Category Archives: Opportunities

Cartoonists in a Cave at Northern Spark 2013 (June 8th)

Minneapolis, mn, Northern Spark, Opportunities, Projects, Rain Taxi, St. Paul

We’ve been invited by our friends at Rain Taxi to participate in their wonderful Analog Cave project at the Northern Spark festival coming up on June 8th. Participating cartoonists will be drawing interpretations of writings provided by strangers submitted thru a mail slot, which will then be projected, put online, printed and/or otherwise displayed.

So you can be included in the promotional materials, we need to know in advance if you want to participate and what time slots you want to be there for (which can be as short as a few hours or as long as all night from 6PM to 9AM). If you want to be in on the fun, let me know at webmaster(at)cartoonistconspiracy.com.

BEER, PIZZA and DRAWING MATERIALS will be provided!

Rain Taxi and mnartists.org join forces to create a writer’s dream at Northern Spark, the third annual all-night art fest!

Analog Cave combines the tactile intimacy of a handwritten letter with the fleeting immediacy of social media. Throughout Northern Spark, mnartists.org and Rain Taxi Review of Books invite the public to enter our decked-out Imaginarium for a moment of private reflection and contribute a short text or illustration through a variety of analog tools and processes. The crowd-sourced content will undergo a real-time editorial process which will convert the entries into filmic projections, printed objects, drawn posters, or other public displays—all viewable from Bedlam’s street-side window in Lowertown. The goal of the project is to create a platform for thoughtful, slowed-down messages which leave behind a physical object.

Bedlam Theater
213 East 4th Street
Lowertown, St. Paul
Get directions HERE.

Mark Your Calendars: Participate in Mini-Comics Day 2013 on March 24th!

event, Events, mini-comics, Mini-Comics Day, Opportunities


(Above image by Athena Currier)

March 24th, 2013 is the date for the third annual Mini-Comics Day, celebrating the art of cartooning and creating hand-made comic books (the first event was held April 9th, 2011).

On Mini-Comics Day, participating cartoonists from around the world will write, draw, and print copies of a mini-comic, completing the entire process from start to finish in a day or less. Anyone in the world can participate.

Mini-comics have been democratizing the art of making comic books since the 70’s or earlier… with the popularization of photocopiers, it became apparent that anyone with an inclination and some spare change could print a little comic book. Wildly varying in both form and content, mini-comics are a wonderful synthesis of cartooning and hand-made art objects.

Guidelines: To participate, create a mini-comic from start to finish on March 24th, 2013 (including writing, drawing and printing it). You can make your mini-comic by yourself or with other artists.

Format: Your mini-comic can be any size, length and format you desire. A standard mini-comics size would be eight 4.25″x5.5″ pages (which can be made from one 8.5×11 sheet of paper printed on both sides).

Help: For more information on how to make a mini-comic, see the Cartoonist Conspiracy’s mini-comic tutorial How to Make Mini-Comics. More resources can be found here.

Submit: Optionally, you can post information and/or images from your comic on this blog. Contact for an account to post here.

Bonus points: If you are working with a group of cartoonists, you may want to consider collecting your mini-comics together to distribute as a set. Bags, rubber bands, or boxes all work great for this purpose.

Events: Mini-Comics Day events will be organized at different locations around the world. You can read more about how to organize an event in our FAQ. The purpose of Mini-Comics Day events is to provide a place for cartoonists to draw and/or print their comics, and possibly to trade or sell their minis if they choose to.

If you would like to organize an event, contact us at so we can promote your event and add it to our event listing.

About The International Cartoonist Conspiracy: Founded in Minneapolis in 2002, The International Cartoonist Conspiracy is a loosely organized group of cartoonists with cells all over the world. The Conspiracy has been responsible for many collaborative projects, including anthologies, gallery shows, and numerous jams every month. Any cartoonist anywhere can start a cell, and anyone with a desire to draw comics is encouraged to participate.

Here is the poster for the Minneapolis event by last year’s Stapler Award Winner for best Mini-Comics Day Mini-Comic, Athena Currier:

Altered Esthetics 2013 Open Calls

Altered Esthetics, gallery show, Opportunities

Besides the annual comic art show at Altered Esthetics in November 2013, there are a number of other open calls for art for shows coming up on their calendar this year that I imagine will have great appeal to cartoonists (like the show about BEER for one thing)… check out the full list with details and deadlines here.

February/March: Straight Trippin’
April: Brewers’ Craft and Coloring Outside the Lines VI – Blast Off!
May: [Insert Title Here]
June: Bike Art VIII
July: Physique & Technique
August: Time Honored
September: Fabled
October: Knock on Wood
November: Día de los Muertos and Comic Art
December: Knot What it Seams

Dr. Dan McNamara’s Nematode Pamphlet Project

Good Causes, Opportunities, Projects

Conspirator Dr. Dan McNamara (founder of the currently inactive Mini-Comics Co-op) has successfully funded his kickstarter to tell the world about nematodes using cutting-edge pamphlet technology. That, however, does not mean you will not want to support his noble efforts. You still have a week to support his cause. Go here to learn more, and illuminate yourself by viewing the video below.