Comics conference plans drawn up
The Courier. 24 April 2007
Dundee, one of the world’s great homes of comics culture, is to host a major international conference looking at the role that comics have increasingly occupied in popular culture.
Biff! Bam!! Crikey!!!—Comics as Design & Entertainment, is being held at Dundee University from May 25-26 as part of the Scotland-wide Six Cities Design Festival.
The conference will celebrate the history of comics in Dundee—home to the D. C. Thomson comic empire—but will also explore wider themes, including the intersection of British and American comics, topical and controversial comics, comics as literature and/or art, defining comics, and comics and other media.
“Comics are an important and vital part of popular culture, shaping the early reading experiences of many children, as well as commanding an increasing number of adult readers,” said conference organiser Dr Chris Murray, of the English programme at Dundee University.
“They can offer slapstick fun or serious literary themes and have spread into every imaginable genre with huge influence. Comics therefore have the potential to be both popular entertainment and provocative design, and they continue to have a profound influence on various other media and art-forms, including film, animation, computer games, and television.
“With the effect they have on our culture and the standard of work that is being produced in the comic industry—both in design and in writing—they fully deserve very serious consideration.”
The conference represents an opportunity for Dundee to celebrate its long history at the forefront of comics production in Britain. The comics of city-based publisher D. C. Thomson are known all over the world, and 2007 marks the 70th anniversary of The Dandy, widely recognised as the world’s longest running comic.
The Dundee programme for Six Cities will also include the publication of a comic published by D. C. Thomson highlighting design and innovation in Dundee. This comic was commissioned by Donna Howell-Lovell, of Six Cities, written by Chris Murray, with artwork by Lyall Bruce, Stuart Fallon and Victoria Bruce, all young artists and designers based in Dundee.
Comics historians Paul Gravett and Roger Sabin will present talks, while other sessions will explore the contribution of D. C. Thomson, the work of contemporary British comics writers and artists, and the interactions between comics and other media.
See also
On Scottish literature 02-04-07