The St. Louis Independent Comics Expo (SLICE, for short) is a comic book convention, sure, and like most comics conventions, it gathers together dozens upon dozens of authors and artists—albeit with a special focus on the Midwest in general and St. Louis in particular, and with a wider focus that includes ‘zines, literary magazines, poetry journals, printmakers, and other forms of small press in addition to comic books. But beyond that, SLICE also offers workshops in the art of comic- and print-making. No gatekeepers here: the folks behind SLICE would like nothing better than for you to learn how to do it yourself.
Fortunately, you also don’t have to wait until October 18 (when this year’s edition of SLICE takes over The Sheldon at 3648 Washington Ave. in Midtown) to get in on the fun. Throughout the summer, the SLICE team is hosting Comics University, a special educational series “for adults with any and all interest in comics.”
Believe it or not, this year is not the first edition of Comics University—it actually started way back in 2013, thanks to a fateful day at work for Steenz, who is now a Dwayne McDuffie Award-winning cartoonist, artist of the daily comic strip Heart of the City, and President of the SLICE organizing committee. But back then, Steenz was working the register at Star Clipper, the beloved comic shop that used to call the Delmar Loop home. “I got the idea to create Comics University after seeing a Beer School shirt on a Star Clipper customer,” Steenz says. “I was curious where to get a cool shirt like that and they explained that every Wednesday they go to Cicero’s”—another dearly departed Delmar Loop institution—“to learn about a different beer. They get a free beer and a T-shirt after completing the courses. I knew that was a program that could be retrofitted for comics and so Comics University was born. I wanted to get folks into the store and to learn about the industry. Ever since I’d dropped out of college in my third year, I wanted there to be an opportunity for folks to get an arts education that wasn’t tied to tuition. It’s where my ideas of free arts programming began!”
After leaving Star Clipper, Steenz continued to plan Comics University, first at the St. Louis Public Library (where, full disclosure, your author hosted a Comics U class on the use of music in comics) and now at Betty’s Books (10 Summit Ave., Webster Groves). The full itinerary could fill a “real” university’s course catalog, but Steenz was happy to share some highlights: “One of my favorite courses was the class on Mythology in Comics. Learning about how American myths and superhero comics have an overlap was really great. Afrofuturism and Comics with John Jennings was awesome, Comic Writing with Ivy Noelle Weir was cool. And last year we did a class on tarot and comics and using it to help one’s self-care efforts. I love how varied all of the classes have been over the years! It’s so hard to pick one!”
This year’s edition of Comics University kicked off last month, with courses on the business side of comics, like working with an editor with Eisner-nominated Andrews McMeel editor Amanda Meadows, moving from webcomics to print with UM creator buttercup, and the art of self-publishing with Eisner-nominated The Atonement Bell writer (and The Arts STL contributor) Jim Ousley. Three sessions remain for the summer semester, all on Wednesday evenings from 6:30–8:30. On July 9, Steenz will host a figure drawing class, welcoming all skill levels to learn a bit about drawing the human form. On July 16, Ivy Noelle Weir (who teamed with Steenz on the 2018 Oni Press graphic novel Archival Quality) will teach the nuts and bolts of scripting a comic book and the art of collaborating as a writer with an artist. And the semester wraps up on July 23 with a Q&A with Steenz about the history of Comics University, styled after the hit webseries Hot Ones. “I am absolutely eating insanely hot wings for the last course,” says Steenz. “I love talking about my journey in the comics industry and if I must do that while suffering through hot sauces, then I will do it! I’m nervous, but I’m also prepared. I’ve been training and I anticipate having ice cream on the day of. So I’m not going in totally blind!”
All editions of Comics University take place at Betty’s Books (10 Summit Ave.) except for the July 9 figure drawing class, which is next door at Webster Arts (2 Summit Ave.). Admission is free, though SLICE asks that you RSVP in advance on the SLICE website. This link also includes links to live streams of this year’s previous Comics University classes; the last two courses will be streamed as well but the figure drawing class is in-person only.
But if you need something else to tide you over from the end of Comics U to when SLICE finally arrives in October, the Expo will also be hosting a variety of social events throughout the coming months, including a “Zoo Sketchcrawl” at the St. Louis Zoo on July 19, a demonstration on Risograph printing at Melon Press on August 1, and monthly “Drink & Draws” at the Alamo Drafthouse at City Foundry. The latest and greatest info can be found on the SLICE events calendar. | Jason Green
