Tag Archives: toronto comic arts festival

Europe Comics Tours Canada

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Europe Comics, the all digital all European graphic novel venture, will be bringing four European creators to Canada for a series of events on May 10-20.

French creators Lewis Trondheim (Dungeon, NBM; Poppies of Iraq, D&Q; Maggy Garrisson, Europe Comics) and Brigitte Findakly (Poppies of Iraq, D&Q), Spaniard Nico Naranjo (Toucan Patrol, Europe Comics) and Belgian Wauter Mannaert (Weegee – Serial Photographer, Conundrum Press; El Mesias, Europe Comics) will be featured guests at TCAF. After TCAF, Lewis Trondheim and Brigitte Findakly will travel to Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver for a series of public events and school workshops, ending their tour at VanCAF.

Full details below and here and here.

2 Weeks until the Toronto Comic Arts Festival 2018!

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The 2018 Toronto Comic Arts Festival is just two weeks away, and this incredible and international celebration of comic books—graphic novels, manga, bande desinee, WHATEVER you want to call them—is going to be a can’t miss event for comic fans in the city and around the world!

With a diverse and exciting line-up of programs leading up to the festival, amazing panels and interviews throughout the weekend, and more than 400 authors and publishers from over 20 countries around the world in attendance, TCAF has grown to be one of the most respected and well-attended pure comic book events in North America, with PLENTY of opportunities for great stories to be told. 

Over 100 Debuting Books!

TCAF 2018 will see more than 100 new works released in conjunction with the festival! And better yet, all authors in attendance to sign and share their works with you!

  • French author Yvan Algabé sees his powerful treatise on contemporary society released in English for the first time in Yellow Negroes and Other Imaginary Creators, by the New York Review of Books.
  • Toronto’s Georgia Webber releases her long-awaited memoir, detailing her battle with vocal disability, DUMB, by Fantagraphics Books.
  • Japan’s Inio Asano metaphorizes the heavy burden hanging over the heads of the next generation when massive alien spacecraft invade… and then do nothing, floating omniously over Tokyo for years, in Dead Dead Demons Dededede Destruction from VIZ Media

Get a full list of debuts at the convention website.

Two Knights at TCAF!

Did you know that two different TCAF Featured Guests have been KNIGHTED?! It’s true!

Françoise Mouly was decorated by the French government as a Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters in 2001! She’s the groundbreaking editor of venerable alt-comix classic RAW Magazine, the art editor of The New Yorker, and the co-founder and publisher of children’s graphic novel publisher TOON BOOKS, which will celebrate its 10th Anniversary at TCAF!

Lewis Trondheim was also decorated by the French government as a Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters, in 2005! He has created or co-created over 100 French-language graphic albums, and is attending TCAF with his wife and creative partner Brigitte Findakly, in support of their memoir and historical chronicle, Poppies of Iraq (Drawn & Quarterly).

Check out the full list of guests.

Special Events Galore!

TCAF is about the authors and the books, but we present so many exciting ways to interact with the medium of comics! From gallery exhibitions to a “Comic Book Opera”, the TCAF 2018 programme is full of great events!

  • Hockey Noir: A Comic Book Opera: TCAF has teamed with ECM+ and Continuum to present a brand new Opera, HOCKEY NOIR, with Libretto by Canadian Graphic Novelist Cecil Castellucci! Danger, passion, and a Toronto/Montreal hockey rivalry! Tickets now available!
  • Toronto: Past, Present, and Future: This year’s TCAF Kick-Off event at the Appel Salon on Friday May 11 at 6:30pm will feature generations of Toronto cartoonists including Fiona Smyth (Sneaky Dee’s exterior artist), Ho Che Anderson (KING), and Hartley Lin (Young Frances) talking about the history of graphic novels in Toronto, and the future for artists in the city.
  • TCAF Turns 15: This is the Festival’s 15th Anniversary, and its 10th held at Toronto Reference Library. We’re celebrating with the largest and most internationally diverse list of exhibitors ever!

Get the full list of events.

Comics for all ages and interests!

TCAF is a great big event that contains so many different styles, scenes, and cliques within it that every audience is bound to find something to enjoy at the Festival!

  • TCAF Kids Area: Head to the Forest Hill Ballroom of the Marriott Bloor-Yorkville for 2 full days of programming for kids! Famous picture book and graphic novel creators will be reading their books, running crafts, drawing with kids, and so much more!
  • Wowee Zonk!: The best in outre, avant-garde, and outsider comics art comes to TCAF courtesy of the Wowee Zonk collective. Check out the Browsery Space in Toronto Reference Library!
  • Zineland Terrace: New for TCAF 2018, ZINELAND TERRACE will be taking over the upper level of the venerable Cumberland Terrace, at Cumberland and Yonge Street, with dozens of Toronto and international zinesters showing their wares! Including workshops on screenprinting and making your own zine!

