The Latinx comics community is growing and diversifying—and rapidly. This exhibition features autobiographical short stories situated within the language, culture, and history that inform Latinx identity and life. The work showcases the huge variety of styles and worldviews of today’s Latinx comics creators, including such legendary artists as Jaime and Gilbert Hernandez, Roberta Gregory, and Kat Fajardo. The exhibition is presented in conjunction with the publication of Tales from la Vida: A Latinx Comics Anthology, edited by Dr. Frederick Luis Aldama and published by the Ohio State University Press.

In the anthology and in the exhibit, we see how Latinx creators challenge our perceptions, thoughts, and feelings about the ways we differ and share common ground. And, in each story, we see them using imagery and devices that expand on storytelling conventions of Japanese manga, superhero comics, Latin American fotonovelas, digital and fine arts, and much more. In viewing these narratives together, we wake to the extraordinary ways that these unique and idiosyncratic voices give shape to the story of Latinx diversity in the United States.

The term “Latinx” was chosen to be inclusive to all creators, whether they identify as Latino, Latina, or prefer not to be identified as a specific gender. The “x” also marks the wound of a shared colonized legacy of exploitation and oppression. With pen, ink, paper, tablet, and computer, these authors and artists shed light on what it means to be active participants in and transformers of the culture, history, and society of the Americas.

Curated by Dr. Frederick Luis Aldama, Arts & Humanites Distinguished Professor, and Jenny E. Robb, Curator & Associate Professor.

Opening Reception and Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) Celebration! Saturday, November 3, 2018 at the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum, 3:30-5 p.m. Light refreshments, family activities, and a curator’s tour with Dr. Frederick Luis Aldama at 4:30 p.m. Free and open to the public!