Visited Stockholm International Comic Festival 2019

I rode my bicycle over to Konstfack where this year’s Stockholm International Comic Festival is held – and had a blast.

I’ve written previously on my blog about the earlier iterations the comic festival back in 2015 & 2018. Visiting the festival is fun and inspiring. you get introduced to both amateur and professional comic artists and writers.

Previously I’ve got to talk to mainly Swedish comic creators at the Comic Festival. This year, 2019, I’ve got to meet great creators and organizers from Spain, Denmark, Portugal, Poland and Sweden. And meeting up with my mate, Comic illustrator Thomas Allwin exhibiting his work.

Thomas Allwin got a great table showing his artwork made for Lady Phantom. A comic written by New York City based Comic Writer Julie K Taylor and illustrated of course by Thomas Allwin. Second issue is out and met a reading audience already. Here at The festival it gets a well worth setting, high tempo and broad presentation to a wider audience in two days. To showcase ones work like this is often both rewarding and sometimes a downer. All depending on how exposure and interaction you get with people. Which means you as a creator has to create quality work and being approachable to the visitors. Thomas, he worked the table like a star. And was awarded for it. People liked his stuff and him.

He got excellent help from his friend and assistant Nikki who helped him. Connecting with readers and fans is fun and awarding most of the times. I’ve followed Thomas and Julies comic Lady Phantom before it first got published.

To see issue number 1 and 2 together was great fun. I know the hard work Thomas Allwin as an illustrator put down on this project is quite massive. And four more issues is being worked on. Quite an adventure for such a small team.

To see something from the start grow, come alive and manifested this way – yes, Lady Phantom is well worth looking into. A page turner.

Was glad to meet up with illustrator collegue Carolina Grönholm who alsoexibited at the Stockholm COmic Festival, together with her sister. Had a nice talk with both of them. Check out their great work.

I got to talk with comic creators Andy K. from Denmark and Catarina ‘Cat’ Azevedo from Portugal. Really nice people who make fun and well executed art. And in the comics word its always nice when people are approachable and interact with you as a visitor interested in their work. It vouch for better conversations about their work. And Andy and Catarina really made a good job. They never forgot the other creators and comic student colleagues. And pointed out the work in front of me. Comic work made by others on their table. Visiting their portfolios online gave me an even better sense of their work. I wish they had shown more of that at the fair. Maybe have larger prints of a comic panel at hand. Its easier maybe to sell smaller pieces, but to give a better broader understanding on their style and way they work, you have to look at their website. In that sense they risk loosing an opportunity. They should have a business card or postcard, QR Code or something to give visitors immediately. In this way they should study how my mate Thomas Allwin did not far from their table. He was really prepared.

Their school in Viborg, Denmark – The Animation Workshop. And their own websites
Andy K. and Catarina ‘Cat’ Azevedo

I quite like their art and hope they continue working with comics and illustration.

Walking down the hallway to the far end, passing tons of tables with both amateur and establised comic artists gives a nice atmosphere and experience.

I was exposed by a wide variety of styles and work from Spain. What a nice surprise to see them there. IN this folder/brochure you can see a small selection of work. A collection of work by those who participated in Comicnostrum comic festival in Mallorca, Spain. I highly recommend visiting the website link to explore even more of their work online. SO much great illustration work to explore, buy and get inspired by. Dont hesitate, head over to Mallorca’s comic association for more!

Lots of wonderful inspiring work. To learn that one of the prints i looked at, with work by Illustrator José Muñoz , inspired Frank Miller with his own work, was new to me. What an honor to being the inspiration for Frank Miller, who is of course one of my own big inspirations. To see work by someone he himself got inspired by, was quite cool. A little gem. Lady with black hair and dress with red/orange background in the picture below.

Joan and Laura who manage Comicnostrum , as well as being in person at the stand at Stockholm International Comic Festival were really nice people and easy to talk to. Lots of fun. I got to tell them the story of how my 12 year old version learned to drink coffee on the plane to Mallorca. 12-15 cups of black coffee. Quite shaky boy taking his first steps on Mallorcas soil. And their artists and festival. If I wasn’t pressed for time, I would gladly stayed for a longer time watching and learning more about the Spanish comic scene. And I spent some time chatting with them.

Somewhere around the early 1990s I watched the Opera Aniara at the Stockholm Royal Opera. An interesting story, with less fun music I admit – and I generally love opera and classic music. I’ve never thought the music doing the story any favors. So it was fun to see Swedish comic artist Knut Larsson’s adaptation in a comic format. Aniara by Swedish writer Harry Martinson. Publisher: Kartago Förlag (Comic Book Publisher, Sweden).

I had a blast talking with Joan and Laura from Spain. And I had a blast talking and meeting the polish comic artists, comic book writer, gallerist and Patrycja, the representative from Polish Institute in Stockholm.

I got to listen to their presentation on the stage while two of them drew live, carachters from their comics. Talking about polish comics scene, the magazine called Komiks & Us. Because one of them from Poland, Hubert, draw the art for a Viking comic story, I shared some info about actual viking historical places ive been at myself. Considering Stockholm, Uppsala and it’s surrounding municipalities historically was a very important part of the vikings life, and the Comic Festival being in Stockholm, basically in areas the Vikings lived and roamed. With graves, fortresses and ancient long lost water ways not that far away. You easily bump into rune-stones for instance hiking around the nature.

I love meeting fellow creatives who are equally interested in sharing the joy and love of images and the stories. Always an intense situation getting to meet people and their art this way. Sometimes you forget people. They are placed back in your memory. Thats how life is. But people I met at this comic festival I won’t forget. I even got to hug comic artist and graphic designer Hubert Czajkowski! Great people all of them. Selected Website links, portfolios etcetera: Krzysztof Wyrzykowski Comic Artist, Sławomir Zajączkowski, Comic writer, Wojciech Cichoń Comic Artist, Hubert Czajkowski, Comic Artist and gallery Polish Comic Art and Patricia Polska Institutet

Before I had to move on home riding away with my bicycle, after being at the comic festival for almost the whole day, Hubert gave me a great printed catalog of his comics and illustrations. So it was a no-brainer to ask for a hug! I hope all had a great festive comic festival. I sure had.

Looking forward to next year’s event. It was a temporary place, to harbor the festival at Konstfack. But what a great place it was. Kulturhuset in downtown Stockholm is great. But this one wasn’t bad at all.

Viva comics! Viva art!

Have fun creating!

Stefan Lindblad

Illustrator