We hope to provide an international showcase for the best of cartoon art in all its forms, including comics, animation, editorial cartoons, newspaper strips, and beyond, in a city that is a growing center of importance to comics and cartooning. We also focus on helping the next generation of young cartooning talent develop thriving careers that invigorate the industry for years to come.

To do that, we strive to create an atmosphere of communication and shared enthusiasm between creators and audiences of cartoon storytelling so they can have serious (and fun) discussions on it as art, with the respect their creators deserve, as well as help an emerging generation of young cartooning talent develop careers that are both artistically and economically rewarding.

This year’s events will be held both virtually and in-person. schedule of events

We’re excited to welcome CXC attendees and guests back to the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum for our annual Friday party at the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum, the mecca for cartoons and comic art. Explore our current exhibits, Into the Swamp: The Social and Political Satire of Walt Kelly’s Pogo, and The Dog Show: Two Centuries of Canine Cartoons. Curator of The Dog Show, Brian Walker, will discuss the exhibit in the Schulz Lecture Hall at 5:45pm. 

Visitors can peruse an open-house display of special items from the collection in the Lucy Shelton Caswell Reading Room. Light refreshments will be served. Masks required.

Self-publishing powerhouse Steyven Curry and his mastermind collaborator Taylor Chiu, also known as Third Mind Comics, have recently pulled off the ultimate Columbus art heist, drawing together creators from all artistic disciplines to publish the newest art mag in town: Superspreader. Featuring comics, poetry, fine art, short fiction and non-fiction from some of Columbus’s very finest writers and artists, Superspreader is infectiously pushing the boundaries of collaboration and small press self-publishing right here in the city. This panel will find Curry and Chiu detailing how they created Superspreader and excavating their multitude of other self-publishing ventures.

This event will be held in person at the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum.

Streaming October 1 , 2021 on YouTube, Facebook, and Twitch and https://www.cartooncrossroadscolumbus.org/?session=third-mind-comics-presents-superspreader

Cartoonist and educator Emi Gennis will discuss key principles of designing letters, the application of lettering in comics, and methods of lettering using traditional techniques. Using examples from her own work, she will walk you through the process of creating letters by hand, and describe her approach to designing text that amplifies storytelling. Gennis teaches at the Columbus College of Art & Design, where she is Associate Professor of Comics & Narrative Practice and regularly offers courses in hand lettering to her students.

This in-person event will be held at the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum.

Virtual Event

Meet Snoopy’s siblings from the Peanuts comic strip and learn to draw Spike, Belle, Marbles, Andy, and Olaf with step-by-step drawing instruction. Join the Schulz Museum and Charles M. Schulz Creative Associates staff artist Mary Shyne as she explores the story of Snoopy’s canine family. Then, learn how to draw each of his siblings from the Daisy Hill Puppy Farm Gang with an easy-to-follow drawing demonstration.

This program was originally recorded live on November 12, 2020, for the Charles Schulz Museum and Research Center. Located in Santa Rosa, California, the Schulz Museum is dedicated to exploring the life, art, and legacy of Charles Schulz and Peanuts. Learn more at schulzmuseum.org and look for online and at-home resources, activities, and exhibitions.

CXC is presenting this event to celebrate The Dog Show: Two Centuries of Canine Cartoons, currently on display at the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum through Sunday, October 31, 2021.

Streaming October 3, 2021 on YouTube, Facebook, and Twitch and at https://www.cartooncrossroadscolumbus.org/?session=the-charles-m-schulz-museum-presents-how-to-draw-snoopys-siblings