Photo by Howard Owens.
Batavia resident Chris Humel completed teaching a six-week course on cartooning at the Senior Center on Bank Street on Thursday.
The students were instructed on drawing and telling stories through cartoon panels or hitting the punch line in a single panel.
"We go through corny jokes and illustrate them," Humel said. "I encourage them to think of funny stories in their everyday life, or, you know, everybody's got those stories in their life, in their family, where just something hilarious happens. So I try to get them to think about those stories and then look for things that make them smile throughout the week."
The class was funded through a $5,000 state grant administered through GO ART!
Humel is a musician, singer-songwriter, and visual artist who got started in cartooning in the 1990s while living in New Hampshire. He said a friend of his would send him illustrated letters that made him laugh, so he wrote back with "a little bit of artistic skill, not a lot really" with his own funny drawings. They combined on a small cartoon book that Humel put in a spinner rack at Ava Art Gallery in New Hampshire and that led to a chance to teach cartooning to a class of middle school students. Humel said he's taught cartooning several times over the years since.
"I like teaching. It's empowering for me to share my knowledge and skills, and I think (the students) benefit by just having fun," he said.
Photo by Howard Owens.
