When I sat down to arrange my thoughts and write down the proceedings for the 4th International Conference on Comics and Medicine I quickly realised the usual summary of abstracts would not do justice to the extraordinary event. Over 3 days there were about 50 presentations, plus keynote addresses, interviews, workshops, an art exhibition, charity auction, short film screening and marketplace where many artists were able to show and sell comic books of all shapes and sizes. Our theme was “Ethics Under Cover: Comics, Medicine and Society”.
In the picture I have tried to capture the liminality1 of the community which came together in Brighton for that weekend in July. Our participants were from diverse groups: artists, academics, healthcare professionals, patients and caregivers, often combinations of those roles. The open and friendly atmosphere, with lots of work-in-progress discussed meant that this was a supportive environment for difficult discussions about medical ethics. The picture represents the way that participants felt like equals “withdrawn from their structural positions and consequently from the values, norms, sentiments, and techniques associated with those positions”1 (p.10) as Victor Turner states when referring to transitional or liminal communities. My impression is that most found it a positive and transformative experience.
The initial inspiration for the picture was Bruegel’s “Children’s Games”2 and although the context is different, there are similarities in the creative energy and feeling of fun that ran through much of the proceedings. As in Bruegel’s painting, there was also darkness. The medium of comics can allow the unspeakable to be voiced and the intangible to be realised. This means as well as empathy, there can be discomfort, for healthcare professionals who see the emotional impact of their practice on other people and for patients, perhaps realising their doctors are human too.
Represented in the picture are all those who formally presented their work or chaired sessions. There were in total 153 people present and many volunteers who gave their time for only a stick of rock. We are also grateful to the Wellcome Trust for their assistance with funding this conference. The conversations are imagined, but all may have happened and many more interesting interactions besides. If you would like to hear more of the presentations these will be released as podcasts throughout the year at www.graphicmedicine.org
Of course a conference like this raises more questions than answers: Whose story is it? Whose emotions are they? Where do creators draw the moral line in comics? How much to reveal in autobiographical comics? How do comics offer a new way of seeing? How to manage the tension between organisation/exclusiveness and openness/inclusiveness of our community? And getting back to the picture: not Where’s Wally3, but Where’s Muna?
1. Turner V. Betwixt and between: The liminal period in rites of passage. Betwixt and between: Patterns of masculine and feminine initiation. La Salle, IL: Open Court Press, 1987:3-19.
2. Le Fanu Hughes P. History and Techniques of the Great Masters: Bruegel. New Jersey, USA: Chartwell Books, 2003.
3. Handford M. Where's Wally. London: Walker Books, 2007.
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