Australian comic exhibition lands in Shanghai

After its China debut in January in Chengdu, Sichuan province, the "ACE! Australian Comics Exhibition" landed at the Sinan Time Zone Gallery in Shanghai on Friday, building a bridge for cross-national cultural exchange and offering visitors a glimpse of the creativity and diversity of Australian culture.

Co-hosted by the Australian Consulate-General in Shanghai, IllustrateYourLife Creative Collaboration Studio, and Sinan Mansions, the exhibition features works from 20 talented Australian artists from diverse backgrounds, and will run through till Sept 16 with Tuesdays off.

With a wide range of content and styles presented, the exhibition aims to showcase Australia's history, culture and social landscape via comics, an art form that transcends language, geography, age and gender.

Cartooning had a long tradition in Australia, dating well back into the 19th century. The Australian Cartoonists Association is one of the world's oldest cartoon organizations. Shanghai, as the birthplace of modern comics in China, has also nurtured outstanding cartoonists like Feng Zikai, and important publications in the history of modern Chinese comics like the Shanghai Sketch.

"The ACE! exhibition series showcases the outstanding and original comic art from Australia. Australia's comic industry is booming, with the continuous rise of the global interest in 'graphic novels', and diverse comic themes and creators," said John Williams, the consul general of Australia in Shanghai, at the opening ceremony on Friday.

He pointed out that Australian comics are often like to explore real life narratives and social issues, offering a rich and diverse tapestry of stories.

Jakub Mazerant, curator of the exhibition and founder of IllustrateYourLife studio, has come to Shanghai for the first time and said he was "excited".

"At the moment, we are meeting friends from the Chinese comic community, and we are very pumped for it … Yesterday we visited an exhibition of Chinese animation. It was very impressive, and the way that was presented was really inspiring for me as a person who actually deals with the design of exhibitions," said Mazerant during the ceremony.

Mazerant started organizing this exhibition series in 2018. The Shanghai edition is the fifth edition of the exhibition, following its success in Poland, Germany, Thailand and Chengdu in Sichuan province. With comics acting as the link, the exhibition has built a cultural bridge between artists and younger generations in Australia and China.

"Honestly, we used to know little about Australian comics, but I think we need to know more about it and make more exchanges with an inclusive mindset. It is very important for both sides to learn about each other, and this exhibition can be such a bridge," said Shi Xiaojie, executive director of the Shanghai Artists Association.