REVEAL! Women’s Comics East Africa-UK
Congratulations to our selected REVEAL! Awardees:
Marcelline Akinyi, Kenya
Instagram @marcellines.akinyi
Nancy ArtMusic UK
Instagram @Nancy.art.music
Gwantwa Lucas Mwakalinga, Tanzania
Instagram @stories_underthebaobabtree
Charity Atukunda, Uganda
Instagram @charity.atukunda
Seraphine Umutoni, Rwanda
Instagram @umubobo
Birungi Kawooya , UK
Instagram @birungiart
Jennifer Msekwa, Tanzania
Instagram @jenniferandarts
Chela Yego, Kenya
Instagram @chelathereader
We are now closed for submissions and grateful for the participation of our following judges:
REVEAL! Judges
Jessica Horn, UK
is a feminist writer, thinker and strategist. She has worked for two decades supporting activist organisations, funders and the UN to deepen analysis, shape policy and funding, and refine interventions to defend women’s rights to health, bodily autonomy and freedom from violence and build scenarios for feminist futures. Jessica has worked on many other boards and within various organisations, including African Feminist Forum, Urgent Action Fund Africa, Comic Relief International Grants Committee, the Fund for Global Human Rights and the African Women’s Development Fund. Her writing has been published in academic and media platforms, including The Lancet, The Guardian and Al Jazeera. Jessica’s work is animated by a deep interest in the lush forest of African women’s knowledge around health, healing, transformation and human existence across time. She has ancestry in western Uganda and New York, and is based in London.
Grace Kerongo, KENYA
is the lifestyle editor at Nairobi, Kenya daily newspaper The Star and also handles the lifestyle segment of Radio Africa’s digital portfolio that includes – Mpasho.co.ke, Kiss100.co.ke, Classic105.com and Radiojambo.co.ke and covers art, music, film and trending topics. Grace has covered many international events like the MTV Video Music Awards in Los Angeles, the All Star MTV concerts in Durban, South Africa and Multichoice Showcase in Mauritius among others.
Grace is also the chairperson for the newly constituted Entertainment Arts Journalists Association of Kenya (EAJAK).
Meloddi Mazola, KENYA
is a Kenyan fashion designer, making bespoke garments since 2012. She has worked in many fields including as a sales representative at Cool Beans Tattoo Parlour which involved selling niche merchandise. She has also worked in a production company as a pattern maker, and taught fashion illustration and package design in higher education. Meloddi is inspired by the varied styles used in comics to communicate different messages in relation to art and design more widely.
Anaïs Mutumba, UK
is a journalist, editor, activist and singer. She writes news articles, covering all types of sectors including technology, science, entertainment and politics. For Anaïs, writing is “like breathing” and she has been published in various places such as Huffington Post and The Independent. She’s determined to forge a path through the challenging world of journalism to shine a light on injustices happening in the world, to try and help make sure they don’t happen again. Anaïs sees the written word as an opportunity to bridge some of the gaps across race, culture and opinions – to try and find common ground and reach solutions. She also works in TV and broadcasting and has been involved with productions on BBC, Al Jazeera and Channel 4. Anaïs is originally from Rwanda, was born in Congo, bred in South Africa and currently lives in London.
WHAT IS REVEAL!
This LDComics strand of activity is supported by a significant British Council International Collaboration award. REVEAL! is a partnership between graphic novelist, comics scholar Dr Nicola Streeten, director UK LDComics CIC and artist, arts journalist Msanii Kimani wa Wanjiru, director of Kymsnet Media Network, Kenya. http://www.kimaniwawanjiru.wordpress.com
REVEAL! will spotlight the historical and contemporary status of women comic artists in the UK and four East African countries Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda and UK artists with family heritage in this region. This will interrogate a masculine history of comics in the UK and East Africa and contribute to wider cross-cultural recognition of women’s experiences historically and currently.
REVEAL! will celebrate women’s responses through comics to ideas around gender identity located within existing histories. Participants will contemporize activity through reflection of Climate Change impact on experiences, especially those living with disability and within marginalized communities
THE 3 STAGES OF REVEAL! ACTIVITY
STAGE 1
REVEAL! WOMEN’S COMICS COMPETITON
DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION 15 July 2022
The competition is open to self-identifying women or non-binary artists.
There are two categories in the REVEAL! competition
Category 1: REVEAL! Women’s Comics East Africa
open to women in Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania or Uganda
Category 2: REVEAL! Women’s Comics UK
open to UK based women with family heritage in Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania or Uganda.
All selected award winners will receive £2500 to participate in an online residency and receive mentoring towards developing their project.
