"Comic books helped me to define myself and my world in a way that made both far less frightening. I honestly cannot imagine how I would have navigated my way through childhood without them." - BRADFORD W. WRIGHT
May 8, 2010
The Toronto Comic Art's Festival 2010 @ The Toronto Reference Library
The Toronto Comic Art's Festival 2010 @ The Toronto Reference Library
This is the first legitimate comic fest/con I have been to, excluding the poor excuse for a con in the Winnipeg Anime Convention. The best part of this convention were the artists, writers, and publishers all clamouring for the attention of the crowd with their epic wares - and getting in was free! I got to talk to a lot of really amazing and enthusiastic people, and I have to say that I was overwhelmed by the amount of material packed into the space they had taken up. I didn't get a chance to see everything in a lot of detail, even though I got there early and lingered for four and a half hours. It filled up quick and became a chaotic sea of demanding, drooling comic fans. And I can't blame them. I was one of them.
The focus of the convention was not necessarily comics per se, but graphic novels and the epic art featured. I got to talk to Michael Cho, Eric Vedder, Salgood Sam, and a whole bunch of others who I have been inspired by for years. After reading a sample of Sam's Therefore Repent! I just had to pick it up (and it was so cheap!) as I made my rounds on the ground floor. OWL books were there, as well as Scholastic with Raina Telgemeier's Smile which I got from her (as well as a gracious amount of change and a custom drawing) and read while I wandered. It was really great! I then stumbled across Kean Soo's table. He is so sweet and generous, and gave me my hardcover copy of Jellaby for a couple of dollars off plus a very cute doodle. I think one of the highlights of this convention was how many new artists/authors I discovered and got to chat to after admiring them from afar. Which brings me to the second level!
It absolutely topped my day - the Web Comics room! When I went up there at around 10 am, it was quite empty, which gave me a chance to talk to the super delightful Becky Dreistadt and Frank Gibson about their experiences at varying comic cons, colourful currency, their adventures with Emmy Cicierega, and just how nice the con planners had been to them. All the webcomic people got to have their tables for free! I picked up a copy of their Tigerbuttah book, which is a beautifully bound emulation of the nostalgic Golden Books for kids.
I took a few pictures of the Templar, AZ artist/author, but I was swept away too quickly to talk to her. I chatted at the table that Rosemary Travale and Craig Arndt shared (I got some free buttons!) and moved over to Meredith Gran's table to pre-order the new Octopus Pie compilation. Though Erika Moen was busy at the time, but I really wanted to pick up a copy of DAR (didn't get around to it) on my way back from Evan Dahm's table, where I nabbed a copy of The City of Shells from Order of Tales and talked to him briefly about the original print of Rice Boy and what he uses for his comic works. From Chris North's Dinosaur Comics to Joey Comeau of A Softer World, I basked in all that is webcomics. The cherry was getting in the extensive line up to get to Kate Beaton of Hark! A Vagrant. She was the definite star of the floor, and I grabbed a copy of her Poe/Verne vignette as I already own her stunning Never Learn Anything from History. She also drew me a little angry Poe at the bottom corner and signed it.
I met up with a couple of friends towards the end, exploring the ground floor and making my final purchase - Chester Brown's Louis Riel. It was well worth the extra time, and I finished it in about three hours in the comfort of my uncle's home the following Sunday. The publisher's room was amazing too, and Daniel Clowes, the author of Ghost World was hidden somewhere amongst the stacks. All in all, I spent a lot of money to support some amazing artists, and the entire experience was well worth it! I wish I had stayed for the Doug Wright awards for sure, but maybe next year! And more panels next year as well.
Make sure to check out all of the artists/titles I've mentioned here. They represent the core of my comic tastes, and you should really experience them as I have!
The focus of the convention was not necessarily comics per se, but graphic novels and the epic art featured. I got to talk to Michael Cho, Eric Vedder, Salgood Sam, and a whole bunch of others who I have been inspired by for years. After reading a sample of Sam's Therefore Repent! I just had to pick it up (and it was so cheap!) as I made my rounds on the ground floor. OWL books were there, as well as Scholastic with Raina Telgemeier's Smile which I got from her (as well as a gracious amount of change and a custom drawing) and read while I wandered. It was really great! I then stumbled across Kean Soo's table. He is so sweet and generous, and gave me my hardcover copy of Jellaby for a couple of dollars off plus a very cute doodle. I think one of the highlights of this convention was how many new artists/authors I discovered and got to chat to after admiring them from afar. Which brings me to the second level!
It absolutely topped my day - the Web Comics room! When I went up there at around 10 am, it was quite empty, which gave me a chance to talk to the super delightful Becky Dreistadt and Frank Gibson about their experiences at varying comic cons, colourful currency, their adventures with Emmy Cicierega, and just how nice the con planners had been to them. All the webcomic people got to have their tables for free! I picked up a copy of their Tigerbuttah book, which is a beautifully bound emulation of the nostalgic Golden Books for kids.
I took a few pictures of the Templar, AZ artist/author, but I was swept away too quickly to talk to her. I chatted at the table that Rosemary Travale and Craig Arndt shared (I got some free buttons!) and moved over to Meredith Gran's table to pre-order the new Octopus Pie compilation. Though Erika Moen was busy at the time, but I really wanted to pick up a copy of DAR (didn't get around to it) on my way back from Evan Dahm's table, where I nabbed a copy of The City of Shells from Order of Tales and talked to him briefly about the original print of Rice Boy and what he uses for his comic works. From Chris North's Dinosaur Comics to Joey Comeau of A Softer World, I basked in all that is webcomics. The cherry was getting in the extensive line up to get to Kate Beaton of Hark! A Vagrant. She was the definite star of the floor, and I grabbed a copy of her Poe/Verne vignette as I already own her stunning Never Learn Anything from History. She also drew me a little angry Poe at the bottom corner and signed it.
I met up with a couple of friends towards the end, exploring the ground floor and making my final purchase - Chester Brown's Louis Riel. It was well worth the extra time, and I finished it in about three hours in the comfort of my uncle's home the following Sunday. The publisher's room was amazing too, and Daniel Clowes, the author of Ghost World was hidden somewhere amongst the stacks. All in all, I spent a lot of money to support some amazing artists, and the entire experience was well worth it! I wish I had stayed for the Doug Wright awards for sure, but maybe next year! And more panels next year as well.
Make sure to check out all of the artists/titles I've mentioned here. They represent the core of my comic tastes, and you should really experience them as I have!
The Louis Riel Comic! EPIC! I always see that at Chapters and McNally.
ReplyDeleteOh man. Do I ever miss McNally. There was the one here in Don Mills but it went under, and I really long for the familiar homey-ness and the kind of professionalism I always got from the salespeople.
ReplyDeleteBut yeah! When I come back to Winnipeg I can lend it to ya like some kinda book lender! (L...Librarian?) Also, you would have died at this convention. Please come with me again next year. PLEASE.