Celebrate Image Comics’ 25th Anniversary at TCAF 2017!

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TCAF, The Toronto Comic Arts Festival, has announced that it will host a celebration for the 25th Anniversary of groundbreaking comic book publisher Image Comics!

Special guests, amazing programming, and even a dedicated venue will thrill fans old and new alike at TCAF 2017, taking place May 13th and 14th, 2017, in Toronto, Canada. Image Comics is the largest publisher of creator-owned comic books in North America, with notable titles including The Walking Dead, Saga, The Wicked + The Divine, and Toronto’s own Sex Criminals, reaching beyond ‘mainstream’ comics’ traditional borders to bring in new readers, promote fairer contracts, and publish some great work!

The Image 25th Anniversary Party @ The Masonic Temple

For two days in May, Image Comics creators, staff, and friends, will take over TCAF’s newest venue The Masonic Temple (introduced in 2016), located at 888 Yonge Street, a block north of TCAF’s main location Toronto Reference Library. The Image 25th Anniversary Party at The Masonic Temple is a fully accessible venue which will feature both all-day exhibitors and timed creator signings, as well as panel discussions, live drawing, special ‘talk show’ segment, and more!

The Image 25th Anniversary Party @ The Masonic Temple runs Saturday, May 13, from 10am to 5pm, and Sunday, May 14, from 11am to 5pm, and as with almost every TCAF event, admission will be FREE!

Please note: This is opening 1 hour later than TCAF’s main venue at Toronto Reference Library. At points during the day they may need to stagger entry to conform to fire code regulations. Make sure to dress as warm as you need to and bring an umbrella, just in case you’re waiting outside!

Over Two-Dozen Image Comics Creators!

Since its creation in 2003, each TCAF has welcomed a number of comics creators who’ve published with Image Comics, but this year we’re blowing the roof off with more than 2 dozen creators (and maybe more to come…)! Check out this amazing guest list:

  • Charlie Adlard
  • Ivan Brandon
  • Wes Craig
  • Valentine De Landro
  • Brenden Fletcher
  • Cameron Stewart
  • Babs Tarr
  • Brandon Graham
  • Emma Rios
  • Farel Dalrymble
  • Simon Roy
  • Meredith Gran
  • Karl
  • Leslie Hung
  • Bryan Lee O’Malley
  • Jason Latour
  • Jeff Lemire
  • Marjorie Liu
  • Sana Takeda
  • Sloane Leong
  • Andrew MacLean
  • Jamie McKelvie
  • Kagan McLeod
  • Djibril Morrisette-Phan
  • Sean Phillips
  • Chip Zdarsky
  • Jim Zub

Mark off May 13th and 14th for TCAF 2017 at all of their venues, including Toronto Reference Library, The Marriott Bloor Yorkville, and The Image Comics Anniversary Party @ The Masonic Temple!

Comic Book Creators Converge on Toronto! Announcing TCAF 2017, May 13-14! The Toronto Comic Arts Festival

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TCAF, The Toronto Comic Arts Festival has announced a ton of its Featured Guests and programs for the 2017 Festival, running May 13 & 14, 2017!

Returning once again to Toronto Public Library’s flagship branch, Toronto Reference Library, as well as official hotel The Marriott Bloor Yorkville, and new venue The Masonic Temple, TCAF 2017 is set to welcome more than 400 comic book authors from around the world, and will feature more than 50 comics and graphic novels making their debut at the Festival!

If you’ve missed the announcements on Twitter, Facebook, and torontocomics.com, keep reading for an overview of TCAF 2017!

Canadian Guests

  • David Collier, creator of numerous beloved alternative comics works and unique projects including the recent Colville Comics for the Art Gallery of Ontario will return to TCAF to debut his new graphic novel Morton: A Cross-Country Rail Journey from Conundrum Press.
  • Katherine Collins, creator of Neil The Horse will be on hand to be inducted into Giants Of The North Canadian Cartoonists Hall of Fame, and debut The Collected Neil The Horse from Coundrum Books.
  • Dave Cooper, cartoonist, fine artist, and animator, will attend TCAF in support of the anniversary edition of Ripple: A Predilection for Tina, and to screen the new animated feature based on his work ‘The Absence of Eddy Table.’
  • Guy Delisle, author of PyongYang, Jerusalem, and The Burma Chronicles, will be on hand to launch his new graphic novel Hostage from Drawn & Quarterly, and will be the subject of an art exhibition on the third floor of Toronto Reference Library.
  • Jeff Lemire, award winning creator of Essex County, Underwater Welder, Sweet Tooth, and the acclaimed recent release The Secret Path (with Gord Downie) will launch his new graphic novels Roughneck, from Simon & Shuster, and A.D.: After Death, from Image Comics. Jeff Lemire is also the illustrator of one of TCAF 2017’s three official posters!
  • Jillian Tamaki, Governor General’s Award winning co-creator of Skim and This One Summer, and creator of SuperMutant Magic Academy, returns to TCAF to launch her new collection Boundless, from Drawn & Quarterly.

