustrator
  • Ian James Rankin, Scottish crime writer, best known for his Inspector Rebus novels
  • Steven Appleby,  the creator of comic strips for many newspapers, including The GuardianThe Observer and The Times
  • Kripa Joshi, the creator of Miss Moti, a character who has been featured in BBC Women’s Hour, BBC Asian Network, the Guardian and other international publications
  • Steve McGarry, the most syndicated British cartoonist, based in the USA, and President of the National Cartoonists Society
  • Frank Quitely, Glaswegian comic work includes New X MenWe3All Star Superman
  • David Silverman, extraordinary cartoonist, director and animator with credits include The Simpsons

The 2018 Festival includes…

  • Live drawing from some of the biggest international comic artists
  • Talks, presentations and masterclasses – come and learn from the best
  • A comic marketplace – newly extended for 2018 with the big names and independent publishers
  • Comic signings with artists, writers and creators
  • A family-zone packed with activities for young, budding artists and comic art fans
  • Comic art exhibitions in our gallery spaces
  • International comic book launches – be the first to get your hands on the latest releases
  • Comic-themed films – the festival has three state-of-the-art cinema screens
  • Comic art trail throughout the town of Kendal
  • New for 2018, the Friday Sessions with talks and debates featuring leading comic creators
  • Evening entertainment, music, comedy and cabaret
  • Fantastic selection of restaurants, cafés and pubs
  • And it’s all happening in the glorious Lake District!
Traces of the Great War by Edmund Baudoin

Highlights in numbers…

  • Over 70 comic artists, writers and creators joining us for one spectacular comic art weekend
  • One epic debate on Friday evening: Marvel v DC, which is best?
  • Seven live draws over the weekend including the The (Legendary) Big Zombie Comic Draw
  • Over 35 weekend comic events, all free to pass holders
  • Five unmissable comic exhibitions over the festival weekend
  • Five comic films over the weekend including the winner of the Greatest Comic Book Movie Ever debate on Sunday
  • The launch of Traces of the Great War, an ambitious co-commissioned comic anthology
The Lakes International Comic Art Festival returns to Kendal in the Lake District 12th – 14th October 2018: www.comicartfestival.com

The following items are background information about this year’s Lakes International Comic Art Festival which you may find useful for other items for your news outlet about our organisation. We include them in every press release for information purposes and to acknowledge our many funders and principal supporters.

October 2018 Festival Guests

2018 Lakes International Comic Art Festival Art by Petteri Tikkanen

2018 Festival – Our Guests

A huge line up of both British and globe-spanning international comics talent will be attending this year’s Lakes International Comic Art Festival in October 2018.

Announced so far:

Charlie Adlard, Steven Appleby, Yomi Ayeni, Edmond Baudoin, Sayra Begum, Dan Berry, Elizabeth Breitweiser, Mitch Breitweiser, Corey Brotherson, Stanley Chow, Robert Brown, Robert Deas, Guy Delisle, JC Deveney, Peter Doherty, Hunt Emerson, Gary Erskine, The Etherington Brothers, Kate Evans, John Ferguson, Jeroen Funke, David Gaffney, Brian Gorman, Alan Grant, Ottilie Hainsworth, Maaike Hartjes, Mark Hendriks, John Higgins, Dave Hine, Rian Hughes, ILYA, Marc Jackson, Owen Michael Johnson, Bobby Joseph, Kripa Joshi, Jeff Keane, Joe Kelly, Cam Kennedy, Ian Kennedy, Satoshi Kitamura, Tomas Kucerovsky, Kaisa Leka, Victoria Lomasko, Luke McGarry, Steve McGarry, Stuart Medley, Mikiko, Monty Nero, Robbie Morrison, Bruce Mutard, Graham McNee, Stefan Nieuwenhuis, Emmi Nieminen, Ken Niimura, Benoît Peeters, Sean Phillips, Frank Quitely, Ian Rankin, Marcel Ruijters, Zoom Rockman, Aritra Sarkar, Orijit Sen, Seth, David Silverman, Mark Stafford, The Surreal McCoy, Bryan Talbot, Mary M. Talbot, Deborah Tate, Petteri Tikkanen, Toy_Box, Emma Vieceli, the VIZ team and John Wagner

Full profiles of all announced guest so far can be found here on the Festival web site

Comics Clock Tower Line-Up

Comic creators from across the UK and beyond will again take over Kendal Town Hall, where a huge range of comics will be on offer, including the latest graphic novels from around the globe courtesy of Nottingham-based comic shop Page 45.

