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Holler if You Hear Me Launch
February 26, 2020 @ 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
FreeLocal comics artists Ryan Alexander-Tanner and Tatum Howlett will be at Books With Pictures for a signing and presentation to celebrate the release of Holler If You Hear Me, Comic Edition. The book is an adaptation of Greg Michie’s late-90’s memoir that tells the story of a white teacher working in Chicago’s Latinx-majority Back of the Yards neighborhood. The original text was widely recognized as an alternative to typical “white savior” narratives, instead advising teachers to embrace and be changed by the culture they enter into, acknowledging the messiness and complexity of teaching, and, most importantly, providing a platform for the students to share their own stories, in their own words. Each chapter ends with a long-form interview of a student, providing them a forum to speak about their own experience.
When it was decided to create a 20th anniversary comics adaptation of Holler If You Hear Me, a search went out to find 10 artists (one for each of the books chapters) from the Back of the Yards neighborhood to create the artwork for the book. Comics artist and educator Ryan Alexander-Tanner was recruited to oversee the project based on his work experience and relationship with the publisher. A number of young POC artists from Chicago were found to create the book but, given the obscure and particular skill set required for such a project, an artist from Oregon was also included, one of Ryan’s students from his PNCA Pre-College Comics class, Tatum Howlett. In 2016, Tatum submitted her comics project from Ryan’s class to the Washington State Scholastic Art and Writing Awards in the comic art category and won a Gold Key, the top honor.
Ryan Alexander-Tanner is a Portland-based comics artist and teacher. He is best known for Illustrating the Dave’s Killer Bread logo and his adaptation of To Teach: the Journey, In Comics. He has created comics and/or illustrations for The Willamette Week, The Portland Mercury, Planned Parenthood, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Nib, Bitch Online, and many others. www.ohyesverynice.com
Tatum Howlett is an artist studying printmaking at PNCA in Portland Oregon. She likes dogs, grilled cheese, and scary movies. @deepfriedguts