American Guests

  • Gabrielle Bell (USA), author of The Voyeurs, and Lucky, will be on hand to launch her new book Everything is Flammable.
  • Gary Panter (USA), alternative/underground comics legend and set designer for beloved TV Show Pee Wee’s Playhouse will return to TCAF to launch his new graphic novel Songy of Paradise, from Fantagraphics Books.
  • Nate Powell (USA), creator of the graphic novels You Don’t Say, Any Empire, and Swallow Me Whole, and illustrator of the acclaimed civil rights memoir MARCH, with John Lewis and Andrew Aydin, returns to TCAF for the release of Nate Powell’s Omnibox, a collection of works from Top Shelf Productions.
  • Ngozi Ukazu (USA) returns to TCAF to celebrate the release of the second volume of her beloved gay hockey comic series Check, Please!

International Guests

  • Paolo Bacilieri (Italy), will attend in support of his new graphic novel FUN from SelfMadeHero, and be featured in an exhibition of his original art with the support of The Italian Cultural Institute.
  • Penelope Bagieu (France), author of Exquisite Corpse, will launch her new graphic novel California Dreamin’, a biography of The Mama’s and The Papas’s singer Cass Elliot, from First Second Books.
  • Joe Decie (UK), returning to TCAF with the support of The Lakes International Comics Festival, in support of his new graphic novel Collecting Sticks, from publisher Jonathan Cape.
  • Igor Hofbauer (Croatia), best known for creating all of the album artwork for the Juno-nominated ‘Afraid of Heights’ by Canadian rockers Billy Talent, will make his TCAF debut with the graphic novel Mister Morgen, from Conundrum Press.
  • Jason (Norway), is a fan favourite comics creator and is returning to TCAF in support of his brand new graphic novel On The Camino, from Fantagraphcs Books.
  • Michael Nybrandt (Denmark) attends TCAF in support of his English language debut Dreams in Thin Air from Conundrum Press, the story of the formation of the Tibetan National Soccoer Team, with a preface by His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
  • Gengoroh Tagame (Japan), internationally renown creator of Japanese gay erotica, will return to TCAF to debut the English-language translation of My Brother’s Husband, the Japan Media Arts Award-winning story of gay struggle and acceptance in Japan, published in English by Pantheon Books. My Brother’s Husband will be the subject of a small exhibit of original art displayed in the Browsery at Toronto Reference Library.
  • Marcelino Truong (France, Vietnam), will be at TCAF in support of his memoir Such A Lovely Little War: Saigon 1961-63, published by Arsenal Pulp Press.

These are just some of the more than 40 Featured Guests and 400 exhibitors from around the world that will be participating in TCAF 2017! For the full list, head to torontocomics.com!

Special Program: Celebrating Toronto Publisher Koyama Press’ 10th Anniversary!

Vital Toronto publishing house Koyama Press turns 10 in 2017, and they’re making this TCAF a big one! With 6 essential debuts from some of the freshest voices in the medium, Koyama Press will be properly celebrated through a variety of panel discussions and an amazing art show, and will have artists in attendance from throughout the history of the company! Featured creators include:
  • Eleanor Davis (USA), author of the Award Winning short story collection How To Be Happy will be on hand to debut the new graphic novel You & A Bike & A Road, from Koyama Press. Eleanor Davis also illustrated one of TCAF 2017’s Official Festival Posters!
  • An Nguyen & Jane Mai (Canada & USA), this duo will be on hand to launch their exploration of Japan’s Gothic Lolita Culture, So Pretty, Very Rotten. This book will also be the subject of a gallery showing of original art and materials at The Japan Foundation Toronto from May 11th through May 16th. 
  • Other featured Koyama Press creators include Eric Kostiuk Williams (Canada), launching their new Toronto-focused queer graphic novel Condo Heartbreak Disco; Jesse Jacobs (Canada), launching their psychedelic new graphic novel Crawl Space; Keiler Roberts (USA), launching their new graphic memoir of motherhood and artistry Sunburning; Ben Sears (USA), launching their new action adventure graphic novel Volcano Trash.
  • Plus look for Koyama mainstays John Martz, Patrick Kyle, Michael DeForge, Ginette LaPalme, Dustin Harbin, and more exhibiting at the rest of the show!

