Alternative cartoonist
Craig Thompson is at the forefront of the new comics generation,
where superheroes are nowhere to be seen. His first book is
the ambitious, 128-page Good-Bye, Chunky Rice, published
by Portland's Top Shelf Productions. It's the story of a little
turtle who finds that he occupies a very misunderstood place
in this world--a reality not too far from that of your average
cartoonist.
Willamette Week: What possessed you to be a cartoonist?
Was it for the girls?
Definitely for the girls [laughs]. No...I'm a cartoonist
because storytelling is where it's at. Culture thrives around
storytelling. It has since the very beginning. Cartooning
happens to be my medium of expression simply because I like
to draw.
Were you one of those weird kids who used to draw in
class all the time?
I had an overactive imagination. I had to stay in at recess
to finish my homework, which is why I never developed athletically.
I always think that if I grew up in a country other than
America that there'd be this blanket sex appeal that goes
with drawing. There are certain people I know that went
to schools where if you could draw you were super-cool.
I know others that went to schools where if you were smart
you were super-cool, which just sounds wrong for an American
high school. My drawing ability made me kind of a novelty
for the first two years of grade school. After that, I was
just a geek...until high school, and then, yeah, of course
it worked on the girls! [Laughs.]
How do people react to you now when you meet them for
the first time?
A lot of people ask if I'll draw them as an animal. Everyone
has a different animal they identify closely with. "Draw
me as a lemur." "Draw me as a bunny rabbit." Most people
are kind of weird about that. I don't always know what to
tell people. I don't know if I want to say, "I make little
comics about turtles." First, I kind of avoid the subject
and say I do illustration, because that's easier for the
average person to comprehend.
Do you have any ideal environment for working? Any rituals
you go through?
I like to listen to a lot of Pearl Jam when I'm drawing.
It gets me energized. And I eat lots of candy [laughs].
No, I don't... Drawing and writing are completely different.
When I'm writing, I'm really edgy. I need it quiet. I need
privacy and a huge amount of space. I get depressed, and
I get headaches, and I wander around the city. But drawing
is just fun. It's not always a breeze, but I think I enjoy
the process of drawing more, even though it's not as fulfilling
as when I write. While I'm working, I tend to have one big
novel I read, the bigger the better. It's a requirement
that I draw inspiration from outside of comics. I just finished
Henry James' Portrait of a Lady. People like to make
fun of Henry James, but I enjoyed it. Before that, it was
Remembrance of Things Past by Marcel Proust--the
entire book! It's got to be something meaty. I like to spend
some time on my books.
Why are alternative cartoonists so neurotic?
God, I mean, what kind of people are attracted to doing
comics? You do it by yourself, you don't get much recognition,
you spend a lot of time and don't make any money. It seems
to attract people with low self-esteem who are also some
kind of weird overachievers. We're attracted to the idea
that we put a lot of work into something and don't reap
any benefits. We're martyrs.
Do you cheat on birthdays and holidays and draw people
their presents?
Yeah, completely. Does that count as cheating? I kill myself
over those things! I'll take up a whole week just drawing
gifts for people! That's what I did last week. I had two
birthdays and a wedding. Each piece took a couple of days.
It's a curse. Gift-making is a curse!
Are comic-book artists the next millennium's rock stars?
No. [Laughs.]
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Willamette Week | originally
published November 23,
1999
|
