Step into the San Diego Comic Art Gallery in Liberty Station, and you'll be reminded of why you fell in love with comics in the first place. This gallery is fun for all ages. I spoke to gallery spokesperson Lorelei Bunjes about this unique space dedicated to comics.
What's Inside The Gallery?
According to Bunjes, "Kids go nuts for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle statues. And the free comics found throughout the gallery. If you're lucky and a staff member is in the gallery, little ones also score free Micro-Fun Packs which includes stickers and a mini-comic! The older kids (8-12) tend to get super excited about the Kevin Eastman studio. Kevin is the creator of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and the studio is filled with all of his personal memorabilia from the last 30 years. Every morning we have to clean the glass of all the little nose and fingerprints left behind." The Kevin Eastman studio allows visitors to be a fly on the wall, and see Eastman's personal items of inspiration. The room is so busy, the mom and me wanted to clean it up, but my son a future comic book artist/scientist/animal rescuer found inspiration.
Pac-Man in the House!
"The teens (and grandparents) tend to gravitate to the vintage Ms. Pac-Man machine that's locked on free play."
Can Kids Can Learn From Comics?
Lorelei says yes, "They can! There's research that shows that comics are an amazing gateway to literacy. Many struggling readers find comics to be a more approachable way to learn to read and also helps with improving reading comprehension for all readers. There also are lots of comics that have not just great fiction stories but many are also about historical events. Recently publisher Top Shelf released a wildly popular series by Congressman John Lewis titled, MARCH. It's the story about the civil rights movement in the United States."
Advice for Future Comic Book Artists
Lorelei Bunjes says "Draw draw draw! Once many years ago I overheard an old pro telling a young artist looking for tips the greatest thing about improving their skills, "Draw. You have 1,000 bad drawings in you before anything good comes out. Get them out of you so you can get to the good stuff."
Monart School of Art in Liberty Station offers cartoon classes for children age 6 & up. I spoke to Jennifer Escobedo an instructor at Monart about getting started. "Cartooning is its own art form. The techniques involved in cartooning can range from simple stick figures, e.g.. Diary of a Wimpy Kid, to advanced drawing techniques, e.g. Manga Japanese Anime & Marvel Comics. No matter the skill level, cartooning allows us to tell stories, use our imagination and relate to one another through creative expression."
Escobedo Recommends These Basic Sketching Tools to Get Started
- Light graphite pencils, such as an H or 4H grade pencil
- A sketchbook, such as by Strathmore
- A good eraser, such as a white Prismacolor brand eraser
- Fine & ultra fine Sharpies
- Markers or colored pencils, such as Primacolor brand
-Graphics of characters
Take Advantage of Friday Night Liberty
The first Friday of every month all the galleries in Liberty Station are open late, include the SDCA Gallery. What can you expect to see? Signings with comic books artists and writers and giveaways for the little ones. It's a great family activity for those with little kids through teenagers.
For More Information on the San Diego Comic Art Gallery Visit: https://www.facebook.com/sdcagallery
For Monart School of Art Visit: https://monartsandiego.com/#
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