If a two or three day comic convention is not enough for you, Bluestockings has the answer. The Bluestockings Comics Fest begins tonight at 7 pm and runs through Friday August 16, offering fans a week-long experience to discover new stories and meet exciting creators in the industry. The first annual Queer & Trans Comics Festival will take place right in the Lower East Side bookstore. Hours beginning tomorrow (Friday, August 9) will be 12 PM to 6 PM.
After feeling frustrated by the exclusive nature of some of the bigger cons, the bookstore decided to start its own show to distribute resources and stories of marginalized people, staying in line with their community-first vision found in all of their programs and events. As stated on their website, “Simply put, this event is made by activists to serve both comic fans and artists who often feel excluded or slighted by more traditional convention experiences.”
The festival will have blocks of four to eight artists and creators during the day as well as comic-based programming in the evening. The store will host a kickoff artist alley event on Thursday that will encompass the whole space. Throughout the rest of the week, there will be workshops and discussions for fans to attend.
Unlike other events that charge exorbitant rates for tables, the store has an affordable cap for vendors and a sliding scale to support the creators who may not have hundreds of dollars to display their work. Guests of the show are welcome to browse the store during the day during tabling hours and maybe pick up a new series to read or piece of art for their wall.
Bluestockings is a volunteer-powered and collectively-owned radical bookstore, fair trade cafe, and activist center in the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Their more than 6,000 titles cover topics such as feminism, queer and gender studies, race and black studies, and more. They also carry zines, journals, and other oddities and rarities. The location also hosts readings, workshops, performances, and discussions nightly and their café offers an array of organic, vegan, and fair trade goodies.
To view the guest list at Bluestockings Comics Fest, head to the website. Bluestockings is located at 172 Allen Street, New York, NY 10002.
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