COMICS AS POLITICAL EXPRESSION
12 week course

The class is open to artists at any skill level. The ideas presented are narrative and conceptual and will work just as well with stick figures as with detailed realistic drawing. But the assumption is that everyone here wants to produce art, not just talk about it. Everyone in the room will be treated respectfully, and criticized constructively, as a working artist.

Comics, today, have emerged as an important art form, influencing film, politics and other aspects of culture. Many organizations today use graphic novels to draw attention to their issues. But comics have a long tradition. Cartoonists played a significant role in the American, French, and Russian revolutions, in the abolitionist, civil rights and feminist movements. Most of the pioneers of American comics were from working class backgrounds.

We will look at the many ways that artists have expressed political concerns throughout history with an eye towards seeing what techniques we can apply in our own work.

In the first month of the course there will be short assignments to help artists develop basic skills. In the middle of the course there will be several opportunities to interview activists and develop comics about their issues. In the last month artists will do a longer strip on a subject of their own choosing.

The political point of view of this course will be unapologetically anti-capitalist and anti-authoritarian. The aesthetic point of view will favor representational art and clear communication. But people of all beliefs are welcome.

This course is not accredited. The instructor does teach accredited courses at School Of Visual Arts and has 39 years of experience as a professional comic book artist and illustrator. The Instructor also has a long history of producing art used by political movements on issues of housing, police brutality, peace and the environment.

The class meets from 7:00 to 9:30 Wednesday nights starting March 11th through June 3rd. At Mayday Space 176 St Nicholas Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11237

About the Instructor:
Seth Tobocman (born 1958) is a radical comic book artist who has been living in Manhattan's Lower East Side since 1978. Tobocman is best known for his creation of the political comic book anthology World War 3 Illustrated, which he started in 1979 with fellow artist Peter Kuper. He has also been an influential propagandist for the squatting, anti-globalist, and anti-war movements in the United States. Tobocman's "Edith In Flames. World War 3 Illustrated #45" was listed under "Notable Comics" in The Best American Comics 2015.

**This course is not accredited. The instructor does teach accredited courses at School Of Visual Arts and has 39 years of experience as a professional comic book artist and illustrator. The Instructor also has a long history of producing art used by political movements on issues of housing, police brutality, peace and the environment.