K. Briggs interview & our upcoming shows
Hi folks, I hope you are all doing well!
The new book, Sycamore by K. Briggs is still funding on Kickstarter. It still has a fair bit to go to meet the goal, so if it looks like your thing, your taking a look and backing would be very much appreciated.
Briggs has been good enough to answer a few questions about the book and the process they went through in making it.
TBP: Hi Briggs! First up, can you tell us a bit about who you are and what kind of comics you make?
KB: I'm a comic creator, illustrator, and art teacher. I use analog techniques like watercolor, collage, ink, and even sometimes linocut; I love the collaboration between myself and unpredictable materials. I like to experiment with my comics and switch up styles regularly, oftentimes from page to page on larger projects. I tend to make work about whatever's captivating my attention at the moment - processing emotions, Shakespeare, tarot, witchcraft.
TBP: A lot of Sycamore deals with events that were happening in your life, like your struggles with UK immigration and moving back to the States. Were the comics made pretty much in order as these things were happening?
KB: Yes, these comics were a way to help me process all of those events in real time. Making them was like taking some time to meditate on what I was experiencing and feeling. Which is another reason why the art styles change so much, I was trying to really capture what those events felt like and who I was in those moments.
TBP: The comics in Sycamore have been made over a number of years, dating back to 2012. Do you find, looking back over some of the older work that they help you recall specific memories from those times more clearly?
KB: They do! And they help me remember the person I was, if that makes sense. They document the events but they also record who I was. All humans change and grow, but it can happen so subtly sometimes you don't notice. Re-reading old comics I can really see how I've grown as a person and an artist.
TBP: The comics I find most fascinating art-wise in the book are the ones where you have been very experimental with the materials you’ve used. With these ones do you find yourself making comics out of whatever is at hand or do you source specific things with a comic in mind?
KB: The answer is - both. Like, when I made a comic about visiting PA for the first time in years I made it on the local newspaper. It's a statement of "I am here". And I try to reflect what the comic is about in the materials. A comic about coming to the end of a long journey is peppered with train tickets. Or I used ink I made myself from foraged black walnut husks to make a comic about connecting with nature in a place I otherwise hated. But then sometimes I just let whim do the talking; I might use a material just because it felt right.
Thanks to Briggs for taking the time to answer these questions. You can help bring Sycamore to print by taking a look at and backing the Kickstarter here. Thanks :)
Upcoming Comic Shows
We’ve got a busy schedule of winter comic shows coming up.
Coming up in the next couple of weeks, ThirdBear Press will be at the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. I’m really looking forward to this one as, despite it being a tentpole of the UK comic scene, this is the first time I’ll have done the show. It looks like there will be a great range of comics talent as well as UK and International publishers there, so it promises to be an exciting event!
November and December then brings three shows that I had a great time at last year. Thought Bubble is always a highlight of the convention year and then to round out the year we have our home shows Edinburgh Comic Art Fair and TAGS (also in Edinburgh).
If you are going to any of these shows it’d be great to see you!
Bridlington Comic Con
As I’m writing this I’m just back from the first show of the end of year run, Bridlington Comic Con. Here’s me beside a lovely seaside mural.
There was an interesting show in a place that I likely never would have gone without the comic con to lure me in. There was a nice range of comics creators there with Jonny Cannon, Rachael Smith, Sean Azzopardi & Tribute Press among others and the organisers made a good effort to funnel the crowd from the main pop-cultural event floor to the artists alley which is not always the case.
There were lots of people who were more than happy to stop and chat comics for a bit. If that was you, Hi! All in all a fun weekend :)
Links Round Up
Back Sycamore by K. Briggs here.
We’ll be at LICAF, 28-29th September
Thought Bubble, 16-17th November
ECAF, 23rd November
& TAGS, 7th December
Thanks for reading,
Steven
Gosh, those pages are beautiful. However, shipping to the States is prohibitively expensive (20 pounds for a 17 pound publication...ouch). Will you be selling the book through any American channels? Is there any other way to make the postage less onerous?