Gearing up for this weekend's SPACE

Ohio State University's U Weekly talks to organizer Bob Corby about the Small Press and Alternative Comics Expo (SPACE), set for Saturday in Columbus.

The article starts a little shaky -- "Did you see American Splendor, Ghost World or that Johnny Depp movie about Jack the Ripper that had the Elephant Man in it? Well, those were all once comics, or more professionally 'graphic novels'." -- but the Q&A with Corby brushes against some interesting topics:

So do you think the big Superhero stuff and the Manga hurt the type of quirky and independent comics you guys do?

The awareness can be good, but it hurts us. People think it is all superheroes and it’s not. People see and like a lot of stuff they don’t realize came from comics, like Ghost World or American Splendor.

So even given the poor revenue for the comics industry, what do you think its place is right now in culture as an art form?

It reflects the times just like any other art form. In the 50’s it was the commies and that whole McCarthy thing, and it changes overtime. It’ll always do that. Comics are always on the edge and attract controversy, and almost always first it seems like.

The one-day event will include guests Dave Sim and Gerhard, and the presentation of the Howard E. Day Memorial Prize to A. David Lewis and Marvin Perry Mann for The Lone and Level Sands.