So, can we guess which comic I'm parodying here, on the front cover of the comic produced with kids in Prudhoe in Northumberland? Of course you can, too easy (answer below). Here we see the fruits of a three day run at schools in Northumberland, organised brilliantly again by Gil Pugh of the Hexham Book Festival. I visited six schools in three days, the second example above being from Ovingham, the school with the excellent art teacher Neil Cole, whose newly opened Sci Fi Museum in Allendale was featured on Netflix's Amazing Interiors and is something I look forward to checking out on a future visit.
The beauty of these comics, which the kids take away at the end of each session, is that they look great, no matter how mixed or problematic the classes might be. Not that I'd point a finger at either of these groups, in Morpeth and Ponteland, but it's always made clear in advance that I can work with a maximum of 30 pupils at a time (and I had a contract for these schools saying I'd have 20 in each group), so it was slightly harder going when I found myself trying to work with a group of 36, with only the minimum two hours to 'do' them in. (I do a caricature of every kid in the class, so every child over the odds adds minutes to the time we need). I'm also not a qualified teacher, so the school that left me alone in charge of a class of some the more struggling learners of Year 6 (who needed to be told to shut up every 30 seconds) shall remain nameless.
Northumberland retains a system of Middle Schools, which is where I was mostly working this week, so you have the odd experience of years 5 to 8 in the same school. Is was it years 6 to 9? Do you know, after half a dozen visits to the area now, I've still not worked it out. Anyway, they were all lovely, these from Cramlington and Bedlington.
The celebrities these six groups chose to star in my demonstration strip were Ali A (a Youtuber m'ud), Daniel Radcliffe, Kanye West, Craig Revel Horwood, David Beckham, and Elvis Presley. A pleasingly diverse range of suggestions, all the more impressive since Simon Cowell and/or Donald Trump were among the names called out in almost every group (I get four suggestions from the room then they select a favourite) and got knocked out in the elimination process. This hardly ever happens.
And the classic comic being parodied was of course...
Kev F Sutherland, as well as writing and drawing for The Beano, Marvel, Doctor Who et al, runs Comic Art Masterclasses in schools, libraries and art centres - email for details, and follow him on Facebook and Twitter. View the promo video here.
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