Alex Major – Doctor Comics

Prior to the emergence of one of the larger comics and entertainment media conventions in Australia Supanova Pop Culture Expo the same management team, led by Daniel Zachariou, staged an event called Comic-Fest. This had a mostly comics oriented focus compared with the subsequent broader span of Supanova in which comics represents just one of several entertainment media that included films, television series, toys, trading cards, computer games and the internet. There were two stagings in 2001, at Fox Studios in February then followed in September by Comi-Fest 2 at the Sydney Centrepont Convention Centre.

Trevor Bovis in space, the Greener Pastures program cover, designed by Tim McEwen.

Saturday seminar details with my involvement in the superheroes panel.

The Comic-Fest panel line-up, L to R, Dillon Naylor, Daniel Gloag, Amber Carvan and Ben Hutchings.

For the September event, withsupport from the event director, Daniel Zachariou, I organised a panel discussion on Australian alternative comics by local creators Dillon Naylor, Daniel Gloag, Amber Carvan and Ben Hutchings who each talked about their own comics and answered my questions. A general discussion of the Australian comics scene followed.

Another shot of the panel, L to R, Gloag, Carvan and Hutchings.

Aside from the panel discussion the big attraction for the local small press was the opportunity to set up shop and trade their work on the commercial floor along with the imported comics. There was also the opportunity to meet fellow local creators and exchange comics, contact details and curry recipes.

On the trading floor, Louise Graber and Alex Major.

Also trading, Daniel McKeown with Alex Major.

Along with the commercial trading there was the social attraction of meeting and chatting with fellow comics creators and sharing ideas and production experiences.

Two funny blokes and cartoonists, Ross Tesoriero and Ben Hutchings.

Did you go to COMIC-FEST? What did you think? Would you like to add a comment about your impression of that event on this Blog post? I would be happy to hear, Michael.

This is the eleventh in a series of posts called Archives of Australian Comics History that document moments in the recent history of Australian comics, particularly alternative comics and the Australian Small Press. I started researching this subject in the late 1990s and it eventually led to my PhD thesis: Ph.D. Macquarie University, Division of Society, Culture, Media and Philosophy, A Study Of Contemporary Australian Alternative Comics 1992-2000 With Particular Reference To The Work Of Naylor, Smith, Danko And Ord, 2003. On completion of the research I donated the materials and comics I had collected to the National Library of Australia: Michael Hill Collection of Australian Comics.

It was ten years ago that the second Sequential Art Studies Conference took place at the University of Technology, Sydney. At the time, minicomics, having blossomed throughout the 1990s, were making an impression on the local alternative comics scene. The event was billed as A Mini Conference on Minicomics and featured presentations by comics creators as well as scholars. The conference was convened by Spiros Tsaousis (now Spiros Xenos) and I. It was a sequel to our previous and first Sequential Art Studies conference held in Sydney in 2002. That was the first comics conference held in Australia. It was also staged in association with Supanova Pop Culture Expo again. Included in the event was a minicomics market.

CALL FOR PAPERS: 2nd Sequential Art Studies Conference May 23, 2003, Sydney. The Interdisciplinary Studies Unit of the Faculty of Design at UTS (University of Technology, Sydney) http://www.uts.edu.au will again host this new scholarly conference that will be held during the same week as the Sydney Writers’ Festival. The inaugural event in 2002 attracted a small but stimulating range of papers from local academics and students. It is hoped that this year’s event will build on that. Scholars are invited to submit 250 word proposals which address alternative approaches to comics, whether local or global, recent or historical, online or offline, artistic or commercial. The conference will adopt an interdisciplinary approach and so welcomes papers from a broad range of areas. Send proposals by email to either of the conference convenors and coordinators by February 28, 2003: Michael.Hill@uts.edu.au Spiros.Tsaousis@bigpond.com

CONFERENCE PROGRAM: Scholarly Papers

4.00pm Opening of Conference and Welcome by Assoc. Professor Steve Harfield Assoc. Dean of Research Faculty of Design, Architecture and Building University of Technology, Sydney

4.05pm The Sydney Morning Hell of Glenn Smith, Dr. Michael Hill, Interdisciplinary Studies Unit, Faculty of Design, Architecture and Building University of Technology, Sydney

4.30pm Fear and yearning of “manga Japan” in Australia, Craig Norris, School of Communication, Design and Media, University of Western Sydney

4.55pm Taming the ‘Superhuman’ Shrew: Identification with Superheroes in Comics and the Popularisation of the Human Potential Ethic, Adam Possamaï, School of Applied Social Sciences, University of Western Sydney

5.20pm The Problem of The Yellow Kid: From Single Panels to Sequential Images, Spiros Tsaousis, La Trobe University

_{Craig Norris, University of Western Sydney.}

_{Adam Possamaï, University of Western Sydney}

CONFERENCE PROGRAM: Artist Presentations

6.00pm Alex Major (Naomi and Poggie)

6.20pm Komala Singh (Moshi Moshi)

6.40pm Bernard Caleo (Big Cardigan Comics)

7.00pm Katarina Knebel (Cult Fiction Comics)

7.20pm Ben Hutchings (Geeen Comix)

7.40pm David McDermott (Glitter Shy)

Bernard Caleo proclaimed his comics manifesto and promoted Tango. — _{Bernard Caleo ‘performed’ his comics manifesto…brilliantly!..and promoted his own comic Tango.}

Komala Singh talking about Moshi Moshi. — _{Komala Singh talked about her minicomic Moshi Moshi.}

David McDermott goes Glitter Shy. — _{David McDermott goes Glitter Shy and playfully ‘performed’ some of his pages live to projected images of the panels.}

_{Chloe Lyttle introducing David Maccad.}

Ben Hutchings going Geeen! — _{Ben Hutchings had fun going Geeen!}

_{Katarina Knebel talks Cult Fiction Comics.}

Alex Major describes Naomi and Poggie. — _{Alex Major describes his minicomic Naomi and Poggie.}

Minicomics market at the conferece. — _{Minicomics market at the conference.}

This conference about MINICOMICS as a form of sequential art was a sequel to the first comics conference in 2002…the first comics conference held in Australia I think! Did you attend? If so would you like to add a comment about the proceedings? Please do! I would love to hear, Michael.

This is the tenth in a series of posts called Archives of Australian Comics History. These document moments in the recent history of Australian comics, particularly alternative comics and the Australian Small Press. I started researching this subject in the late 1990s and it eventually led to my PhD thesis. That degree was awarded to me as follows: Ph.D. Macquarie University, Division of Society, Culture, Media and Philosophy…A Study Of Contemporary Australian Alternative Comics 1992-2000 With Particular Reference To The Work Of Naylor, Smith, Danko And Ord, 2003.

On completion of my research I donated the materials and comics I had collected to the National Library of Australia, as: Michael Hill Collection of Australian Comics.

Doctor Comics

Tag: Alex Major

Archive of Australian Alternative Comics: COMIC-FEST

Archive of Australian Alternative Comics: 2ND SEQUENTIAL ART STUDIES CONFERENCE

CONFERENCE PROGRAM: Scholarly Papers

CONFERENCE PROGRAM: Artist Presentations