The best thing about getting in early before I have to start my Comic Art Masterclasses is that I get to do a drawing on the flipchart. And the very best thing is if the kids get to watch me drawing at least some of it.
You cannot overestimate how impressive it is to schoolkids when you can make pictures like this appear by magic before their eyes. Especially in something like the rather modest example above where I did the entire thing as they watched, without using any reference. I make the point that using reference is a good thing and, especially when you're learning how to draw (and I'm teaching kids from year 3 to year 8) "copying is not cheating, copying is learning".
These are all left behind at the schools for them, hopefully, to display or maybe give away as a prize. I can't see them going for millions in years to come, but they're fun while they last.
Kev F Sutherland, as well as writing and drawing Pansy Potter, Bananaman, Biffo The Bear et al in The Beano, runs Comic Art Masterclasses in schools, libraries and art centres - email for details, and follow him on Facebook and Twitter. He's been writing and drawing comics for 25 years, he must know something.
This week I have mostly been teaching comics to the good kids of the Welsh valleys, with two days in St Mellons, and a day in Trallyn near Neath. And a day in Bradford On Avon for good measure. All primary school kids this week, and what lovely titles they've come up with.
The contrast between teaching high school pupils (as I did all last week in Ireland) and primary school pupils is interesting. What they lack in sophistication and drawing ability (some of the year threes, bless them, have a way to go. When you give them 10 minutes to draw a character and, after 90 seconds, someone comes up to you and says "finished", clutching a picture for which you genuinely struggle to work out which way up it goes, you know you're working with year threes) they make up for in sweetness, ability to laugh at the slightest stupid thing I make up, and germs. Somewhere along the week I've caught a cold and have had to cancel my Friday school visit to recuperate.
It tends to be year threes (not all, just one will do) who'll have a big bogey hanging out of a nostril which will stay there for the duration of the class. If that happens in secondary school you can, at the very least, say something, and hope to get it removed. As it was, I could tell with the coughs and sneezes going around, that I was in line for some lurgi before the week was out. You may, in your travels, have come across a seven year old who arrives at school equipped with a stock of handkerchiefs, and with a razor-sharp reflex action that enables them to cover their mouth every time a swine-flu-laden cloud of sputum explodes from their fizzog. But I haven't. I just stand there, picturing the clouds of Chthulu shaped infection floating invisibly in the miasma, waiting to catch me unawares and leap down my gullet, or up my nasal passages, or, knowing my luck, both at the same time. Which, with mind-numbing inevitability, is what happens.
Given the chance to name a celebrity for me to draw in my demonstration strip, both classes in one school came up with Harry Styles, the other suggestions being Simon Cowell, Tom Jones, Declan Donnelly, Michael Jackson, Gary Barlow and, most interestingly, Louis Armstrong.
Kev F Sutherland, as well as writing and drawing Pansy Potter, Bananaman, Biffo The Bear et al in The Beano, runs Comic Art Masterclasses in schools, libraries and art centres - email for details, and follow him on Facebook and Twitter. He's been writing and drawing comics for 25 years, he must know something.
Last week I had the pleasure of five days teaching comics in Ireland, from Dungarvan to Wexford, Waterford to Enniscorthy and finally to Clongowes Wood school near Naas. A diverse and interesting bunch of mostly first and second years, and a week of hotels and public transport that reminded me of the little ways in which Ireland is different.
Smokey taxis. Maybe it was just the luck of the draw, but I got into three taxis this week which were the smokiest atmospheres I'd been in since the smoking ban in pubs ten years ago. The drivers weren't actually smoking while I was in there, but they seemingly just interrupted an interminable chain-smoking session to let each new fare in. I'm surprised I didn't reek of smoke for the rest of the day.
Bus Eireann. Bless its cotton socks, Irish public transport, with the bus company and its sister organisation Iarnod Eireann (which, on the tannoy, sounds for all the world like "Here Nor There"), is a world unto itself. It has timetables which are one part recommended serving suggestions and one part nice ideas, but in no regard do they resemble where the bus actually goes and when it arrives. After a few days of late buses and early buses, and bus stops which were nowhere near where they purported to be, my journey on Thursday night from Enniscorthy to Dublin took the prize.
If you check out Bus Eireann's timetable, and believe me I looked at it time and time again, mostly in disbelief, it shows quite clearly that the bus leaves Enniscorthy at 17.20 and goes up the East side of the Wicklow mountains, through Arklow, Ballincor and Kilmacanogue, to Dublin. There's no timetable that'll tell you otherwise.
