Comics return to Kendal in October

Two years ago I had the pleasure of being a guest at the Lakes International Comic Art Festival in Kendal, Cumbria. A completely comics-focused event that took place in various parts of the small town and was thoroughly enjoyable and superbly organized. I won't be there this year but a fine selection of top comics folk will be. Here's the info...

The fourth Lakes International Comic Art Festival will run from 14-16 October 2016 in Kendal, Cumbria, celebrating great comic art from across the world. It is the only one of its kind in the UK taking over the whole town of Kendal, on the edge of the Lake District, for a weekend. 

Guests revealed so far are Joe Kelly, Bryan Lee O'Malley, Luke and Steve McGarry, Mick McMahon,Ken Niimura and Benoit Peeters - with the recent additions of artists Charlie Adlard, Rufus Dayglo and Duncan Fegredo; writer, artist and editor Ilya; and writers Leah Moore and John Reppion.

Joining a growing list of already-announced top international and British comics guests in Kendal in October will be Hanneriina Moisseinen, Virpi Oinonen, Ville Ranta, Johanna "Roju" Rojola and Petteri Tikkanen, along with musicians Niko Kumpuvaara and Aleksi Ranta.

Their visit is part of an extension to the Lakes Festival's rapidly-expanding Comic Creator Exchange Program with other major comics events around the globe.

The festival features comic artists from around the world, as well as performance, film, exhibitions, comic trails, workshops, master classes, live drawing and independent retailers and publishers. The events programme is bursting with opportunities to get up close and personal with some of the leading comic artists and writers from across the world – see them draw, talk about their work and bring comics to life.

A free Family Zone provides drop-in activities for all ages, alongside a series of fantastic workshops for kids and teenagers. The Lakes International Comic Art Festival brings the town together for a weekend to celebrate the amazing world of comic art.

Exhibitors in the Comics Clock Tower "marketplace" for 2016 include - to name but a few! - the Cartoonists' Club of Great Britain, Italian illustrator and cartoonist Silvia Carrus, Buzzfeed illustrator James Chapman, Disconnected Press, Forbidden Planet, the writer and artist on Rick and Morty Sarah Graley, Page 45, graphic designer and illustrator Simon Russell, Soaring Penguin and independent publisher and writer Tom Ward.

The Lakes International Comic Art Festival run 14th - 16th October 2016. Sign up for the Festival's newsletter here

Web: www.comicartfestival.com