Molly Crabapple is known for her comics, her drawing, her drawing salons—Dr. Sketchy’s—and her political activities, and now she’s signed with Harper Collins to write and draw her memoirs, which will be called Drawing Blood. Despite her relative youth, Crabapple has already lived much and it hsould be a jam packed book. In the linked interview she talks about her trip to Guantanamo—where she’ll be returning in a few weeks:
You’re not allowed to draw detainee’s faces or the faces of guards. You’re not allowed to draw the faces of the prisoners and you’re not allowed to speak to them and you only view them through two-way mirrors, so I’m trying to figure out a way to draw censorship, to make it clear when I draw these men that things are being censored in the drawings. Because the censorship at Guantánamo is very intense. Like when I would draw the courtroom, I wasn’t allowed to take my sketchbook out until a court security officer had approved and stickered every single page. Because I can’t draw the faces of guards, I gave them smiley faces.
There is a really great interview with her here: http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2013/08/gitmo_through_the_eyes_of_molly_crabapple.php
Highly recommended.
She may just be working in the most modern fringe of comics possible today. She embraces the fashion world and the gallery scene quite as easily as she thinks about the best way to use her access to the politically-frought reporting of Guantanamo.
The misunderstood position of comics within the world of mainstream fiction, journalism and documentary has allowed a lot of weird and marvelous things to creep through the cracks. I don’t think most people realize that Molly is bringing a lot of vitality to the idea of comics as a singular voice for social commentary. Good on her.
A fascinating talent–very book worthy!
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