Comics Forum 2026

Comics Forum brings together expert speakers to discuss how comics engage with the theme of welfare, broadly conceived. Comics and related forms have engaged with themes of welfare since at least as early as 1751, when Hogarth’s prints Beer Street and Gin Lane presented satirical comments on alcohol legislation and public health. Since then, depictions of welfare-related concerns have proliferated in comics ranging from small scale graphic pathographies through to large scale public communication campaigns. The rise of Graphic Medicine as a field of scholarship has given visibility to titles exploring health, disability and wellbeing, but comics are equally entwined with issues of welfare concerning literacy, representation and community. Beyond the content of the comics, the ways they are made, by a community of workers, draws our attention to the welfare of creators and the sustainability of the art form and its connected industries and audiences. Comics Forum 2026 will explore the theme of welfare, broadly conceived, in relation to any form of comics (i.e. including bande dessinée, manga etc.). Ticket holders for Comics Forum 2025 will receive a 30% discount code for a ticket to the Thought Bubble Comic Convention. Codes will be sent ahead of the convention.