Young artists in Shropshire are being given the chance to showcase their talents by drawing a comic strip for a competition as part of Shrewsbury Comics Festival being held in June.
The winners will be announced on the second day of the two-day festival but youngsters are being urged to get things moving now as the closing date for entries is April 5.
Leading Shropshire law firm Lanyon Bowdler is running the competition as part of its sponsorship of the festival which will be taking over the entire town on the weekend of June 1 and 2.
Comics Salopia is a huge international festival celebrating comic art in all its forms and will be playing host to a number of big-name celebrities from the industry over the two-day event.
One of the main aims of the event is to support Share Shrewsbury, a local charity that assists people of all ages affected by addiction.
Holly Edwards and Lucy Speed are fronting Lanyon Bowdler’s involvement in the festival and are calling on school pupils in Years 7 to 12 to get their thinking caps on and come up with a work of art to wow the judges.
Lucy said: “Having worked extensively with schools in the local community for some time, we are thrilled to be able to offer this exciting competition to students, who we hope will enjoy the festival later this year.
“Prizes are awarded at key stages 3, 4 and 5 and to enter you must draw a comic strip which includes our LB Bear. It must be on a single A4 sheet but can be in black and white or colour.”
Holly added: “Each entry must have between 4 and 9 story panels and tell a story on the theme of ‘The Origin of the Species’. All entrants must clearly mark the back of their entry with their name, school year and school.
“Your comics will be judged on artistic talent and imagination and the winners will be presented with their prizes by world famous comic artist Charlie Adlard at a special ceremony at the festival on Sunday June 2.
“It may seem like a long time away but it is worth stressing that the closing date for entries is Friday, April 5 so it really needs thinking about now.
“Prizes include original artwork, professional art equipment, signed comics and free tickets to events. There are some wonderful prizes and this is a great opportunity to get yourself and your school noticed with an impressive comic strip.”
Jane Mackenzie, former Mayor of Shrewsbury and the Chair of Comics Salopia, said it was great to see firms like Lanyon Bowdler supporting the event.
“We are really looking forward to seeing the work that is produced as a result of this competition, and I would like to say a big thank you to Lanyon Bowdler for organising it,” she said.
“Share Shrewsbury is a vital charity which will be doing fantastic work with people of all ages in the town who are affected by addiction, so anything we can do to help raise its profile is a positive step forward.”
Venues around town holding Comics Salopia events will include the Dana prison, University Centre Shrewsbury, the Castle Grounds and the Museum and Art Gallery – which is hosting an exhibition by Charlie Adlard.
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