Posted in: Comics, Current News | Tagged: charlie adlard, Hiv Vis Comic Con

Charlie Adlard Plays Drums At High Vis Comic Con, Birmingham in June

Charlie Adlard plays the drums at High Vis Comic Con, a free grafitti-inspired comic convention launching in Birmingham, UK in June

Birmingham was the first place in the UK to hold a comic convention focused solely on comic books, back in 1968. Fifty-seven years later, Birmingham's Street Art Festival announces High Vis Comic Con, an all-new and free, family-friendly comic con on the 21st of June in Kings Heath, Birmingham. Including panels, workshops and more, and all for free, though the after parties will be ticketed. Guest creators include Al Ewing, Phil Winslade, John Wagner, Charlie Adlard, Caspar Wijngaard, Christian Ward, Martin Simmonds, Laura Howell, Will Potter, Paul Goodenough, Sonia Leong, Paul McCaffrey, Lew Stringer, Hunt Emerson and Kev. F. Sutherland, with more to be announced. The show will be situated across the various bars, eateries and independent businesses of Kings Heath. From three different zones: All-Saints Community Centre in York Road from 10 am to 5 pm, The Station at the newly refurbished All-Saints Centre, Kings Heath, from noon to 5 pm and a further zone dedicated to an all-new mural celebrating 2000 AD.

The day will feature special comic book guests, retro gaming with Dead Pixels, free comic book workshops, live street art, and film screenings courtesy of Birmingham Anime Festival organisers. At 4pm in the Hare and Hounds pub, Charlie Adlard's band, Cosmic Rays will play a gig, with all proceeds from ticket sales going to the Kings Heath Food Bank. There will be two after-party auctions of special one-off prizes donated by guests at the Green Room at Fletchers and The Station Pub.

One of the many unique aspects of this con is the inclusion of live street art, from some of the many Birmingham street artists who have helped establish High Vis Festival as Birmingham's only street art and graffiti festival for seven years running.

Organiser and High Vis Festival Co-Director, and former Bleeding Cool reporter, Olly MacNamee says, "While we are known for our successful street art festival, I am a huge comic book fan and there's a lot of crossover between both. So, why not bring them together in one place? The con, however, is all part of a much more ambitious plan. With brilliant events like Joe Lycett's PRIDE Queens Heath, the monthly Farmers Market and more. We even ran last year's annual High Vis Street Art Festival here, gifting to the community a much-loved new community mural. Working with local artists, schools and businesses, we want to build on these successes and encourage more visual artists to visit the area, mingle and collaborate. We want Kings Heath to be a hot spot for the visual arts and a prime destination for everyone. Call this con a statement of our intent!"

Supporting partners include Birmingham City Council, the Enterprise Action Zone, MIA Properties, All Saints Community Centre, Enjoy Kings Heath, The Station, Fletchers, The Juke Bar, The Hare and Hounds, the Heath Book Shop, graffiti artist.com, Worlds Apart, Kings Heath Food Bank, Stay Weird and Revolution Sounds Community Sound System, United Artists of South Birmingham.

Enjoyed this? Please share on social media!

Stay up-to-date and support the site by following Bleeding Cool on Google News today!