Special Program: NBM Turns 40!

TCAF is excited to host a special celebration of the 40th Anniversary of NBM Publishing! Publisher Terry Nantier will be on hand for the company and he’ll be joined by comics luminaries including , and they will celebrate through programming and author appearances including:
  • Sandrine Revel (France), visiting TCAF for the first time in support of her book Glenn Gould: A Life Off-Tempo!
  • Rick Geary (USA), author of the historical true-crime series’ A Treasury of Murder… amongst a luminous career of achievements!
  • Metaphrog (Scotland), the Franco-Scottish duo of Sandra Marrs and John Chalmers have been delighting audiences for decades, through their Louis series, and their beautifully illustrated new children’s fairytales!

Special Program: German Comics Pavilion presented by Comic-Salon Erlangen, in partnership with The Goethe Institut Toronto

TCAF is partnering with premiere German comics event Comic-Salon Erlangen, taking place every two years in Erlangen, Germany! The first part of the partnership is an exhibition of German comics and artwork at TCAF 2017 in The Appel Salon at Toronto Reference Library. Produced with the support of The Goethe Institut in Toronto, this exhibition will feature an original art show, information on the Erlangen Comics event, a selection of German-language graphic novels, and participating artists including:
  • Ulli Lust (Austria/Germany), returning to TCAF for the first time since 2013! Ulli is the award-winning creator of Today is the Last Day of the Rest of Your Life, and the forthcoming book Voices in the Dark. 
  • Anna Haifisch (Germany), visiting Toronto in support of her independent comics work and her comic strip The Artist, featured on Vice.com.
  • Martina Schradi (Germany), an author, cartoonist, and cerified psychologist. Martina Schradi will be curating a special exhibition on German LGBT comics art in this space, including her own work Oh, I See?!.
  • Rotopol Press (Germany), the German art comics publisher will return for TCAF 2017 and will welcome publisher Rita Furstenau and cartoonist Carmen Jose.

Free TCAF Digital Comic Available Again for a Limited Time Only

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Earlier this year, the Sequential digital graphic novel app for iPad and The Toronto Comic Arts Festival (TCAF) gave away free copies of the TCAF 2015 Digital Comics Anthology, an over 50-page digital anthology featuring brand new, specially-commissioned work on the theme of Toronto or TCAF from a range of comic artists including: Noah Van Sciver, Hunt Emerson, Barbara Stok, Elaine M. Will, Joe Decie, Simon Moreton, Margreet de Heer and Kristyna Baczynski, with Charles Burns’ poster art as the cover.

Due to high demand, TCAF and Sequential have decided to make the anthology available for download again until the end of June.

For each free download of the comic anthology Sequential will be making a contribution to TCAF, supporting the festival’s mission to promote great indie comics and creators and help advance the medium.

The anthology also features a gallery of TCAF posters from Seth, Darwyn Cooke and many more.

The free Sequential iPad app now features a special section featuring creators who were exhibiting at TCAF 2015, with discounts of 50% or more of many of the books.

tcaf sequential 1

Toronto Comic Arts Festival 2015 Announces Guests and Details

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The Toronto Comic Arts Festival 2015 has started to announce some of the guests that’ll be attending this year’s show. Over 300 cartoonists from Canada and around the world are on their way to Toronto this May, to celebrate the very best in comics, graphic novels, bandes dessinées, and manga! A week-long Festival of readings, launches, and art events culminating in a massive, FREE two-day exhibition at Toronto Reference Library, May 9th and 10th, 2015! The Toronto Comic Arts Festival 2015 takes place Saturday May 9, 9am-5pm, and Sunday May 10, 11am-5pm, at the Toronto Reference Library, 789 Yonge Street. Attendance is FREE to the public.

For more than a decade, The Toronto Comic Arts Festival has showcased the incredible comics art being made here in Canada, and invited the attention of the international cartooning community. The 2015 programme continues to build on those successes, with an increase in programming, and a renewed focus on Canadian cartoonists from coast to coast!

TCAF 2015 will welcome a remarkable array of authors! Highlights from the author guests include:

Charles Burns: Creator of Black Hole, one of the most important graphic novels of all time, Burns will be at TCAF to celebrate his recently completed new graphic novel series X’ed Out (Pantheon Books).

