We are so happy to share the next Comics Out Loud event:
On March 12th at 7:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada) join artists Sven, Rachel Evangeline Chiong, Vincy Lim, and Rabeea Syed for an evening of comics being read out loud and discussion about their work!
Where?: Zoom, with info on how to join below!
This event is free, with no need to register. We will be recording the event to publish it on our YouTube with captions as well.
Artist bios:
Sven (he/him) “is a cartoonist and illustrator, living and working in Toronto. His work includes the comics Starbound (2018), Dark Magic (2020, with Rachel Evangeline Chiong), and the forthcoming Words Plural #1 (expected 2021), as well as illustrations published in The Varsity, Acta Victoriana, and The Spectatorial. Despite typically being drawn in stark black and white, his art deals with the rich greys and glorious technicolour of loss, longing, redemption, hope, and wonder, in his dogged pursuit of expressing the beautiful mystery that he knows neither words nor pictures will ever really describe. He’s also taller in person.”
Rachel Evangeline Chiong (she/her) “is in the habit of saying “yes” to things for the past six years. On paper, she is a music and culture journalist for publications such as Exclaim! (@exclaimdotca) and A.side (@a.side). She has won the Norma Epstein Foundation Award (‘18) in poetry and published her short story as the national winner of the Young Writers of Canada Manuscript Contest (‘13). As a spoken word performer, she gigs with her partner in the duo Konstangeline (@konstangeline) and has facilitated workshops with the Toronto Public Library and The Kapisanan (@kapisanan). She is a member of the Pluma Collective (@plumawrites) , a group of Filipinx-Canadian writers in Toronto whose work spans genres and generations. Most recently, she has begun hosting the writing podcast “Rough Draft”, where she and her co-host, Sarim (@miras_nafri), disagree on just about everything.”
Vincy Lim (they/them) “is a Chinese-Canadian non-binary sapphic illustrator and cartoonist whose work revolves around the themes of self-love, queerness, disability, and abuse. Through graphic memoirs and fictional stories grounded in the realities of today’s marginalized groups, Vincy produces works that emphasize on loving yourself, healing, and the recovery process. As a recent escaper of abuse and attempted murder, Vincy wishes to highlight the ability to move onwards and feel content with one’s life despite their past or current situations. Vincy strives to create comics that speak on behalf of those who cannot, that tell the stories of those who live in hiding and in fear, and let them know that there is hope and happiness at the end of it all.”
Rabeea Syed (she/her): “I’m Rabeea Syed, a Pakistani Canadian graphic designer, zinester, and arts educator. I love self publishing zines and facilitating Zine Making workshops. I make zines and sequential art about my personal experiences as a visible Muslim WOC living in Toronto. My instagram is @rabeeasyed.”
Artists will be reading from a selection of works including:
Dark Magic by Sven and Rachel Evangeline Chiong: “Comics adaptation of Rachel’s poem, ‘Dark Magic.’ Many creation stories begin when light brings life to a sea of darkness. But what if it was in reverse?”
When She Set Fire to My Friends’ Houses by Vincy Lim: “Growing up disabled isn’t easy – much less when severe abuse seeps under the surface of everyday life. Shedding light on physical, sexual, and emotional abuse alongside with being a survivor of child sex trafficking, “When She Set Fire to my Friends’ Houses” is a story of survival and recovery during and after abuse, and the hope that there’s a life worth living despite all circumstances. When the odds are against you; when the police don’t believe you and laugh in your face; when authorities tell you to give up and remain under abuse so at least you can have a roof over your head instead of facing homelessness on the streets, and managing to pull through to escape and thrive regardless. Knowing that you’re worth more than the life you’ve been given and making a name for yourself, even if it’s reclaiming the name you’ve been born with.”
Rabeea Syed will be reading from a selection of zines including “Enough” – a zine about living with anxiety, and “Hato“.
How to join:
Please click the link below to join the webinar:
https://zoom.us/j/97452043783
Other ways to join:
Or iPhone one-tap :
US: +19294362866,,97452043783# or +12532158782,,97452043783#
Or Telephone:
Dial(for higher quality, dial a number based on your current location):
US: +1 929 436 2866 or +1 253 215 8782 or +1 301 715 8592 or +1 312 626 6799 or +1 346 248 7799 or +1 669 900 6833
Webinar ID: 974 5204 3783
International numbers available: https://zoom.us/u/abTU6Wx0yv
More info on ways to join the Zoom event, including using the Webinar ID to join in your web browser: https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-Joining-a-meeting
Facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/142922221039761/
We hope you can make it!
This project is supported by a grant from the Ontario Arts Council.