A little update

I tried my hand at teaching last week. I had a comix workshop at Metropolia comprehensive. In five days, I had the pleasure of instructing, helping and seeing 32 pages of comix being produced by my 18 students.

The idea of the workshop was to write, draw and print our own zine, which we did. The zine´s name is "Rocket change", which came about when I suggested "Pocket change" and one student yelled "ROCKET change!". Everybody went "Yay!" and we had a name for our zine.

We printed 50 copies, of which you can see the cover here:



Here´s the intro-text from yours truly:

The zine you are holding in your hands is the result of a workshop at Metropolia, Helsinki between monday 14th and friday 17th of October 2008.

This was a first for all of us. My first teaching experience, first time making comics for most of the students. It´s been a real kick to meet students and see the comics come to life from scratch.

The theme we decided to explore here is CHANGE and all that it can mean. Anything from change in time, to Barack Obama´s take on change, to Jack the Ripper in love.

We got minotaurs, drugs, diapers, guinea pigs with knives, cowboys, porn, divorce, suicide, naked grandmas, murder, nails, babies, boozing and more drugs.

Some of the best humor and art comes from dark places. If we can´t laugh at the bad stuff, then we really are in trouble.



Apart from that, I´m drawing comix for FST´s brilliant Boktid again. Hardcore schedule before the autumn season premiere next month. I´ve been working more analog than ever, with cheapo brushes and perfumed chinese ink. Not yet approaching José Munóz or Comés caliber, but I am trying.

Then we have the gigs this weekend. Klub Kalma was as always a huge pleasure. Dubrovnik is a classy place and Asko was our savior at the mixing table when the original soundman couldn´t make it. A lovely eve was had by all.

Liberté is the first time I had the chance to see Can Can Heads, which played ahead of us. They were utterly fantastic. Everyone has to listen to that band. Bonus points for having the best dancer ever.

And yesterday I tried to revive the economy by calling for more positivity in media. I myself contributed by making a picture of an infant on a rainbow.

I mean, when 700 billion ++ of free money for the upstanding citizens of Wall street, doesn´t work, what works then?