5 Day Holiday Comic Strip Course

Cartooning Workshop for the Vacation Between Boxing Day and New Year

© Jo Murphy

Dec 28, 2007
Adopting A Gratitude Attitude, Jo Murphy
Run your own 5-day community or family holiday cartooning project. The activity encourages participants to learn to draw as they imagine New Years Resolutions together.

This engaging cartooning activity is suitable for family and community groups. As the participants plan in their Visual Journals, they will sort through ideas and build up a body of work. By the end of the fifth day, they will be ready to put the finishing touches on a humorous comic strip.

Group members will get to know each other better as they learn to draw and look at their resolutions.

The Purpose

Through this workshop participants will

  • learn cartooning
  • have fun – laugh at life
  • learn about each other as a community or family
  • make productive use of down time / holiday time
  • learn how to write and illustrate humour
  • think and plan about the new year
  • avoid paying the fees for fun parks, picture theatres or other holiday attractions
  • stay off the roads over the Festive Season
  • experience bonding time with family or community group

The Process

Create a workbook for each participant by copying this article and the accompanying Blogs. (No need to worry about copyright if you are not doing this commercially. Email to provide feedback about your workshop.) Ask the participants to read the workbook before they begin, so that if they have “down time” during the 5-day period they can

  • come up with extra characters
  • practice what they have experienced
  • go ahead and try techniques by following the book

Materials

  • Visual Journal used as a log, place to glue resource material, diary about the New Year as well as a planning space.
  • Drawing paper
  • Black Card
  • Drawing implements such as HB pencils, colour pencils, felts, water colours, Gouche, erasers
  • Glue spray, glue sticks or preferred adhesives
  • Collage materials
  • Black indelible markers, chisel tips, fine point tips
  • Double sided tape, masking tape
  • Rulers, sharpeners, Stanley Knives

Workshop Environment

You will need plenty of space so that members can find time alone with their thoughts and so that they can spread out to draw and collage. A large space such as the living room, rumpus room or picnic area should be set aside for group activity. To compliment this each member might have their own area such as the study area of their bedroom.

It would be good to have access to

  • Internet
  • computer
  • projector
  • computer art packages
  • scanner, camera, printer
  • space for acting out and mime
  • food and beverages for refreshment
  • relaxing space
  • exhibition space
  • table space for each person

Time Allocation

  • 2 hours per day for a five day period
  • plenty of personal time in between sessions
  • closure time for an exhibition or launch of comic strip book

Workshop Schedule

  • Day 1. The Basics of Perspective
  • Day 2. Set The Scene When Telling A Story
  • Day 3. How To Create A Cartoon Character
  • Day 4. Cartooning With Mechanical Shapes
  • Day 5. Polishing a New Years Comic Strip.

You will find these blogs next to each other as you scroll through them.

Closure

Be sure to set aside time for appropriate closure of the project. This could be an exhibition or launch of a book made from the comic strips would be fun.


The copyright of the article 5 Day Holiday Comic Strip Course in Visual Arts Education is owned by Jo Murphy. Permission to republish 5 Day Holiday Comic Strip Course in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.


Busted Flat, Jo Murphy
Why's This Happening To Me?, Jo Murphy
Be Assertive, Jo Murphy
Adopting A Gratitude Attitude, Jo Murphy
Half Coloured Comic Strip/A Bird Called Gag!, Jo Murphy


Post this Article to facebook Add this Article to del.icio.us! Digg this Article furl this Article Add this Article to Reddit Add this Article to Technorati Add this Article to Newsvine Add this Article to Windows Live Add this Article to Yahoo Add this Article to StumbleUpon Add this Article to BlinkLists Add this Article to Spurl Add this Article to Google Add this Article to Ask Add this Article to Squidoo

Comments
Dec 29, 2007 11:28 AM
Paym Bergson :
What a great idea, Jo!! I think I might try this next week - not so much for resolutions, but we all like to draw in the family - have great ideas, but I and hubby can't draw (don't ask), and the kids can!!
Thx - have a great new year!!

-Paym
Jan 1, 2008 3:31 AM
Jo Murphy :
Hi Paym,
Thanks for posting. I hope you might share the results with us when they are done?
I am teaching the course in the Women's Prison at the moment.
When I have finished working out a strip I will post the results.
I don't have the right to post any but my own work though. Some of the women can draw really well and some of them have very sharp senses of humour.
Hope you have loads of fun,
Jo
2 Comments