So I get on my bus, from the right stop, at the right time. And luckily for me I have my iPhone with its Google maps on, so I am able to work out that, far from going up the right hand side through Gorey, Wicklow and Bray, we are in fact going up the left hand side of the Wicklow mountains, through Bunclody, Tullow and Baltinglass.
Now it's not as if there's a whole lot of difference between Irish small towns, which seem to be remarkably similar in their high streets of Irish-theme-pub-like-genuine-Irish-pubs, single storey cottages, local shops named after local people, green postboxes, understated bus stops and total lack of bypasses so every bus has to go right through the middle of town. But I was going through the wrong similar-looking-to-an-ignorant-foreigner small towns, with no idea of when I was going to arrive at my destination.
But it's an ill wind that blah blah blah, as this whole diversionary timetable-defying route-taking thing ended up getting me to my destination faster than I would otherwise have got there. For my aim was to get to Naas, and my original plan was to go into Dublin and back out again by train. Now I was unexpectedly passing so close to Naas that all I had to do was get out at Blessington, 13 miles away, catch a taxi, and I was in my hotel.
The bus journey was further enlivened by the lights going out - a Bus Eireann thing that I've experienced before, they turn the lights out throughout the journey, the better to enjoy the pitch dark fields as they pass by - then me being joined by Garrett, who joined me in my seat and chatted away about life, the universe and everything, and managed to get through two cans of Guinness and offer me a swig of gin ( I declined) as we went. No, I didn't think I was about to be mugged in the dark. Not for a second. And, don't worry, I wasn't. And thanks Gar for the tip of going into a pub to ask for a taxi. I did this, had a nice chat to Ethel the owner of her otherwise empty pub in Blessington, and got a friendly local taxi to my hotel. Hooray for the transport arrangements of rural Ireland.
Hotels. Monaghans hotel in Naas was the homeliest of the week's hotels, with Mrs Monagahan herself on the desk, a smell of both fag smoke and drains in the bedroom, and the longest wifi code I have yet seen (see below). But lovely. Whites of Wexford was the smartest, being the level of hotel I usually can't afford, with its giant picture windows and beautiful views over the sea (see below), which does great deals on prices in the off season; Lawlors in Dungarvan is sweet and cosy as always; and the Tower hotel in Waterford, which has always been a treat to stay in, well it really went out of its way to get a mention in this throwaway travelblog.
The Tower has previously put me in rooms at the front, overlooking the eponymous Tower, but this time I was at the back overlooking the function suite. Which was fair enough, I'm not over-fussed by the sound of the air conditioning vents. The country and western band was a different matter though. By the time I went to bed they were well audible through the floor, singing a succession of country classics to an audience of, well, mostly silent as far as I could tell. I couldn't hear the crowd, but boy could I hear that bass. Indeed as we approached midnight I was still enjoying the bassy vibrations of Coward Of The County and The Gambler. Then it was five past midnight and, increasingly aware that I had my alarm set for 6.30 the next morning, I was starting to get a little impatient with Islands In The Stream and Nine To Five (I may now be misremembering which classic country numbers they were pounding their way through, I was trying to get to sleep). I got to sleep, which is where that fascinating anecdote ends. The next day I was told by my librarian that Monday is a big night out in Ireland. So, now you know.
Kev F Sutherland, as well as writing and drawing Pansy Potter, Bananaman, Biffo The Bear et al in The Beano, runs Comic Art Masterclasses in schools, libraries and art centres - email for details, and follow him on Facebook and Twitter. He's been writing and drawing comics for 25 years, he must know something.
I've just completed a marathon run of Comic Art Masterclasses in Ireland, and what a splendid array of comics they've all completed between them. So good, in fact, I've coloured them all up individually (lots of nights in hotel rooms, what else you gonna do?) so here they are in all their glory. And, studiously avoiding all Irish cliches, Enniscorthy came up with 6 Nuns Fight A Fiery Inferno. In Wexford they gave the cliches an even wider berth...
I worked with two classes a day in Dungarvan, Waterford, Wexford, Enniscorthy and Clongowes Wood, almost all First and Second years (that's year 7 & 8 in old money), and they managed to avoid all the usual cliches those years normally come up with.
I can't promise to add colour to every comic that's produced, and to email them to the schools, but this week's were a fun bunch that more than merited it. The process actually began on day one when, with a longer than usual lunch break, I took the opportunity to show one of the more eager comic fans how to do Photoshop colouring, as I had my laptop with me. The librarian printed out the finished result before the next class, and it was fabulous to see how impressive a 10 minute bit of colouring can be. Here was that first effort...
