Kendal welcomes a stellar line-up of comic and graphic novel artists this October. Encompassing a wide reach across the colourful comic book spectrum, the third annual Lakes International Comic Art Festival will cast its gaze upon the steady handed designs of four key genres – superheroes, anime and manga, parallel worlds, and satire and comedy. The programme has something for everyone thanks to films, workshops and talks illustrating all shades of sketching, from the serious to the spectacular and from the supernatural to the downright silly. At just over an hour away by train from Manchester, or a short flight for those with that superpower, the festival is a must for fans as well as being close enough for the curious. A particular highlight is the ‘family zone’, which takes in Westmorland Shopping Centre, Kendal Library and the Brewery Arts Centre and includes workshops, presentations, comic jams, storytelling, comic-making, crafting, games, a special trail and more. There’s loads to see for free over the whole weekend, including a ‘shop window’ trail (click here for more info) as well as ticketed talks by the likes of the Guardian’s political cartoonist, Steve Bell (Fri 16 Oct, 8pm, £15), the elegant Swedish illustrator, Mattias Adolfsson whose ‘Future City’ is pictured (Sat 17 Oct, 1pm, £10 and Sun 18, 10.30am, £8) and female manga artist Kayoko Kuramochi (Sat 17 Oct, 10.30am, £8).
Fri 16 Oct – Sun 18 Oct, various venues in Kendal, Cumbria, from 6pm Fri and from 10am Sat and Sun, £8 (fourth ticket free), Tel: 01539725133, www.comicartfestival.com
- Words:
- Ian Pennington
- Published on:
- Tue 13 Oct 2015