Eleanor Davis: An outstanding cartoonist and editorial illustrator (The New Yorker, New York Times), Davis’ recent graphic novel release How To Be Happy (Fantagraphics) is one of the best graphic novels of 2014, and TCAF is thrilled to welcome this cartoonist to Toronto.

Gurihiru: This dynamic cartooning duo hails from Tokyo, Japan, and is beloved in North America for their original graphic novels set in the universe of Avatar: The Last Airbender (Dark Horse).

Lucy Knisley: A long-time supporter of the Festival, Knisley’s memoirs and travelogues are well-loved across the continent. Knisley attends as a Featured Guest in 2015, in support of her new travelogue/graphic novel Displacement (Fantagraphics).

Scott McCloud: Creator of the essential comics text Understanding Comics, TCAF will welcome McCloud to Toronto in support of his acclaimed new graphic novel The Sculptor (First Second Books).

Barbara Stok: Hailing from The Netherlands, Stok has an impressive collection of graphic novels to her credit. TCAF is happy to welcome her as a Featured Guest of the Festival in 2015, in conjunction with her debut English-language graphic novel release Vincent (SelfMadeHero), an important and critically-praised biography of Vincent Van Gogh.

Jillian Tamaki: With her cousin Mariko Tamaki, Jillian Tamaki’s 2014 TCAF Debut This One Summer (Groundwood/First Second) took home a Governor General’s Award, a Caldecott Honor, and a Printz Honor. In 2015, Jillian Tamaki will release SuperMutantMagicAcademy (Drawn & Quarterly), her hilarious new graphic novel.

Chip Zdarsky: Hometown favourite and emerging international superstar Zdarsky (a.k.a. Steve Murray) is welcomed as a Featured Guest for 2015! Best-known for his ground-breaking comic series Sex Criminals (with writer Matt Fraction), spring 2015 will see the launch of his new series Kaptara (Image Comics) with fellow Toronto illustrator Kagan McLeod, and a relaunch of Marvel Comics’ Howard The Duck.

And these are just the first nine featured guests among the more than 300 Canadian and International cartoonists participating in the 2015 Festival.  Featured guests will continue to be announced through February and March, with special guests from France, Italy, Germany, Japan, and the U.S. and Canada still to be revealed!

TCAF 2015 will also feature several programming spotlights, including a special tribute to esteemed Canadian graphic novel published Drawn & Quarterly, on the occasion of their 25th Anniversary. Additional Programs will be announced in February and March, including the CSSC-SCEBD Academic Conference, Library & Educator Day, Word Balloon Academy, Comics Vs. Games 4, Gallery Showings, Screenings, and much more.

Toronto Mayoral Candidate David Soknacki Went to TCAF

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Are geek conventions the new campaign ground for political candidates? Toronto Mayoral candidate David Soknacki spent part of his day at the Toronto Comics Arts Festival.

Current Toronto Mayor, the disgrace(d) Rob Ford helped kick off last years Fan Expo by arm wrestling Hulk Hogan.

Are conventions the new political campaign ground?

Darwyn Cooke Takes Aim at The Hunter in a New Way

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It’s no secret that Darwyn Cooke has garnered wide acclaim, including multiple Eisner and Harvey awards, adapting Donald E. Westlake’s world of Parker into graphic novels. But what should catch your attention is that the acclaimed writer/artist is providing all-new illustrations for the classic Parker novels by Richard Stark (Westlake’s pen name), presented for the first time in a deluxe format. The series will be released in chronological order, and launch with The Hunter, the inaugural Parker story. Each book will contain 10 gorgeous paintings by Cooke, and, with the design and typography overseen by the renowned artist, this series promises to be a stylish tour-de-force.

Parker: The Hunter, will be available everywhere this June. But the debut of the book will come earlier as it makes a special advance unveiling on May 10th & 11th
at the Toronto Comic Arts Festival. Cooke, a special guest of the show, will be appearing both days to the sign the book, which features a unique dust jacket and signature plate.

The Hunter debuted in 1962. Stark’s resilient creation would become one of the most influential American literary characters of the 20th century. The crime-infested world of Parker has been translated to the screen multiple times feature films like Point Blank, Payback, The Outfit and, most recently, Parker.

Darwyn Cooke and IDW Publishing have teamed up to release four graphic novel adaptations thus far: The Hunter, The Outfit and The Score. The fourth, Slayground was released in December 2013 to high praise and critical acclaim

Lauded as a classic of the genre, The Hunter follows Parker on a cold-blooded mission of revenge. Betrayed by those closest to him, Parker sets out for retribution in a world of corruption, violence, and retribution. Whether you’re a fan of Stark, Cooke, or both, Parker: The Hunter will be an essential addition to any library this June.

Cover of the TCAF Limited dust jacket

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