Cartoon Crossroads Columbus will take place Wednesday through Sunday. The festival will occupy multiple locations, including Ohio State’s Billy Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum. Credit: Nicholas DeSantis | Asst. Arts & Life Editor
An iconic festival celebrating cartoons is returning to Columbus for its 10th year.
Cartoon Crossroads Columbus, a four-day celebration of all things cartoons and graphic novels, will return to Ohio State’s campus — to locations such as the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum and the Wexner Center for the Arts — as well as other Columbus venues — including the Gateway Film Center, Columbus Museum of Art and the Columbus Metropolitan Library’s main branch location — Wednesday through Sunday.
According to the event’s website, this year’s special guests include Art Spiegelman, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of “Maus” — a graphic novel that shares the story of Spiegelman’s father, a Polish Jew and Holocaust survivor — Jeff Smith, an Ohio State alum and the author of the graphic novel series “Bone” — which follows the story of three cousins, Fone, Phoney and Smiley Bone, who get lost in the desert and find themselves in a world full of strange creatures — and Bryan Lee O’Malley, the author of the “Scott Pilgrim” graphic novel series — which follows a young man who must defeat his new girlfriend Ramona’s seven evil exes to be with her.
Caitlin McGurk, an Ohio State associate professor in special collections and area studies, plus curator of comics and cartoon art at the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum, said the goal of the event is to connect the cartoon community with students and fans alike via panels, portfolio reviews and an art expo.
“One of the really cool things about this festival that sets it apart from events like San Diego Comic Con is this one is very intimate,” McGurk said. “It’s intentionally kept smaller so that people can have those really important touch points with young emerging cartoonists to seasoned veterans of the art form.”
Although Cartoon Crossroads Columbus began in 2014, McGurk said the idea for gathering comic and graphic artists originated much earlier with the Triennial Festival of Cartoon Arts, which first took place in 1983 at Ohio State’s Billy Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum.
“We decided to revamp it 10 years ago and partner with all these different citywide groups, museums and schools to instead recreate it as an annual event that would take place across the whole city and be something bigger and inclusive,” McGurk said.
Jared Gardner, a member of the programming committee for Cartoon Crossroads Columbus, said comics remain relevant to modern society because they have a large influence on pop culture.
“Comics have become almost unanimous for pop culture, more broadly, because of movies and TV shows and video games,” Gardner said. ”It has kind of morphed from and adapted from comics.”
Gardner said Cartoon Crossroads Columbus’ goal is to keep that influence and passion alive by creating a space for artists to showcase their skills and passion.
“A lot of mainstream world-of-comic festivals, like Comic Con in San Diego, tend to be very focused on comics that aren’t superheroes and traditional, what we might call, ‘monthly comics,’” Gardner said. “We want it to be a community show. There’s challenges and limits, but we have people coming from every corner of comics and animations.”
McGurk said the festival attracts people from across the country, showcasing Columbus’ cultural vibrancy and artistry to artists and fans alike.
“There [are] a lot of networking opportunities and also just a good focus on community because community is really a big part of comics,” McGurk said. “It’s where people can go and shop and buy really cool comics from hundreds of creators that are coming from all over the world.”
For more information about Cartoon Crossroads Columbus, visit the festivals’ website.
