)
Thought Bubble 2023
Leeds Arts University are sponsoring Thought Bubble 2023, Yorkshire’s Comic Art Festival taking place from 6–12 November.
Thought Bubble is a week-long celebration of comics, illustration and more taking which takes place in venues across Yorkshire, culminating in a two-day comic convention held at the Harrogate Convention Centre from 11-12 November.
Students from across undergraduate and postgraduate degree courses will be taking part in a range of events and exhibitions throughout the festival including:
Thought Bubble Comic Convention
11–12 November, Harrogate Convention Centre
Selected students from undergraduate and postgraduate courses, including BA (Hons) Comic and Concept Art and MA Illustration with Graphic Novel and MA Worldbuilding with Creature Design will be exhibiting their work at Thought Bubble Comicon. Many recent graduates from courses including BA (Hons) Illustration, and MA Illustration with Graphic Novel and MA Worldbuilding with Creature Design will also be showcased at the convention.
BA (Hons) Comic and Concept Art will have two tables located right at the front of Redshirt Hall tables C25 - 26. We will have over 60 students across all three years selling work.
BA (Hons) Comic and Concept Art graduates Flo Woolley, Ivy Rae Robinson and Kryonsite are tabling this year. Flo Woolley & Ivy Rae Robinson will be at DSTLRY Hall C-18. Kryonsite is in Bubbleboy Hall at K17. Graduates from last years Creatives in Residence scheme will be selling their anthology comic "Wonderlust" created during the scheme, at the BA (Hons) Comic & Concept table.
BA (Hons) Comic and Concept Art comics-specialist tutors will all have their own presence at the convention. In the DSTLRY Hall will be Lecturer Dilraj Mann (A6-B), Lecturer Will Morris (B-10), and Senior Lecturer John Pearson (D-11). Lecturer James Lawrence (F6) and Senior Lecturer Mark Penman (F5) both being in the Bubble Boy Hall.
Creative Networks: Molly Knox Ostertag and ND Stevenson
7 November, Leeds Arts University
Molly Knox Ostertag, award-winning cartoonist and writer, and ND Stevenson, creator of Netflix 2023 hit film Nimona, will be interviewed by MA Illustration with Graphic Novel Course Leader, Beth Duggleby. The event is free but booking is essential as places are limited. Click here to find out more and book your place.
Doctor Simpo presents…
11–12 November, Harrogate Convention Centre
Doctor Simpo, aka Ben Simpson, BA (Hons) Senior Lecturer and MA Course Leader is running two free children’s workshops, Collaborative Comix Jam for kids and Simplified Semiotics for Kids! More information about the Kids Zone is on the Thought Bubble website.
Beth Duggleby: Lullabies in Lockdown
11–12 November, Harrogate Convention Centre
A touring exhibition curated by MA Illustration with Graphic Novel Course Leader, Beth Duggleby will be shown throughout the comic convention festival. Lullabies in Lockdown A group exhibition of illustration exploring the frontiers of new parenthood during the Covid pandemic and stories of the babies that stayed at home. Many of the artists featured will also be exhibited at Thought Bubble.
From Tiger to Anansi
6–12 November, online
A community animation project from Eddie Lockhart, Photography and Film instructor, and Ben Simpson, MA Worldbuilding with Creature Design Course Leader, will be screened on the Thought Bubble website throughout the event.
Sketching Spotlight Panel
Saturday 11 November, Harrogate Convention Centre
Senior BA (Hons) Comic and Concept Art Lecturer Mark Penman will be co-hosting the Sketching Spotlight Panel during the convention alongside current BA (Hons) Comic and Concept Art students.
Rainbow Age
Tuesday 7 November, Leeds Library
Current students and graduates of BA (Hons) Comic and Concept Art will also be taking part in Rainbow Age during the festival at the Leeds Library.