Honolulu Star-Advertiser cartoonist Jon J. Murakami is one of 23 island artists whose work will be on display Friday when “Comic Jam Hawaii: Talk Story, Draw Story” opens at the Downtown Art Center in Chinatown.
The exhibition is the first by Comic Jam Hawaii, a community of local artists of all levels of proficiency. Their art ranges in style from Murakami’s local-life cartoon strips to sci-fi, manga and fantasy.
Murakami will be at the opening night reception, which begins at 5:30 p.m. Friday. He’ll return with several other artists for a live drawing event Nov. 14 and be the star of an all-day pop-up event
Nov. 15.
“(Comic Jam) members will be present on select days to answer any questions,” said Murakami. “So come laugh, come talk story and have fun.”
Other participants include professional illustrator and coloring manager Kanila Tripp, Devin Oishi and PraiseJesus Artis of the North Shore Artis family, known for their art and music contributions.
“This will be the first, and possibly the only art exhibition some of the Comic Jam members will be in,” Michael H. Cannon, co-founder of Comic Jam Hawaii, said in an email. “Beyond showing the public at large the diversity of art from the group, we wanted to give members an opportunity they might otherwise never have. The group’s whole drive is art advocacy, for people to come make art, and for others to see art out in public. This is another avenue to advance that goal.”
The exhibition’s hours will be
11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays, through Nov. 17; admission is free. Downtown Art Center is located at 1041 Nuuanu Ave.
For more information, visit downtownarthi.org.
To learn more about Comic Jam Hawaii, go to facebook.com/groups/ComicJamHawaii. The group welcomes people of all skill levels who are interested in cartooning and sketching to attend their ongoing art sessions.
