RELEVANT WORK

HATCH Series No. 1 | Selfhood: Beyond__Archetype

+ About the Work

Comics as a medium of expression have often been underappreciated and even discredited by society because of their comparably brief history, beginning to flourish only in the mid-20th century. However, as a comic maker with more than 15 years of experience in the field, I believe that the comic as a form of art holds a unique position in the art world, and that its distinctive cultural, social, and educational values should be recognized and respected by the public. With academic training at Columbia University as a master’s degree candidate in the arts and an unquenchable enthusiasm for comics, I was invited by comic publisher TOON Books to become their educational consultant in 2014. At TOON, I lead a team of passionate professionals and work closely with product managers for the development of seasonal Common Core Lesson Plans for TOON Publications by world-famous authors and illustrators such as Fred (Frederic Othon Aristides), Neil Gaiman, and Lorenzo Mattotti. In March of 2015, I collaborate with Eisner-award nominated author Nadja Spiegelman for her new graphic novel, Lost in NYC: A Subway Adventure. Lost in NYC is a book dedicated to the journey of finding and sculpting one’s own identity, as it depicts a new immigrant boy, Pablo, and his very first day in New York City and investigates the meaning of “home” through an outsider’s eyes, synchronizing perfectly with the main theme of Hatch Series No. 1. In the Lesson Plan for Lost in NYC, I analyzed both verbal and visual expressions in the book; studied characters and their motives; explored words, rhymes, rhythms, metaphors, and symbols; discussed panels, colors, compositions, time, psychological self-esteem needs and self-actualization; and the fundamental concept of exclusion and inclusion. The Lesson Plan is a great example of a thorough, scholarly examination of comics *from an educational perspective, and through it, viewers are able to comprehend the essential importance and unlimited potential of the comic as a medium of art.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Hsinyu is a Rockaholic content creator lives and works in New York City.