Coming to the Comics Clock Tower in 2018 will be…

A Spark in the Sand, A.S. Chambers, Abi Watson, Akiro Tea, Anja Uhren, Arctic Ring Comics, Ayy Kaplan, award-winning Dan Dare audio adventures producer B7 Media, Bastard Galaxia, Ben Bernard-Smith, Big Brown Eyes Collective, Blue Fox Comics, C.P. Thompson, Caravan of Comics, Card Shark Comics, Cartoonists’ Club of Great Britain, Centrala, CFcomiX, Chris Askham, comicbooks.ie, Comics Youth CIC, Dormaeus Publishing, downthetubes, Drew Marr, Ellen Stubbings Illustration, Ethan, the Etherington Brothers, Fefe S, Flash Comics, Flix Gillett, Gary Erskine, Grimble Comics, Happy Space Sloth, Inksplattery, Invisible Six, Jack Knight, Jed McPherson, Jens K Styve, Jessica on Paper, Jetsam Scout, Jim Stewart, Joe Latham, Karen Rubins Comic Turns, Kat Karus, Kate Evans, King Louie’s Lab!, Kugali, Lines of Enquiry & Sur Comics, LostMonkey Art, Lyndon White, Marc Jackson, Marc Robinson, Mayamada, Michi Mathias, Monty Nero, Moonsquid Ink, My Little Dimension, Myfanwy Tristram, Myriad Editions  and New Internationalist, Ottilie Hainsworth, Rachel Jane Findlay Printmaker, Robert Brown, Rory Dunne, Russell Mark Olson Comics, Russell Stearman, SelfMadeHero, Silversong Comic, SIMO, Simon Myers, Soaring Penguin Press, Steve MacManus (Action Man), Teeside Comics Society, The Dutch Mountains, The Land Lumps, The World of Miss Mindy, This Man, This Pete! (Pete Taylor), Tom Ward, Tomas Kucerovsky, TPub Comics, Tut and Groan, Unbound, University of Cumbria CBC, VANILLA, Wastwater Chronicles and Wolf Town Art

Festival Support

The Lakes International Comic Art Festival is the only one of its kind in the UK, taking place in one of the country’s most beautiful areas – the English Lake District, in the market town of Kendal. Modelled on European-style festivals, such as Angoulême in France, it takes over the whole town for a weekend of comic art. Its aim is to celebrate the whole spectrum of comic art, inspiring existing comic art fans and creators and, it hopes, generating new audiences and creators too. It invests in creators through a commissioning programme and has an emphasis on developing international collaborations.

The Patrons of the Festival are comic creators Sean Phillips, Bryan Talbot, Mary Talbot, Zoom Rockman and Stephen L. Holland, owner of the award-winning independent comic shop Page 45 in Nottingham.

The Festival is supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England. It is supported by Choose CumbriaCumbria County CouncilSouth Lakeland District CouncilKendal BID and Kendal Town Council

Our main sponsors are Westmorland Shopping CentreLancaster University, the University of Cumbria and Wacom.

Our founder partners are the Brewery Arts Centre and Kendal College.

We are also supported by the Australia Council for the ArtsThe Finnish Institute in LondonWallonie Bruxelles InternationalInstitut Français du Royaume-UniKnockabout PressFanfare Press, and the National Cartoonists Society.

Thanks also to our generous donors: Charlie Adlard, Lynette Adlard, Graham Dury, Peter Kessler, Bryan Talbot, Sean Phillips and Simon Thorp.

The Lakes International Comic Art Festival welcomes donations to our work. Find out more about making a donation on our web site

The Lakes International Comic Art Festival is proud to be supporting the work of OCD Action. As the UK’s largest and most comprehensive OCD charity, OCD Action is able to provide accurate and up-to-date information on OCD and related conditions. The charity runs a helpline, advocacy service, support group network and forum to help people with the disorder, and also works to raise awareness in the media and campaigns to improve access to quality treatment for OCD.

• For more information about OCD Action visit www.ocdaction.org.uk

UncleGeoff

Geoff Willmetts has been editor at SFCrowsnest for some 21 plus years now, showing a versatility and knowledge in not only Science Fiction, but also the sciences and arts, all of which has been displayed here through editorials, reviews, articles and stories. With the latter, he has been running a short story series under the title of ‘Psi-Kicks’ If you want to contribute to SFCrowsnest, read the guidelines and show him what you can do. If it isn’t usable, he spends as much time telling you what the problems is as he would with material he accepts. This is largely how he got called an Uncle, as in Dutch Uncle. He’s not actually Dutch but hails from the west country in the UK.

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