By Janis Mara
Bay City News Service

Cartoon enthusiasts, graphic novelists and folks from all over the Bay Area braved the rain to meet Wonder Woman – or at least the first woman to draw her – at the Cartoon Art Museum Saturday and Sunday.

The occasion was a pop-up Women’s Comic Marketplace, and Trina Robbins, the first female illustrator of the feminist icon, was on hand along with 20 or so exhibitors whose work reflected the rich variety of styles and subject matter in women’s comics today.

“We love comic books. We are vibing out,” said Valaree Garcia of San Francisco, who attended the event with her partner Sunday. “Every single booth is amazing, every woman is telling her story her own way.”

Exhibitor Avy Jetter of Oakland displayed her indie comic “Nuthin’ Good Ever Happens at 4 a.m.” which offers an Equal Opportunity look at the world of zombies, with an all-black cast of undead.

Around the corner at another table was cartoonist Jules Rivera, a surfer who detailed her dive into the largely male world of surfing in one of her first zines.

“I was already an aqua creature. I grew up in Orlando and had always lived on the beach,” Rivera said. When she moved to California, becoming a surfer came easily.

Rivera took over the decades-old Washington Post cartoon strip “Mark Trail” in 2020. The conservation-minded but rather conventional male character quickly got a makeover.

Rivera said, “I made him hot. They always intended him to be hot, they just went about it the wrong way.” In her zine, “Thirst Trapped in a Cave,” Rivera depicts Trail in a series of seductive poses she describes as “pinups.”

While many of the exhibitors create material intended for adults, Jen de Oliveira, a Livermore resident, is the co-creator of Sunday Haha, a free weekly comics newsletter for kids.

Children were much in evidence at the event, grouped around a table in the back industriously coloring and drawing, gathered in front of a big screen in another room watching (what else?) cartoons, sprawled on the floor reading (what else?) comic books.

At 4 p.m., the event adjourned to the library for tea with Robbins and Marrs.

Sitting at a round table sipping tea and eating gingersnaps, the two shared stories of their lives in the comics field.

Marrs, a Berkeley resident, created the comic book series, “The Further Fattening Adventures of Pudge, Girl Blimp,” which was nominated for an Eisner Award in 2017, the highest honor bestowed in the comic book world.

In 1972, Robbins, a San Francisco resident, wrote and drew a short story called “Sandy Comes Out,” starring the first lesbian comic-book character outside of pornography. Shifting gears, she began drawing for DC Comics in the 1980s, and since then has authored several books and continues to write and draw comics.

“Lee Marrs and Trina Robbins talking about feminism, and the younger artists writing graphic novels about their lives – you don’t have to create a universe. You don’t have to make up a planet” the way traditional cartoonists have done, said Ron Evans, chair of the museum’s board of trustees, who was on hand for the event.

“It’s what you experience, and it’s much more relatable,” Evans said. Reading about common experiences in graphic novels and cartoons can make people, especially young people, feel less alone.

“In school you’re taught to write about what you know, and that’s what they’re doing. It’s cathartic, and who knows? Maybe it will help other people.”

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On Saturday, March 25, the Museum of the African Diaspora is featuring a special one-night-only performance by Black dandy Michael Wayne Turner III called ‘Hat Matter: Thoughts of a Black Mad Hatter’ as the highlight of its casual spring fundraiser.

Hat Matter uses movement and dance, accompanied by original classical string music, to explore the headspace of an American Black dandy in a one-man show of hip-hop theatre, comprising poems, stories and monologues.

The play explores the thoughts of a Black man living a precarious existence, oftentimes forced to deal with warring identities placed on him by the oppressor, in much the same way that W.E.B. Dubois spoke of the double consciousness and schizophrenic social nature of the so-called “negro” a century ago, wrote JR Valrey for the S.F. Bayview last summer when Turner was performing in Oakland.

The very fashionable Turner is a classically trained thespian and award-winning poet. Turner has shared stages with the likes of Beyoncé, Daveed Diggs and the Kronos Quartet, to name a few. He is a winner of “The Moth Story Slam” and triple award-winner at the International Conference of Performance Art and Creativity.

The event, from 6-8:30pm, takes place off-site at The Taube Atrium Theater (nestled inside the San Francisco War Memorial) at 401 Van Ness Avenue, San Francisco and starts with a reception before the show and is followed by a Q&A between the artist and Martin Luther.

Tickets are $95.

By Carla Thomas

Black Vines: A Toast to Black Wineries, Black Art and Black Culture held their 12th anniversary event on Saturday, Feb. 25 at The Bridgeyard, near the Judge John Sutter Regional Shoreline in Oakland. It is the longest-running African American winemaker showcase.

Hundreds of guests gathered to celebrate and enjoy a live jazz band while sampling wines and buffets of gourmet bites throughout the venue.

The brainchild of founder Fern Stroud, the event is designed to both promote and support the Black wine experience along with good food and great music.

Stroud, a former Silicon Valley technology professional says, “Black Vines, is a way to bridge gaps and build lifelong ties between community, business and the arts while we celebrate Black excellence.”

Proceeds from the event supports the nonprofit think tank, BlackFemaleProject.org.

Stroud was also excited to announce a new partnership with Alaska Airlines. In the new “Wines Fly Free” program, guests were able to bring cases of wine on their flights back home for free. Also, the McBride Sisters wines are now a featured option on flights with Alaska Airlines.

A.T. Howe, founder of Bass Note Sangria at the Black Vines: A Toast to Black Wineries, Black Art and Black Culture 12th anniversary event. Photo By Carla Thomas

Paula Harrell, left, owner of P. Harrell Wines with staff at the Black Vines: A Toast to Black Wineries, Black Art and Black Culture 12th anniversary event. Photo By Carla Thomas

Wachira Wines staff pour samples of wine at the Black Vines: A Toast to Black Wineries, Black Art and Black Culture 12th anniversary event. Photo By Carla Thomas

Winemakers and vintners at Black Vines included Free Range Flower Winery, Wachira Wines, She Wines, Vintnoir, P. Harrell, and Bass Note Sangria, among others.

“We see this event as an extension of their collective and independent outreach efforts to increase awareness, visibility and market demand for these labels. Our core mission is to provide a tasting experience unlike any other. There has been a steady loyalty factor born out of our Black Vines annual event.”

Additional Black Vine partners include Wine Direct, an industry-leading direct-to-consumer platform; the NAACP x BeyGOOD Black-Owned Small Business Impact Fund for winery empowerment, and She Can, which provides grants and services via the McBride Sisters wine brand.

For Stroud, building economic pathways in the industry will strengthen the business of Black vintners, and ensure sustainability for their community.

“These strategic alliances further establish our desire to provide a consumer touchpoint for wineries to be introduced to a new consumer base. The future success of wineries, going forward, will be heavily dependent upon the experiences created for new potential customers.”

For every event, Stroud, says spreading love is key. “With all that we do for Black Vines, love is at the heart of it, and we want our guests and patrons to feel every bit of that.”

For more information visit: www.BlackVines.net