Asian Comics Exhibit Debuts at Bowers Museum – Orange County Register

Wearing a cropped black sweater, her head wrapped in a bright blue hair wig, thigh-length braids and adorned with an oversized black bow, Katie Lowe, 20, of Newport Beach, walked slowly through the Bowers Museum, taking a break. for a selfie in front of a Hatsune Miku print.

Lowe dressed up as Miku, the iconic Vocaloid character whose image is among more than 500 pieces comprising “Asian Comics: Evolution of An Art Form,” a collection of original mass-produced Asian comics, paintings on Hindu scrolls, Japanese woodblock prints and digital media creations that are now on display at Bowers in Santa Ana.

The Asian Comics Exhibition chronicles comics art and visual storytelling across the Asian continent, from the historic beginnings of this unique art form to its modern explosion in mass media.

The exhibition runs until September 8.

Lowe, who was among several influencers invited to the exhibition’s recent media day, said she began exploring Asian comics four years ago, during the coronavirus lockdown.

“My friends were telling me to watch anime, so I was like, ‘There’s no better time than right now,’” said Lowe, a sophomore at Loyola Marymount. “I was browsing Tik Tok and I saw cosplayers doing their thing, and then four years later, here I am.

“Part of the reason I love this movie is that there are so many creative people in it,” she said. “Creative people are attracted to it. »

After being presented in Italy and France, the exhibition makes its North American debut at the Bowers. While Japanese manga (comics and graphic novels) are a focal point, the exhibition features iconic characters, creators and major publications from across Asia.

“I realize that many of us believe that this fantasy culture is only for young people, and I often hear reactions from older people like: ‘I don’t know much about it, but My kids are absolutely obsessed with it.” cetera, et cetera,” said Bowers Museum Director Seán O’Harrow. “However, you would be surprised how intergenerational this art form is. Asian comics have literally taken over the entire planet, from books to video games, from movies to fashion, from music concerts to culinary culture. This art form has shaped generations.

Paul Gravett, guest curator, said the exhibition is not organized geographically, but by themes.

“We realized this would be a good way to contrast and connect different cultures through their comics,” Gravett said. He also curated the collection’s European exhibitions. “It’s a very open media.”

The exhibition begins with a general mapping section allowing visitors to understand some of the distinctive qualities of different forms of Asian comics, the curator said. Sections on folklore, the supernatural and beliefs and religions also make up the exhibit, Gravett said.

Some of the comics reflect the tensions and colonization of the region – often in the form of propaganda or stories at the time, but also more recently in autobiographical memoirs, graphic memoirs and real-life experiences, he said. he declares.

The storytellers themselves are also highlighted.