Laura Molina at exhibition Artists Assemble! Empowerment and Inspiration in Contemporary Comics. | Photo: Courtesy of the Museum of Latin American Art.
As box office figures can attest, comic books are big business, with successful cinematic adaptations proving that superheroes have made the leap from pop cultural niche to mainstream entertainment. Despite their wide appeal, however, comic books, at least the established titles that usually become big screens franchises, are still predominantly filled with white, male characters, especially in leading roles. A new exhibition at the Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA) in Long Beach, Artists Assemble! Empowerment and Inspiration in Contemporary Comics, aims to challenge that narrative by focusing on mainly Latino artists who are using the medium to explore cultural and political issues that have meaning for them.
The first mainstream Latino comic superhero was White Tiger -- the alter ego of a Puerto Rican character named Hector Ayala -- who first appeared in a December 1975 issue of Marvel's Deadly Hands of Kung Fu. Created by writer Bill Mantlo and artist George P rez, himself of Puerto Rican descent, White Tiger was a product of both the martial arts craze and increasing multicultural awareness of the 1970s. He fought for justice alongside Spider-Man and Daredevil before being gunned down while trying to flee a wrongful murder conviction. (His sister and niece would later pick up his mantle as later incarnations of the White Tiger).
Rhode Montijo, Pablo's Inferno #5, 2001, 10 x 6.5 in. | Image: Courtesy of the artist.
It wasn't until the independent and alternative comic boom of the 80s and 90s, however, that Latino creators and characters began to be seen on a wider scale. Some of the most influential artists from the period were three Mexican-American brothers from Oxnard, California -- Gilbert, Jaime and Mario Hernandez -- whose series Love and Rockets reflected their personal experiences, as opposed to the fantasy lives of superheroes. It was wanting to tell personal stories, so it was basically our upbringing, and then also, Hey, this stuff's not in comics. Let's show them our version,' Jaime told the AV Club in 2012. We're from Southern California, and all they're seeing is one side of it. They're seeing the beach and stuff like that. Well, let's show them this side of it. Let's show them how punk is from my personal stance. Let's show them how being a Mexican in Southern California is.'
Through multiple story lines, Love and Rockets explored the lives of everyday people -- including Latinos, punks, and queers -- in the fictional towns of Palomar in Mexico and Hoppers outside of Los Angeles. Two of the main characters, Margarita Luisa Maggie Chascarrillo and Esperanza Hopey Leticia Glass, were not only Latinas, but also occasional lovers, groundbreaking when the comic debuted in 1981.
Curators Naiela Santana and Esperanza S nchez at exhibition Artists Assemble! Empowerment and Inspiration in Contemporary Comics. | Photo: Courtesy of the Museum of Latin American Art.
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In the 90s, besides Love and Rockets, I started seeing that there were other Mexican-American cartoonists self-publishing their own comics, says artist Javier Hernandez (no relation to the Hernandez brothers). That inspired me in 98 to put out my first book. Since youre creating your own character, working for yourself, you can do whatever you want. I wanted to make sure I did something with Mexican culture. Thats how I came up with the concept of El Muerto. El Muerto: The Aztec Zombie tells the story of Diego de la Muerte who is on his way to a Dia de los Muertos celebration when he is abducted, sacrificed, and granted supernatural powers by Aztec gods. The comic was adapted into a live-action film starring Wilmer Valderrama in 2007.
Hernandez credits the independent comic book boom with giving him and other Latino artists and writers the freedom to explore themes that had relevance for them. I could own my own thing, without having to give into editorial or marketing concerns. By the 90s a lot of Latino creators were thinking of creating their own works, based on things they wanted to talk about and not so much just getting in line and trying to work on [a mainstream series].
Javier Hern ndez, El Muerto: Daze of the Dead-Numero Uno Edition, 1998, comic book, 10.5 x 7 in. | Photo: Courtesy of the artist.
In addition to creating his own books, Hernandez is also the co-founder of the Latino Comics Expo, which will be celebrating its fifth anniversary at MOLAA on August 6-7. A number of years ago, Hernandez and fellow artist Ricardo Padilla were bemoaning delays surrounding the construction of the Mexican Museum in San Francisco. I said, I cant do anything about a museum, but why dont we put together a Latino comics expo?' Hernandez says. He said, Whats that?' and I had to think about it. Well I guess itll be a comic convention where we showcase Latino/Latina creators.' It was born almost out of a whim, but by then I had spent so many years in the comic biz and I had met so many other Latino creators, and I'd seen the fan base out there. To me it just seemed like a logical thing.
The motivation for Artists Assemble! grew out of the Latino Comics Expo, as a way to explore in more depth many of the artists and themes featured in the fair, including not just sketches and completed comics, but sculptures, paintings, and video art. We wanted to focus on artists that were just emerging, and on women as well, because there are a lot of males, and a lot of white males, but not enough females, and particularly Latinas, in the comic book world, says Esperanza S nchez, who co-curated the exhibition with Naiela Santana.
Stephanie Rodr guez, No Te Ha
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Laura Molina at exhibition Artists Assemble! Empowerment and Inspiration in Contemporary Comics. | Photo: Courtesy of the Museum of Latin American Art. 