Actually that was the most cliched title any of this week's groups came up with. Usually you can rely on First and Second years to come up with "Lol", "Yolo", "I Don't Know" and "Your Mum". There's also a lot of in-jokes and name-calling. The closest we came to that was this...
Only after I'd produced the cover and printed out the group's copies of the comic did I learn that Soup Bowl Luke was the nickname of the cousin of one of the pupils in the class. And, worse, that the pupils in question are from the Traveller community. I was assured that neither they nor anyone is worried by this. Ireland is another country.
Possibly the sweetest, most childlike title of the week. Like I say, they avoided cliches this week, and came up with some corking ideas.
Of course they had to come up with celebrities to tread on a worm in my far-famed demonstration strip on the flipchart. A Simon Cowell-free week, I'm pleased to say. They chose instead Rihanna, Joey Essex, Morgan Freeman, Ant McPartlin, Ariana Grande, Benedict Cumberbatch, Beyonce, Barack Obama and, for possibly the only time, Jimmy Bullard out of I'm A Celebrity.
In Me Mum's Car is, I learned after the fact, was based on a Vine. Oh, ask the kids. I don't know.
Thankyou the wonderful kids of Ireland for a smashing week of comic book creativity. The challenge is now on for anyone to come up with such great ideas as you lot.
Kev F Sutherland, as well as writing and drawing Pansy Potter, Bananaman, Biffo The Bear et al in The Beano, runs Comic Art Masterclasses in schools, libraries and art centres - email for details, and follow him on Facebook and Twitter. He's been writing and drawing comics for 25 years, he must know something.
I wish I was able to give my thoughts and observations on the excellent Thought Bubble comic festival in Leeds this weekend, but having spent a whole day behind my table full of comics, drawing faces and chatting to the public, and not being able to stay for the Saturday night or the Sunday, I really hardly saw a thing.
I managed to make the Friday night drinks, and got talking to a few people (good to speak to Rich Johnston for the first time in yonks, and meet some new faces), but realised there were so many more I didn't get to see.
Comic festivals have exploded in size and number since I stopped running the Comic Festival in Bristol 10 years ago, and there's an entire new generation of independent self-publishers, many of whom seem to be making a good living from this business. I come away from this weekend's event wanting to make more of my comics, and to get myself back into the thick of the business.
En route to Leeds I did a Comic Art Masterclass day near Harrogate, and if I return next year I'd like to add more classes in the area to fund the weekend. As it was, I broke even on the hire of my table, and would have probably doubled that had I been able to stay for the second day. I'll need more titles to sell if I'm to return, but I'm certainly not short of inspiration now. I think, recently, I've been a bit clueless as to where the comics market lies, being so focussed on the old-school newsstand market of The Beano, which seems to hardly exist now. But new and alternative markets, from online through festivals to bookshops, seem to be the way to go.
I'm now writing my blog from a staff room in Dungarvan, at the start of a week in Ireland which will see me visit Waterford, Wexford, Enniscorthy and Naas. Yes, you should be jealous.
Kev F Sutherland, as well as writing and drawing Pansy Potter, Bananaman, Biffo The Bear et al in The Beano, runs Comic Art Masterclasses in schools, libraries and art centres - email for details, and follow him on Facebook and Twitter. He's been writing and drawing comics for 25 years, he must know something.
Here we have the front covers of a brand new collection of comics created by kids in my Comic Art Masterclasses in schools from Devon to North Yorkshire via Wiltshire. And I'm delighted to report that Doctor Who is enjoying a resurgence of popularity with my pupils (though, after a week in Ireland, where Doctor Who can't get arrested, it's a relief that they've even heard of it).
An interesting feature I've found over the last term, which has coincided with Peter Capaldi's first season as The Doctor, is that older pupils (year 5 and upwards) are evenly split between wanting me to draw an older Doctor (mostly Matt Smith, with a small fraction of David Tennant), whereas it's the younger pupils (year 3 and 4) who are devoutly Peter Capaldi fans. Seems you never forget your first Doctor. (Below we can see the flipchart drawings from Kentisbeare in Wiltshire, whose year 4 pupils wanted a Capaldi drawing, and Darley near Harrogate, whose year 6s wanted Matt Smith).
The celebrities they chose to tread on a worm in my demonstration strip were Simon Cowell (twice), Cheryl Cole, Taylor Swift, Bradley from The Vamps, and most imaginative suggestion of the week, Mick Jagger.
