From: [jwee 2] at [student.monash.edu.au]
Date: Sun, 20 Oct 1996 17:01:37 AEST-10
Subject: Australian Comics Expo (long)
-Poster: [jwee 2] at [student.monash.edu.au]
Aw, that ICE expo sounds like a heap of fun. Given that few listers
make it down here, no Con stories to share...but I _can_ fill you in
on the Australian Comics Exhibition (ACE), that I went to last
Friday.
Went over to Clint Cure's digs in the late morning, bringing a bag
of bachelor food. (Cheap pasta, canned food, etc.) Clint's on the
dole (Australia's great that way...they support their artists! It's
a lot easier to get the benefits here than in, say, the States.)
and is sticking it out to find the time to draw and film his public
access TV show, _Comic Book Virus_. (Got a look at the title
animation the other day and it's charming. Clint's done some stints
for various animation producers in Melbourne and Sydney.) Had a
squint at the artwork he's doing for his backup story in _Platinum
Grit_, one of the more popular OZ titles. PG is distributed in
newstands and should be available through Diamond. The plot is
incomprehensible, but it's a fun ride nonetheless, good art by Trudy
Cooper. They're doing like Dave Sim and highlighting small press
stalwarts in their book. Clint's well known for his titles _Scam_,
_Wang_ and _Comic Book Messiah_, done in a clean animation/bigfoot
style, which I've profiled before in [c--m--x] at [.]
Eventually headed over to pick up Aaron (oops, forgot last name), who
does _Vexed_, an anthology of local comics artists, done in regular
comic format. He's working on issue #2 at the moment. I like
_Vexed_, but like most Australian comics there's not a lot of linear
narratives. That's kind of a running joke around here..."Who needs
stories? We're Australian!" Okay, you know how, in your fantasies
of having a life, you imagine having a cool warehouse/artspace
apartment? Well, Aaron's got it. Damn, but I'm turning green.
Heaps of paintings, band practice space, sculpture... three floors.
Big windows. Cobblestone walk outside, cool old Victorian
architecture. And it's on the cheap side, in the city. After
drooling on Aaron's paintings we head out.
Out to Moorabbin, that is. After a half hour of getting lost, we
realize that we're going to _Morwell_ , about an hour and a half away
from Melbourne. Out in the sticks. A quick call to the Latrobe Valley
Arts Centre reveals that they're open until 6pm. After hurried consultation,
and a quick stop at the drive through beer shop (don't see too many of those in
the States) we proceed to lay down some rubber speeding up Princes
Highway. Aaron thinks it's a conspiracy. "They try to make it as
hard as possible to find out about our own comics history. It's
almost as hard to find out about, as, say, labor history."
Country hills fly past as we discuss sheep-shagging jokes and whether
Tasmanians or New Zealanders are subject to more of them. Does seem
to be a recurring subject. We make it to the gallery with fifteen
minutes to spare. Clint bullshits the gallery folks into staying
open an extra half hour.
I was really taken aback. Heaps of comics
here that never made it off the continent. ACE is ace.
Comic books in Australia had a similar beginning to comics in the States:
collections of newspaper strips were published, which began to
include new material. _Fatty Finn's Weekly_ (modeled after English
comic books) was the first, in 1934, shortly followed by the
Melbourne Herald's _Wags_. _Wags_ was a full color reprint of
Stateside comics strips. Australia was soon flooded with American
reprints, and it took World War II's Import Licensing Act
restrictions to open the field to Australian creators.
(Hmm...reminiscent of the "Free Trade" issues we have today...)
Australian creators have always had hurdles to jump. The war years
saw some great work, mostly in adventure comics: _Jimmy
Rodney on Secret Service_, _Silver Starr_, _Clancy of the Overflow_,
_Captain Justice_, etc. (_Captain Atom_ was a superhero who gained
his powers from the Bikini Atoll explosion--a far cry from the recent
anger against the French for nuclear testing!) Due to paper
shortages, though, many comics were produced as one-shots, and often
the publishers would change titles to hype up a "new" comic. If you
wanted to follow your favorite character, you'dve had to search
around.
By the late 1950's a new wave of American reprints virtually
destroyed the economic base for local creators. Arguably, it still
hasn't recovered, with local comics only making up a fraction of the
market seen in the war years. The exhibit claims that the American
presence "revitalized" and eventually caused a "resurgence" in
Australian comics...I think they're trying to have it both ways.
There's some original art, and that's the real tantalizing bit. This
exhibit is essentially a survey, so we just get a little taste, and move on.
