“I don’t consider myself to be a political cartoonist, but I feel like no one can afford not to be political right now.”
Cartoonist and educator James Sturm joins the show to talk about his new graphic novel, Off Season(Drawn & Quarterly), the story of a disintegrating marriage set against the backdrop of the 2016 election. We get into his artistic choices for this amazing book: using anthropomorphics, designing it in a 2-panel-per-page layout, and writing a story so convincing that friends thought his own marriage was falling apart (it wasn’t). We also talk about James’ experience of starting the Center for Cartoon Studies up in Vermont and what it taught him about cartooning, finding joy in the studio, exploring visions of America in his comics (or not; it’s up for debate), treating the long VT winters as “cartooning season”, his mega-sized graphic novel that will never see the light of day and the liberation of throwing a big project overboard, the comic shops we both frequented in our youth, the revelatory experience of reading Mark Alan Stamaty‘s comics, the Indian ledger books that comprise the first American graphic novels, and a lot more (including a Brink’s heist). Give it a listen! And go buy Off Season!
“The history of comics isn’t just the history of the industry of comics. I think the people who are making comics now are going to help re-evaluate the history.”
James Sturm is an award-winning cartoonist whose books have been translated widely. His work has appeared on Slate, The New York Times, and on the cover of The New Yorker. He is also the co-founder of the Seattle newspaper, The Stranger, and the Center for Cartoon Studies, a cartooning college. James lives in Hartland, VT, with his family and two dogs. His new book is Off Season.
Cartoonist and educator James Sturm joins the show to talk about his new graphic novel, Off Season
James Sturm is an award-winning cartoonist whose books have been translated widely. His work has appeared on Slate, The New York Times, and on the cover of The New Yorker. He is also the co-founder of the Seattle newspaper, The Stranger, and the Center for Cartoon Studies, a cartooning college. James lives in Hartland, VT, with his family and two dogs. His new book is Off Season
