The Mercer Art Gallery in Harrogate has teamed up with Avery Hill Publishing to create “Vision and Labour”, an exhibition showcasing some of today’s most exciting comics’ creators.
Created in partnership with the Thought Bubble Comic Art Festival, the exhibition offers a fascinating glimpse into the work of leading comic artists, and an important snapshot of the UK comics landscape over the past decade.
Avery Hill Publishing are a London-based independent publisher of comics, graphic novels and art books. Best known for being the first to publish work by breakout comic stars like Tillie Walden and Zoe Thorogood, they have gone on to develop an exciting slate of up-and-coming artists, a catalogue of diverse and compelling books, and have won numerous awards and acclaim along the way.
The acclaimed publisher recently celebrated their tenth year in operation, and this exhibition offers an in-depth exploration of their work. It is an important retrospective that charts their early days publishing zines in the London small press scene, through to today’s carefully and lovingly produced high-quality graphic novels which are sold across the world.
On display will be original artwork by 16 diverse artists, shown alongside their finished books, and filmed interviews. The exhibition will give insights into the creative process of making comics, and the different working practices of each artist, ranging from meticulous ink drawings to spectacular, digitally-created imagery.
“Vision and Labour” opens on 18th October 2025 and runs until 26th April 2026, and features art by Kristyna Baczynski, who also created the exhibition poster, Tim Bird, Katriona Chapman, Tom Humberstone, Charlot Kristensen, B.Mure, Owen D. Pomery, Claire Scully, J. Webster Sharp, Rachel Smith (her work featured outlining the creation of art for Who Killed Nessie?, working with writer Paul,Cornell), Lizzy Stewart, Lucy Sullivan, Zoe Thorogood, Donya Todd, Tillie Walden and George Wylesol.
Kristyna Bacynski and Katriona Chapman have also delved into Harrogate’s art collection to select an exciting mix of images that resonate with their own work as graphic novelists and comic creators.
In “The Stories Pictures Tell”, running concurrently with “Vision and Labour”, discover paintings with a compelling narrative, fascinating characters, and that enticing sense of “…what might happen next?”
Their selection ranges from story-filled Victorian paintings by W.P. Frith and Frank Holl, to the intriguing work of the acclaimed contemporary artist Caroline Walker.
Just bring your imagination!
Thought Bubble is the Yorkshire Comic Art Festival, a week long celebration of comics, illustration and more spread across the whole of Yorkshire, finishing in a huge two day comic convention in Harrogate.
• “Vision and Labour” opens on 18th October 2025 and runs until 26th April 2026 at The Mercer Gallery, Swan Road, Harrogate HG1 2SA | Open Tuesday to Sunday from 9.30am to 4.30pm | Free
• Avery Hill Publishing
• Thought Bubble Comic Art Festival
- About the Author
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John is the founder of downthetubes, launched in 1998. He is a comics and magazine editor, writer, and Press Officer for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He also runs Crucible Comic Press.
Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine and Overkill for Marvel UK, Babylon 5 Magazine, Star Trek Magazine, and its successor, Star Trek Explorer, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics; and has edited several comic collections and graphic novels, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”, and Hancock: The Lad Himself, by Stephen Walsh and Keith Page.
He’s the writer of comics such as 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: Art and Illustration, British Comics, British Comics - Current British Publishers, Comics, Creating Comics, downthetubes Comics News, downthetubes News, Events, Exhibitions, Other Worlds
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