STAGE 2 August 2022
REVEAL! FINALISTS’ ONLINE RESIDENCY
Each finalist will receive a fee to participate in a 4-day online workshop and to develop their own projects. They will present their outcomes at two one day symposiums in September (UK) and October (Kenya) for a public audience.
STAGE 3 September – October 2022
REVEAL! Festivals
September: A one day UK Festival will be hosted by both facilitators: Dr Nicola Streeten and Msanii Kimani wa Wanjiru UK (venue and date tbc) for a public audience. The UK finalists will be present to disseminate the development of their projects. The East African finalists will present online.
October: A one day Kenya Festival will be hosted by both facilitators: Msanii Kimani wa Wanjiru and Dr Nicola Streeten in Nairobi (venue and date tbc) for a public audience. The East African finalists will be present to disseminate the development of their projects. The UK finalists will present online.
We are now closed for submissions, thank you to everyone who submitted work
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
- Submissions should be 12 pages of your work, including the cover. This can be a selection of short comics, one panel cartoons and/or part of a longer graphic novel in progress. This should be submitted digitally as one single PDF file.
- Please read the guidelines information sheet carefully HERE
For your entry to be eligible for final consideration, both digital and printed copies must be received. The digital version is for judges. The printed version will be exhibition purposes during REVEAL! festivals in London and Kenya
For all queries please email revealcomicsteam@gmail.co
Your PDF submission must be submitted via a link (for example to drop box, wetransfer or equivalent) which must be included in the form
Entries should where possible be submitted via the website LDComics.com by completing the online form by 15 July 2022. If this is not possible please email us to work out another option
To be eligible for receipt of the award a printed copy should be received by 31 July 2022 or later where agreed through email correspondence
As part of the submission you will be asked for a 50 word description of your work
ELIGIBILITY UK
Open to anyone based in the UK who self-identifies as a woman including non-binary and trans and has family heritage in Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda,
Entries must not have been previously published (self published works are eligible)PDF of your work should be submitted via a link which must be included in the form Entries should be submitted via the website, by completing the online form by midnight 15 July 2022 AND a printed copy must be received by 31 July 2022
Physical entries should be posted to
The Grange,
The Street,
Great Cressingham, Thetford,
Norfolk IP25 6NL
ELIGIBILITY EAST AFRICA
Open to anyone based in Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, who self-identifies as a woman including non-binary and trans.
Entries must not have been previously published (self published works are eligible)
Online entries should be received by 15 July 2022
PDF of your work should be submitted via a link which must be included in the form OR via another way agreed with the organisers – please email us
Where Physical entries are posted these should be addressed to
Msanii Kimani Wa Wanjiru
KYMSNET MEDIA NETWORK LTD
P. O. Box 18203,
Nairobi 00100,
Kenya, Africa
WHY ENTER?
ALL ENTRIES to the competition will:
Have their printed entry included in the display of all the entries received in East Africa and UK. This will be exhibited for a public audience on 26 September 2022 at the REVEAL! Festival UK and during October 2022 at the REVEAL! Festival, Kenya.
Receive invitations to the VIP symposium events
Everyone is a winner!
The judging panel is made up of invited women from East Africa and the UK. The judges have been carefully selected to represent a range of interests and varying knowledge of the graphic novel form, cartoons and comics.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
If your question is still unanswered, please email revealcomicsteam@gmail.com
What do you mean by “woman”?
We welcome entries from people who self-identify as female, including trans and non-binary people.
What do you mean by “comic”?
Our definition of comic is loose and is based on work that combines text and image (though this is not exclusively necessary). The brief is open to your interpretation and we will celebrate innovation in the approach to the form and to the subject.
However, we do require that your entry is printable in zine (booklet) form.
I have not printed my work before, is there any advice you can give me on this?
We will be hosting 2 online workshops to go through the brief as well as how to approach printing. The dates to be confirmed.
We have a small number of bursaries available to support printing costs for East African submissions. Please email us.
I have a publishing contract for my work, but it hasn’t been published yet, can I enter?
No, sorry.
Can I enter if I am a student?
Yes, the competition is open to everyone who identifies as female and is based in the UK.
I do not consider myself British, but I live in the UK, can I enter?
Yes, if your main place of residence is the UK, you are eligible to enter.
I have a short story comic, can I enter?
Yes, we are accepting entries of 12 pages that can include a mix of cartoons, comics, or the start of a longer graphic novel. We are interested in your ideas, your response to the subject as well as the style.
My work is a collaboration, can I enter?
Yes, on the understanding that should the work receive an award, this must be shared between the collaborators
