Following the publication of Artists against Police Brutality, a quintessentially graphic justice project, here is a short interview between GJRA Member Bruno Conrado and Melanie Stevens, one of the creators involved in the project.
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BC: The selection
approaches a more than relevant topic, an urgent one. And, of course,
these are real stories, hard stories to deal with. In spite of it, the
comics have a similar tone of sensibility. For you, how was the process
of finding the balance
between the ‘heaviness’ of the subject and the sensibility of the final
work?
MS: For me, the key to approaching the task of creating a story that
doesn't get overwhelmed by the tragic nature of its subject matter was
to center it in the humanity of the protagonists. In real life,
terrible things have happened, but the value and
the beauty of those lives is *not* defined by the horrors that may have
cut them short. These were people who laughed and reveled in the
minutiae of daily life and worked to create and build futures. They
hoped, dreamed, triumphed and struggled just like
the rest of us. That is what I chose to focus on and highlight, rather
than the monstr
ous details and events that stole the potential contributions of these people to society, as well as the ability to see those hopes and dreams through to fruition.
ous details and events that stole the potential contributions of these people to society, as well as the ability to see those hopes and dreams through to fruition.
BC: The selection alternates comics and narratives, both very
touching. How do you see the comics medium in terms of accessibility of
information concerning the movement of “spreading the word” on Police
Brutality? What about e-comics in that same subject?
MS: I feel that there is something that is both inviting and
universal about the medium of comics. It allows the artist to curate a
potentially difficult subject matter by flattening the characters (both
literally via 2D and metaphorically removing superfluous
gravitas) and applying a stylized version of storytelling that is
visually appealing and enables the audience to jump through multiple
time periods, characters and perspectives in a very short amount of
time. This can also be applied to e-comics which, along
with the aforementioned abilities, can also be distributed and
disseminated amongst large amounts of people and accessed and shared
almost momentarily.
BC: This whole work relies on the creative freedom of it creators,
as a great example of independent art initiatives. We have been living
in social and technological contexts that allow us to express ourselves
on the subjects we find relevant - or even
urgent, such as #BlackLivesMatter and police brutality - free from old
chains that still rule, like great corporate publishers, with
alternatives like crowdfunding. Do you agree with this description? How
do you see this scenario? Are comics nowadays joining
these new creative possibilities?
MS: Yes, I completely agree. In an age in which one can own and
control their own webspace for free, an artist no longer has to wait for
traditional gatekeepers to provide them with an international platform
on which to tell their stories, voice their
concerns, or critically analyze societal norms. Also, with the advent
of social media, artists are also given the privilege and ability to
interact with other artists AND their potential audience, which allows
for stronger diversity and grassroots base support.
You can see this shift reflected in the comics industry via the
exponential rise of webcomics, independent publishers, and smaller
comics conventions that highlight self-published artists.
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See some of Melanie's comics work here.
