CCMA Presents “Linework: Chicago Comics and Community" Sept. 24-Nov. 21

The Cleve Carney Museum of Art (CCMA) presents "Linework:
Chicago Comics and Community," an exhibition exploring the artists, ideas and creative exchange that make Chicago a center for contemporary comics and graphic storytelling.
On view Sept. 24–Nov. 21, the exhibition revisits Linework, a publication created under the guidance of acclaimed Chicago cartoonist, designer and educator Ivan Brunetti and the community of artists that formed around it. An opening reception will be held Thursday, Sept. 24, from 5:30–7:30 p.m. Admission to the exhibition and reception is free and open to the public.

"During the early decades of the twenty-first century, Linework became a gathering point for many of the most compelling voices in Chicago's comics scene," says CCMA Director and Curator Justin Witte. "Bringing together emerging and established artists, the publication fostered a period of creative exchange that reflected the diversity, experimentation and collaborative spirit of the city's alternative comics community."

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"Linework: Chicago Comics and Community" continues in the spirit of the publication itself, offering a look at Chicago comics and the people who make them. Featured artists include the following:
• David Alvarado. Alvarado is a Chicago-based illustrator and cartoonist. Growing up in the Chicagoland suburbs, he was always drawn to cartoon imagery, Chicago Imagists, and hand painted signs. After graduating from Columbia College Chicago, he worked in various print and digital media outlets on cover art, editorial illustration, packaging design and comics. To date, his work has appeared in magazines, newspapers, site specific murals and products. Select clients include Time Out Chicago, ProPublica Illinois, The Chicago Reader, Chicago Sun-Times, Lumpen, ALA, Cricket Media, Newcity Chicago among others.
• Ivan Brunetti. Brunetti is an award-winning cartoonist, illustrator, author, and educator whose style combining darkly humorous subject matter with simplified and exaggerated cartoon drawing style has helped shape contemporary comics and visual storytelling. Born in Italy and based in Chicago, he is known for his acclaimed autobiographical comic series "Schizo," and his contributions to The New Yorker, Entertainment Weekly, The Chicago Reader, Mother Jones and Spin. Brunetti edited the groundbreaking "An Anthology of Graphic Fiction, Cartoons, and True Stories" and is a recipient of both Ignatz and Eisner Awards for his work.
• Nick Drnaso. This Chicago-based cartoonist's graphic novel "Sabrina" became the first graphic novel to be longlisted for the Booker Prize (2018), a literary award conferred each year for the best single work of sustained fiction written in the English language. Drnaso has contributed to several comics anthologies and has been nominated for three Ignatz Awards, recognizing outstanding achievement in comics and cartooning. Born in Palos Hills, Ill., he currently lives in Chicago, where he works as a cartoonist and illustrator
• Keiler Roberts. Roberts is an acclaimed American cartoonist and graphic memoirist known for her sharp wit, understated artwork, and deeply personal storytelling. Born in Milwaukee and raised in Wisconsin, Roberts creates autobiographical comics that explore everyday life, motherhood, mental health, chronic illness, and family relationships with honesty and humor. Her celebrated books include "Rat Time," "Chlorine Gardens," "Sunburning," "My Begging Chart" and "Miseryland." She is a recipient of the 2016 Ignatz Award (Outstanding Series – "Powdered Milk") and the 2019 Slate's Cartoonist Studio Prize for Best Print Comic of 2018.
• Elias Gonzalez. Gonzalez is a cartoonist from the suburbs of Chicago. He makes "funny" comics for "mature" readers. Publications include "Shapeshifter,""Kill for You," "Wasp Video Roadhouse;" and "Linework Zero," a short story about post college life and skateboarding that was included in the Columbia College Chicago student run comics anthology, "Linework," published by Columbia College Chicago. Gonzalez is a graduate of Columbia College Chicago where he received a BA in Illustration and studied under cartoonist and comics scholar Ivan Brunetti.
• Anya Davidson. Davidson is a cartoonist, musician and printmaker. Her debut book, "School Spirits" was excerpted in "Best American Comics 2015." Her sophomore graphic novel, "Band for Life" (2016) based on her experiences fronting a noise-rock band, was nominated for an Ignatz award in the Outstanding Graphic Novel category. Davidson's comics journalism has been published in the Chicago Reader, Newcity Magazine and The Comics Journal.
• Betty Heredia. Heredia is a graphic artist, illustrator, and multidisciplinary creative known for her bold visual storytelling and distinctive approach to design. Drawing inspiration from urban culture, personal narrative, and everyday observation, her work explores themes of perception, identity, and human connection. Born and raised in Chicago and now based in Philadelphia, she has developed a creative practice that spans graphic design, printmaking, wearable art and independent publishing.
• Abby Jo Turner. Turner is an illustrator and designer from Chicago, now based in Los Angeles. Passionate about narrative-driven art, she has built a career spanning illustration, comics, and television animation design. Turner has brought her creative vision to character, color and background design for acclaimed animated productions including "Beavis and Butt-Head," "Royal Crackers" and "Lazor Wulf." Her work has also been featured Newcity Magazine and numerous fairs and festivals.

"Linework" is curated by Justin Witte, Director and Curator of the CCMA. The exhibition will be on view Sept. 24–Nov. 21. Admission is free. CCMA's hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. and one hour prior to MAC Performance Series concerts. For more information, visit TheCCMA.org and follow along at @CleveCarneyMuseumofArt.