Kev F Sutherland, as well as writing and drawing Pansy Potter, Bananaman, Biffo The Bear et al in The Beano, runs Comic Art Masterclasses in schools, libraries and art centres - email for details, and follow him on Facebook and Twitter. He's been writing and drawing comics for 25 years, he must know something.
From Coventry to Somerset, these comics are the work of pupils in years 4, 5, 7 and 8, the front covers thereof. And here are some of their delightful little faces too. Delightful as primary schoolkids title suggestions always are, the saddest thing about this selection was the reminder that, of the group that suggested Spider-Pig, hardly any of them realised that the Spider-Pig song (from the Simpsons Movie) was a parody of the Spider-Man theme. It's not the first time I've found kids who thought Spider-Pig was an all-new character and not a parody, reminding us all not to over-estimate the geeky cult references that normal people and kids will be familiar with.
My Comic Art Masterclass draws on my 25 years working for everyone from
The Beano to Doctor Who & Marvel comics and teaches everyone in the
class, of whatever ability, how easy it is to write and draw comic
strips. I can work with two groups in a day, maximum 30 in each group,
and I need a minimum of two hours for each. Age 7/8 (yr3) or older only.
By the end of each session they'll have produced a comic with a strip
in by each of them, which I run off on the photocopier and they each
take a copy home, along with a caricature I'll have drawn of every one
of them.
The celebs they chose for the demonstration strip were Simon Cowell (twice), Kim Kardashian, Ant McPartlin and, most original of the week, Edina Menzel.
Kev F Sutherland, as well as writing and drawing Pansy Potter, Bananaman, Biffo The Bear et al in The Beano, runs Comic Art Masterclasses in schools, libraries and art centres - email for details, and follow him on Facebook and Twitter. He's been writing and drawing comics for 25 years, he must know something.
This week I enjoyed three days in schools in Dublin, working with high school kids from Crumlin, Tallaght and Finglas, teaching them how to draw comics. Here are some of the results.
The Minecraft comic (The World That Nobody Thought Was Real) was an interesting project where, rather than do my usual practiced introduction to comic art, I worked with pupils who'd already had my class and we tried to turn the resolutely narrative-free Minecraft into comic strip stories. This was a challenge as, when you remove the movement from animation, the characters and objects don't look like very much, and they don't speak. Amazingly we found a way, and my efforts will form part of their coursework.
The eponymous heroes of The Adventures of Leek & Charline began life as Lee and Charli - a common feature in teenage comics in my classes is that the pupils will choose their classmates as the subject (these were 1st & 2nd years, that is year 8 & 9, the hormonal minefield years). However Lee went on to not want his name on the comic, hence the addition of some extra letters and a pair of specs.
The 2-Pac comic was originally entitle 2-Pac Eats an E, and that was one of the more tolerable titles. Did I mention this week's pupils were first, second and third years, with a group of sixth formers thrown in for balance?
The celebrities they chose for the demonstration strip were Mrs Brown, Bob Marley, Elvis Presley, Johnny Depp and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Kev F Sutherland, as well as writing and drawing Pansy Potter, Bananaman, Biffo The Bear et al in The Beano, runs Comic Art Masterclasses in schools, libraries and art centres - email for details, and follow him on Facebook and Twitter. He's been writing and drawing comics for 25 years, he must know something.
How chuffed am I to have written the lead story in this year's Beano Christmas special? And for it to be drawn by Nigel Parkinson is even better. A six pager starring Dennis, Minnie and sundry other Beano stars, it's worth the entrance price on its own. But how did it look when I scribbled it out to send to the editor? I'm glad you asked...
On balance I think I prefer Nigel's version. (The rest was a typescript, I just provided a, probably unnecessary, layout sketch for the first page). Buy the Christmas Beano, on sale from all good newsagents now!
The last time I wrote a Dennis script for someone else to draw was way back in 2008 when I wrote a series of cover stories which were drawn by the great Tom Paterson during his brief stint as Beano cover artist. It was some nonsense about a mummified cat and, sadly, my name doesn't appear on it. If I ever find it in the files, I'll let you see it.
Kev F Sutherland, as well as writing and drawing Pansy Potter, Bananaman, Biffo The Bear et al in The Beano, runs Comic Art Masterclasses in schools, libraries and art centres - email for details, and follow him on Facebook and Twitter. He's been writing and drawing comics for 25 years, he must know something.
Not one but two artists fill the November slot in the Socks' 2014 art calendar, but can you identify them? Either it's our choice of artists, or the way we've done them, but nobody seems to guess these two first time. Go on, have a guess, answers below.
