Ashley James

e, as South African citizens need to know our rights, regardless of who you are, poor or rich, black or white, in order to make our beautiful country a free and democratic one.”

The uniqueness of this unabashed political statement is not so much in its message as in where it was extracted. The statement ends a South African comic strip, the theme of which is the need for political cognition and liberation on the part of the South African people.

For such an overtly political message to serve as the subject matter for a comic strip seems, at the very least, noteworthy, if not completely unanticipated. But, amongst those comics featured at the “Africa Comics” exhibit in the Studio Museum in Harlem, it is no anomaly—in fact, this is where the significance of the exhibit lies.

“Africa Comics” is minimal in appearance since it is a small loft space that places host to the collection of comics, which features talent from throughout the continent. It is the first exhibit dedicated to African comic artists in the United States and was brought to the Studio Museum as a result of the collaboration between the museum and Africa e Mediterraneo, an Italian organization interested in exposing African art to the West. Calvin Reid, senior news editor at Publisher’s Weekly and one of the figures who helped bring the “Africa Comics” exhibit to the Studio Museum, calls it “an incredibly exciting opportunity” and said it came at “just the right moment…to show off a great body of work.”

“Africa Comics” features 32 artists from various African countries, but what is both striking and important about the “Africa Comics” exhibit are the themes with which the comics address. The use of the comic medium to discuss such issues such as human rights, ethnic conflict, government corruption, and indigenous history is profound in its combination of art and criticism. Though the actual artistry is appealing in each work, the message takes foreground to a background of artistic expression—a reverse not usually expected from the comic genre.

“AAAA!” MENDOZZA Y CARAMBA

In the “Africa Comics” exhibit, there are comics that tell the history of a nation, such as “Our Roots” by Paul Ribeson and Henry Nxumalo. But, politically and socially charged comics are definitely the standout feature of the exhibit. A strip by Amanvi speaks about child exploitation. A comic entitled “AAA!” by Mendozza y Caranba of the Ivory Coast depicts the story of a black man’s “good night out” cut short after having been beaten up by a mob. Another leads the reader with the final, assertive message: “Vote. Change. For the President. Vote for Change. Change your destiny, Vote. It’s hard to be a democrat when you are living under a dictatorship.”

Balancing the seriousness, there are, of course, also those comics that incorporate humor. Pahe’s “Hard to Be A Slave” is especially notable for this. One line reads: “slave child is often raped by the uncle… ‘look, my stomach is bulging, you sure it’s not pregnancy?’… ‘Now don’t panic! It’s Ascais (parasites).” It’s through comics like this one that this intersection between the importance of the message and the humor of comics can be seen. Another comic artist from South Africa named Zapiro embodies this intersection. His comics extend out from South Africa and address international issues, such as the IMF and George W. Bush, all through the use of humor.

“KOMERA” TUF

Though the standout feature of “Africa Comics” is those comics that are politically or socially oriented, the exhibit is definitely not lacking in aesthetics. For example, Kenyan Anthony Mwavgi’s artistic illustrations show sketches depicting village fixtures, such as homes and young children.

One particular artist who stands out among the canon is the more familiar-looking cartoons of Anton Kannemeyer, whose artist name is “Joe Dog.” What is distinctly familiar about his works is how similar they look to the classic American comic—one of the pieces featured here even has an Archie-like quality to it. It is a wordless black and white comic strip, which pictures a white man being chased and harassed by a black man, only to find at the end of the comic it was all just a dream. The sense of racial tensions in South Africa is shown here, and something about it makes it translatable to America as well.

On February 21, a panel discussion on “Africa Comics,” and more broadly, African and African American comics hosted by the Studio Museum was held at Columbia University. It stressed the importance of comics as a powerful statement of the African artist. Here, Kannemeyer spoke about the suppression of comic work during Apartheid in South Africa, and how his work as an artist responded to a post-Apartheid, far-from-settled South Africa. With his partner Conrad Botes, he launched Bittercomix in 1992, a publication that takes a satirical look at the sociopolitical climate of South Africa. Kannemeyer discussed his experience as a youth growing up as part of the “Africana,” which he described as the conservative whites of South Africa (as opposed to the more liberal English). It was through comics that Kannemeyer found a way to rebel and question what he was taught. He was, and still is, reacting to a society where deep inequalities and divisions have yet to be reconciled.

While the ideas of using comics as means of conveying important messages may seem somewhat tenuous, the genre has more rational appeal in doing so than one might think. Kannemeyer says comics are particularly appealing because of the literacy issue in Africa and, more psychologically, “visuals are the perfect medium to deal with difficult issues.” It is the comic’s visual aspect and its common association with harmlessness, that allows these charged comics to be received, and therefore to be used as tools to make strong points.

But while these comics are indeed intended to be very important and powerful pieces of commentary, the select and limited audience they reach only further emphasizes social inequalities and racial divides. Bittercomix is an example of the struggle for readership characteristic of African comic artists. It is sold at a few specialty bookstores around South Africa, each issue printed in only about 1500 to 2000 copies. Bittercomix is now being published overseas in Europe, but the United States has yet to pick up on the magazine. In South Africa, these comics are often received negatively and assessed critically. Kannemeyer says he is “very much hated among Africans because of the work I do.”

Even the “Africa Comics” exhibit itself shows just how hard it is to get one’s comics to the public. Those that were chosen for the exhibit were those that had the best access in contacting the Africa e Mediterraneo organization, and for the small amount that are shown at the exhibit, there are an innumerable amount of comic artists in Africa who have trouble finding their voice. One comic artist from Cameroon, N. Issa Nyaphaga spoke of his own exile from his country because of his comic artistry.

It is precisely this stifled voice of the comic artist that seems the concern of the time. The urgency and importance the comics of the “Africa Comics” exhibit exuded was likewise felt at the discussion concerning it. It is not just a sense of urgency for political action or social change, but more generally for the medium of comic art itself. William H. Foster III, a professor of English and Communication at Nagatuck Valley Community College in Connecticut, and major figure in the African American comic world spoke with excitement for the future of African comics’ recognition in an American context. Of bringing more African comics to the attention of the American public, he said “where there have been no records, there will be now.” He is helping to put on a Black comic exhibit in April, which will be displayed in the West Village’s Museum of Chinese Americans. He believes that although the exhibit’s focus will be of African American artists, he hopes to put together an exhibition that will juxtapose the two types of artists in the future. Anton Kannemeyer also has plans for organizing future comics events, such as “Comics Brew,” an international comics festival in South Africa, which will take place again in 2008.