I was fascinated by Emile Mercier's work, who struck me as a bit like
Basil Wolverton, but a little more focused on narrative, less of the
"chicken fat". Stanley Pitt's _Silver Starr_ brings to mind Alex
Raymond, and his futuristic subject matter is similar. Turns out he
ghosted _Secret Agent Corrigan_ for a spell.
Aboriginal characters make an appearance, but are not explicitly
discussed; neither are Aboriginal comics creators. Many Aboriginal characters
are caricatured similar to Africans and African-Americans in American
strips: thick lips and huge eyes, comical expressions. Apparently
there is more realistic treatment in some strips, like _Trent of the
Territory_ , and _Aboriginal Legends_ (curious about this last one).
I was intrigued also by _Ginger Meggs_, a long running cartoon strip
with a style similar to Percy Crosby. That and _The Potts_, both
domestically-based strips, have been around for ages...I don't see
`em in _The Age_ or _The Australian_, though. Hmm...
I would also like to see more of Moira Bertram's stuff. She did a
number of comics with smart female protagonists, such as _The Sultan's
Treasure_. The exhibition is skimpy on both female artists and
female costumes. Comics. The Male Medium!
The section on Censorship is fascinating. It appears that while there
was similar censorship of comics in the 1950s, it originated out of reaction
to American Comics. While there were review boards in places like Queensland, in
publishers also practiced self-censorship. Horwitz Publications, for
example, adopted a "Code of Publishing Ethics" that looks to be
cribbed from the Comics Code. I should check the dates both were
created.
We get a host of more recent comics creators too...Fil
Barlow (_Zooniverse_), major -label folks Gary Chalconer , Glenn
Lumsden, and David DeVries. Dillon Naylor's there (_Da and Dill_,
_Tales of the Ovoid_) and Eddie Campbell isn't (I guess he's
transplanted).
The exhibition is fun, but it tries to do too much. A
little strip "how to become a superhero" runs along the bottom of
the display. It's very much superhero-based, (a special "Phantom" and
"Costumed Creators" section) although it tries to be comprehensive.
And while it makes a claim for family appeal, there are some less
than light-hearted bits on censorship.
My chief gripe is that the postwar era skips over many historical bits.
The 1960s had a number of undergrounds, I'm told, but none are
present here. The 80s black and white boom isn't mentioned; there's no
sense of the ups and downs of the comic market in the last several
decades. Nothing on the current minicomics scene. Different creators are often
thrown next to each other for no apparent reason, and issue credits and dates
are sparse.
From the show credits, looks like some of these artists are still floating
around. I'm gonna give the OZCon folks a hard time if they don't line some of
them up for February.
Overall: B for effort, A+ for material, C+ for
presentation. Lots to digest, I'm still chewing things over.
We stumble out of the gallery, night is falling. On our long trip back
we talk about local comics artist Fred Negro, who went to art school
with Nick Cave. He's a hilariously funny scatologically-styled
artist who ranges all over the place. In one memorable strip he and
his wife are pushing their baby carriage around the beach, tripping
on acid.
Clint reveals that much of his work is inspired by street
culture around Melbourne. The _Herald Sun_ recently published
a list of street gangs (including groups like "Puffing Billy
Posse"), something I just wouldn't think of, given how peaceful
Australia seems.
Back to my digs for drinks and comics (dammit, most of these cool
Victorian-styled houses have verandas, but mine doesn't!). I show
`em the latest stuff I've been working on, also the new mini from
Scott Pollard. Scott's done a mini called _Blood Sucking Freaks_,
which is really about our Premier (similar to Governor, essentially) ,
Jeff Kennett. Kennett is an economic rationalist type with a
teflon coating, and has made massive changes in Victoria. One of his
first acts in office was to fire all the locally elected Mayors and
put in his own people. Very authoritarian, very aggressive. There
is a real chill in the political climate here. So Scott's comic is
without address, for fear of retaliation. Crisp inking, good
caricatures, storytelling needs a little work. We also watch the
video of _Deep Shit_, a local film short that's basically one long
fight scene as the good guys fight to protect a video of
incriminating information against Kennett. It's just a
Premier-bashing night. We also talk a little bit about New South
Wales perennial Gerard Ashworth, who does long ranting screeds in
_Modern Murder_ and _Weird Stress Kittens_. Sketchy, shorthand
style, laborious, complicated ruminations. (I'll post some of the
addresses in another day or so.)
Went over our plots to take over the world, Aaron borrowed my
tuxedo for a wedding, and we called it a night.
- J
sweatin' finals
for the next two
weeks...
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