“Comics and Disability”, MOCCA, New York

The rise of disability studies has prompted a non-hierarchical reconsideration of disability. In parallel, the emergence of “outsider art” has enlarged aesthetic possibilities within art, but not without introducing new category problems. This panel traces emerging points of engagement between these issues and comics. Ilan Manouach will discuss the Shapereader, his innovative tactile language for blind readers.Anne-Françoise Rouche is the director of La “S” Grand Atelier in Vielsalm, Belgium, an arts center for persons with mental disabilities that organizes collaborations with contemporary artists. Frémok artist DoubleBob, who has participated in this project, will join the discussion. Moderated by Bill Kartalopoulos.