As we like to remind you every time we look at one of Colossive Press’s Colossive Cartographies series of fold-out zines some are most definitely comics while others fit into different graphic narrative categories. Julie by Liver & Lights – the name for the collective work of cross-media creator John Bently whose practice spans the realms of performer, illustrator and author – is most certainly in that latter category. At Broken Frontier, though, we are of course always open to giving space to zine-style work like this that combines a DIY culture ethos with illustrated storytelling.
When unfolded Julie (Colossive Cartographies #60) gives us one haunting image placed against a short poem that provides a brief snapshot of the life of the titular character. Julie cuts a tragic figure, her life summed up by the verse’s refrain:
A quiet voice, some friendly words
a gentle smile to earn,
Julie is just waiting for
Her lover to return
What makes this such an effective and touching short is the way in which Bently hints at the tragedy of Julie’s past while leaving so much to the readers’ imaginations. Her (presumably) homeless circumstances and probable alcoholism tied into the loss of a relationship as she awaits the re-emergence of a long gone partner who may or may not have existed. The accompanying image has a certain caricatured aspect to Julie’s physicality; slightly exaggerated proportions adding to a sense of destitution and the melancholic, with the backdrop of uncaring urban sprawl further accentuating these feelings.
As ever, the Cartographies act not just as a celebration of small press voices we know but also as introductions to the work of those we don’t. Colossive Cartographies #60 is no exception.
Liver & Lights • Colossive Press, £2.00
Review by Andy Oliver
