Photo © Dean Simons

Following up on their appearance at the Lakes International Comic Art Festival, Czech artists Tomáš Kučerovský and Toy_Box, two of the authors of the collective project We’re Still at War, were joined at the British Library in London last night by German-American author and illustrator Nora Krug (Heimat) for a panel titled “European Graphic Novels: Drawing Untold Stories“, chaired by Paul Gravett.

Photo © Dean Simons

Photo © Dean Simons

Graphic novels are proving themselves the unlikely arena for European artists and writers to come to confront difficult and untold 20th-century experiences. The three creators outlined what drew them to tell personal and collective stories in graphic form.

Toy_Box. Photo © Dean Simons

Tomáš Kučerovský . Photo © Dean Simons

Tomáš Kučerovský . Photo © Dean Simons

We’re Still At War sold more than 13,000 copies in the original Czech edition. The book features documentary comics in the style of Art Spiegelman’s Maus, combining oral history with high artistry and contains 13 testimonies by people who experienced a totalitarian regime, either Nazi rule or communism.

Nora Krug. Photo © Dean Simons

Photo © Dean Simons

Heimat by Nora Krug is a powerful and deeply affecting graphic memoir that explores identity, guilt and the meaning of home for a post-war German. Nora documents her journey investigating the lives of her family members under the Nazi regime, visually charting her way back to a country still tainted by war.

Photo © Dean Simons

The event was run in collaboration with the Czech Centre London and Karolinum Press, supported by CzechLit – Czech Literary Centre, a section of the Moravian Library. Presented in partnership with EUNIC and the European Writers’ Tour.

[amazon_link asins=’8024637286,0241183561,0241978645,1534311505′ template=’ProductCarousel’ store=’downthetubes’ marketplace=’UK’ link_id=’fa54037b-d226-11e8-a843-c5d14d1c4eea’]

With thanks to Dean Simons for the photos – © Dean Simons

John Freeman

The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Star Trek Explorer (previously known as Star Trek Magazine) and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War and “Dan Dare”. He’s the writer of "Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies" for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.

Categories: Creating Comics, downthetubes Comics News, downthetubes News, Events

Tags: British Library, Dean Simons, downthetubes News, Nora Krug, Paul Gravett, Tomáš Kučerovský, Toy_Box