ARC Panels
About this Event
ARC Panels - Friday July 10th, 10.30am - 6.30pm
The Hub, 42 Bonar Road, Peckham, London SE15 5FB
About
What does it mean to be making contemporary print-based comics today? This day of panel talks is a chance for the international comics community to discuss their experiences and debate the varied concerns shared within it. The panellists include creators, publishers, academics and curators. The panels will cover themes such as small press heritage, exhibiting comics, contemporary fantasy, the international publishing landscape, and connections between music, performance and comics.
Tickets - PLEASE READ
We really encourage audience members wanting to attend ARC Panels to come for the full day, in which case please select the ‘full day’ ticket option when reserving your place. (you don’t have to also reserve individual time slots)
That said, we do have a capacity for the space so if you aren’t able to attend the full day of talks please select as many of the talks you are able to attend when checking out. (do not also select a full day ticket)
Although tickets are free, we want as many people to have the opportunity to attend as possible so if your plans change, please let us know so we can offer the seat to someone else.
Details
The day will run from 10.30am - 6.30pm with each panel running for 50 minutes to 1 hour followed by a short Q&A. There will be 15 minute breaks between each panel and a 45 minute break from 12:45 - 1:30 with time to head into Peckham for lunch.
We will provide teas, coffees and biscuits throughout the day and there is access to a kitchen within the space.
The day will finish with a performance from A.T. Pratt at 17:30.
More information about the ARC Festival London programme at .
Agenda
🕑: 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM
Art, Poetry, Music – Visualising Time and Performance
Info: Comics are generally compared with literature or film, but what if comics were thought of as a kind of music or performance? Here to investigate this idea and its relationship to how sound, time and memory is represented on the page are four contemporary comics artists working with and across the disciplines of comics, music and performance; Anaïs Sière, Anu Ambasna, Josephine M. K. Edwards and Miranda Smart. The discussion will be chaired by Dr Maggie Gray, author of Art History for Comics: Past, Present and Potential Futures.
🕑: 11:45 AM - 12:45 PM
International Publishers
Info: International Publishers – Opportunities and Pitfalls of Print Based Publishing in the 21st Century. Indie and alternative comics publishers have a justified reputation for tenacity, having emerged from two decades where the death of print was regularly pronounced. What are the opportunities and challenges facing publishers on the international scene? Is the landscape of audience, distribution and funding in the west different for those in the Global South? We have invited representatives from international publishers Cram Books (US), PageMasters (UK), Peow2 (Sweden) and SelfMadeHero (UK), to share their experiences. The panel will be chaired by Dr Andrea Aramburú, editor of the recent open access essay collection Comics and the Global South.
🕑: 01:30 PM - 02:45 PM
UK Small Press – History and Heritage
Info: Traditionally cheap, low-brow and throw away, Thierry Groensteen characterized comics as an "art without memory". This panel considers the particularly ephemeral nature of UK minicomics and how we remember them. Panellists include Ed Pinsent, Paul Gravett and Woodrow Phoenix, three key players in the 80s and 90s wave of small press comics. They are joined by Dr Ian Horton, Sarah Mahurter and Blanca Garcia Paja from LCC’s Library and Special Collections, talking in particular around the Les Coleman Collection - an archive preserving underground minicomics. Chairing the panel will be Douglas Noble of Dark & Golden Books, a publisher bringing key works of 80s and 90s small press to a modern audience.
🕑: 03:00 PM - 04:00 PM
Contemporary Fantasy
Info: Fantasy comics have enjoyed a resurgence in print-based comics in recent years, transcending the origins of the genre to become a high production form rich in visual and material experimentation. Our panel will unpack the impulses behind this development. What does Fantasy allow you to explore, what is the audience behind the renaissance, and do we really need to overthink it? Joining the panel will be Lando from the collective Decadence, Simone from the publisher Hollow Press, and the comics creators Leomi Sadler and Linnea Sterte.
🕑: 04:15 PM - 05:15 PM
White Walls - Exhibiting Comics
Info: How do you show comics in a gallery? What are the challenges of exhibiting comic originals? In contemporary forms of comics making are there even any ‘originals’ to show? In this discussion we will hear from panellists with recent experience of addressing these questions. Olivia Ahmad, Artistic Director of the newly opened Quentin Blake Centre for Illustration and Paul Gravett, curator of its inaugural Queer as Comics Exhibition, Kat Chapman of Avery Hill whose Vision & Labour: Making Comics – The Art of Avery Hill Publishing show at the Mercer Gallery opened at Thought Bubble 2025, and Joe Kessler, whose second Mote show at Amp Gallery running from Thursday, July 9th, until Sunday, July 12th, is part of the ARC Festival programme. Chairing the panel will be Dr Gareth Brookes, author of Reading Comics Through the Body.
🕑: 05:30 PM - 06:15 PM
The Comic Book Musicals of A.T. PRATT and friends
Where is it happening?
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
GBP 0.00
