The NYrobi Comic Fest runs for the first time at the Alliance Française Nairobi from March 12 – 15, 2024. All are welcome.
The practice of drawing characters and putting them together with words first came about in Paris where a little-known magazine used it as a filler for a blank page in 1905. The idea took off and spurred several Franco-Belgian writers like the most influential comic creators in history, Hergé (Georges Remi), to immediately adapt it as a full-fledged story-telling medium. While the Americans called it a ‘Comic’ — largely due to the humorous storylines — the Europeans called it Bande Dessinée or ‘strip art’.
This week, the team at Alliance Française Nairobi announced a new initiative called the NYrobi Comic Fest as part of its Francophonie celebrations which happen in March. This initiative will bring together those in graphic design, animators, artists, writers, and others for the period it runs. It aims to celebrate and highlight what is referred to as the 9th art in France and Belgium. It will also discuss and interrogate the state of comics and graphic novels in Kenya as well as the future of comics. It is supported by the French Government’s Creation Africa-Kenya project, which aims to strengthen the capacities of Kenyan artists across several creative industries.
Here are some of the events scheduled to run in the nation’s capital.
Tuesday: March 12
6:00pm
The Art of Anne Defreville: Illustrator, comic artist, and director.
This will be a preview of the artist’s adaptation of Joseph Kessel’s The Novel before its release in October 2024. This will be followed by a live illustration of Kenya’s fauna to music.
Wednesday, March 13
10:00 am – 12:00 noon
Status of the African Comic Market
Joëlle Epée Mandingue moderated by James Murua
15:00hrs – 17:00hrs
The Future of Comics
Moderator: Grace Kerongo.
Panellists: Paul Kelemba (Maddo), Oscar Oswe, and Naddya Oluoch-Olunya.
Thursday, March 14
6:00pm
Artists Forum
Join the conversation moderated by Marine Cavaillon (Limited Spaces) with panellists Eric Dubois (comic specialist), Joëlle Epée Mandingue (comic artist), and Kyansimire Oroni
Friday, March 15
5:00pm
Siri Ya Samaki wa Upanga screening.
An exhibition produced by the Belgian Comic Strip Centre in collaboration with Editions Blake & Mortimer & the E.P. Jacobs Foundation.
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