ERIKETA COST
Assistant Life & Arts Editor
Everyone has at least one wuvable oaf in their lives, according to American cartoonist Ed Luce.
Luce will be visiting campus this weekend for the next Visiting Artist Lecture, to discuss his main project “Wuvable Oaf,” a compilation of his first ever self-published comic series.
He will be giving a lecture in McEwen on March 28 from 8:30 p.m. to 9:50 p.m.
“I’ll be talking about the last 20 years of my work, specifically how I progressed from an illustration major to becoming more of a fine artist after grad school,” said Luce. “And how that all eventually led me into the world of comics and merchandising.”
A Fredonia alumnus, Luce used to be the cartoon editor for The Leader when he was a student.
Luce mentioned “Wuvable Oaf” as one of the focuses for the lecture.
“Wuvable Oaf” is a collection of comic series involving an ex-wrestler by the name of Oaf, who is in search for love in San Francisco’s big city setting and music scene.
“I always say ‘Oaf’ is all about big, scary, hairy dudes and the people who love them. And cats. Everyone has at least one wuvable oaf in their lives, whether spouse, father, brother, best friend . . . it may even be yourself!”
He addressed how “Wuvable Oaf” gave him experience in the business side of his career that involved creating merchandise and collaborating with other people.
“‘Wuvable Oaf’ has always been something of a multimedia entity, so I’m also going to dive into the clothing, toys, records, costumes and other assorted merchandise I’ve produced over the years, both alone and in collaboration with other artists,” he said.
Luce said that “Wuvable Oaf” is a way for him to express himself and play around with different passions and inspirations.
“The whole project is a platform for me to explore many of my life-long passions: music, wrestling, fashion, sci-fi,” he said.
You can also expect some queer perspective and LGBTQ inspiration behind the work, too.
“Since the comic is coming from a queer perspective, notions of sexuality, gender, identity and body image definitely come into play,” said Luce. “I try to imbue it all with a sense of playfulness and humor that everyone can relate to and enjoy.”
Luce will also be offering insight about his experience working for publishers like Fantagraphics, Image Comics, Oni Press and IDW.
The following day, The Arts and Business Luncheon Series will be holding a luncheon with Luce on March 29 from noon to 1 p.m at the Fredonia Technology Incubator (FTI).
Program Manager of FTI Monica (Kemp) Simpson explained the process of organizing the Visiting Artist Program.
“We work in conjunction with Barbara Räcker (director of Marion Art Gallery) to find which artists are the best fit and have a lot of business experience,” she said.
Simpson said that at the Incubator, they are solely focused on the business and entrepreneurship aspect of the arts.
“We will be putting on the event and providing lunch,” she said. “It’s a different conversation than what you hear on campus, since it’s about the business side of the arts. There’ll be more questions about how we run it as a business.”
Simpson explained why Luce was a great fit to visit for the program.
“He’s unique and we have not done cartoonists yet . . . so I think it’s going to be a good conversation,” she said.
If you would like to attend the luncheon, make sure to RSVP at http://www.fredonia.edu/incubator.