German comics on tour
A PEAK into German comics culture in Kuala Lumpur? That’s a rare thing! The exhibition Comics, Manga & Co. – Germany’s New Comic Culture, introduces two generations of comic artists who have influenced German comic culture in very different ways.
It runs until Feb 29 at the GoetheInstitut Malaysia, Menara See Hoy Chan, Suite 06-07, 6th Floor, 374, Jalan Tun Razak in Kuala Lumpur and at the German-malaysian Institute, Jalan Ilmiah, Taman Universiti, Kajang, Selangor.
Opening hours are from 10am to 5pm during week days at both venues.
The free exhibition’s concept was developed by Matthias Schneider, a Berlin curator and comic expert.
In a nutshell, Germany has been put back on the comics map in the last 20 years.
A new German comics avantgarde originated from a group of graphic artists from East Berlin. Over the years, the comics-friendly climate across German universities significantly promoted the development of new directions and the spectrum of subjects and styles in German comics.
Many German artists from the younger generation have also found inspiration in the Far East: a whole new market segment has developed in Germany in response to the continuing rise of manga since the 1990s, and this has already produced a number of German manga artists.
The Comics, Manga & Co exhibition showcases the diversity of contemporary German comics.
It consists of 55 plexiglas picture frames with facsimiles of graphics and drawings as well as additional information on the artists.
On this Malaysian tour stop, the German comics have been divided and placed at both venues.
Acclaimed works by Arne Bellstorf ( Baby’s In black – The story of Astrid Kirchherr & Stuart Sutcliffe), Martin tom Dieck ( Der unschuldige Passagier – The Innocent Passenger), Sascha Hommer ( Vier Augen – Four Eyes), Line Hoven ( Liebe schaut weg – Love Looks The Other Way), Mawil ( Action Sorgenkind – the title references a German campaign to help handicapped children), Anke Feuchtenberger ( Die Hure H zieht ihre Bahnen), Flix ( Faust), Jens Harder ( Alpha – Directions), Reinhard Kleist ( Cash – I See A Darkness), Isabel Kreitz ( Die Sache mit Sorge – The Thing About Sorge), Christina Plaka ( Yonen Buzz), Henning Wagenbreth ( Cry For Help) und Ulf K. ( Sternennächte – Starry
Nights) will be shown. Elsewhere, the Goethe-institut in KL is also seeking to strengthen its comics field. From April onwards, a new comics blog by a Malaysian artist will be introduced at blog. goethe.de/cityscapes.