~ ALIGNS with SUMMER 2015 CSLPR READING THEME for LIBRARIES, CAMPS, SCHOOLS, &C. ~
~ 2015 FUNDING WAS AVAILABLE for NH LIBRARIES via “Kids, Books, and the Arts” >> ~
PROGRAM DESCRIPTION:
Join NH teaching cartoonist Marek Bennett’s COMICS WORKSHOP as we explore the comics creation process, from designing dynamic characters & rich environments to telling exciting stories in eye-catching panels and readable pages. Marek shares his work with hero characters in his fictional, autobiographical, and historical comics, and helps YOU create an original comic based on a hero in YOUR life. What makes a hero? How do we draw them? How do we capture action and meaning in our artwork, and how do we hold the reader’s attention in the interplay of our visual and verbal storytelling? This interactive workshop builds literacy skills, shares complex project organization and self-publishing techniques, and helps young artists engage productively with their communities. We’ll finish the workshop with a dramatic reading of our hero comics, and go home with all the skills necessary to continue creating comics all Summer long. No experience required – everyone can draw comics!
MORE INFO: www.MarekBennett.com
MAXIMUM NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS: 30
LENGTH OF PROGRAM: 1-4 hours
AGE RANGES: 7-10 / 10-13 / Teen
MATERIALS REQUIRED:
- Tables & chairs
- digital projector*
- screen / display surface
- pencils*
- copy paper (8.5×11)*
*(If host cannot provide these items, please notify Marek ahead of time & he can bring them.)
Marek will bring pens, markers, art tools, & art samples.
To order your own, see TOOLS & MATERIALS >>
SUGGESTED MATERIALS & SETUP:
It’s often useful to set up the following:
- Display paper & easel or other display surface
- Work tables arranged in a big U or some other shape so we can all see each other & show & discuss art samples, OR…
- A circle area where we can leave our work space & gather to discuss art samples (on paper or projected)
- Clip boards (in case of over-attendance)
Contact Marek with any questions about materials & equipment.
MATERIALS PRODUCED:
Each participant creates 1-4 pages of original comics artwork, detailing a hero in their life.
(Participants leave with the ability to continue working on their comics over the Summer…)
EXTENSION OPTION:
Invite your local historical society to contribute primary source texts related to your community’s local heroes, and we’ll draw comics from them!
(For more local history comics materials, see Marek’s NH history project, LIVE FREE AND DRAW >>)
PROMO POSTERS:
(Host can add DATE + LOCATION + REGISTRATION info in blank space; please advise if you’d like to have a poster generated for your event!)
COLOR:
[FULL SIZE (print+online) w=1600] [MEDIUM (online) w=800] [SMALL (online) w=400]
GRAYSCALE: 
[FULL SIZE (print+online) w=1600] [MEDIUM (online) w=800] [SMALL (online) w=400]
EXAMPLES OF “HERO STORIES” IN MAREK’S COMICS:
= Civil War Diary of Freeman Colby
21-year-old Freeman Colby (Henniker, NH) joins the Union Army in the middle of the Civil War, just to keep his brother safe!
= Dr. Hawks’ Civil War Diaries
Dr. Esther Hill Hawks (Hooksett, NH) gets her medical degree, then volunteers to teach former slaves how to read (& runs a field hospital for her doctor husband, on the side)!
= Adventures of a Deaf-Mute in the White Mountains
William B. Swett (Henniker, NH) may be deaf & mute, but he’s determined to tour the White Mountains, have adventures, live life to the fullest, & make new friends along the way…
= QUASAR BLASTERS!
Follow along as a young cartoonist develops the heroes of his first newspaper comic strip!
www.MarekBennett.com 