Students Learn The Business of Art

This past Wednesday, Sept. 10, AB Anderson Hall, rolling chairs circling about, grey carpet, wide and open room, eager students ready to hear Richard Comely speak on his experience as an artist, writer, and about Captain Canuck, Comely’s Canadian superhero character.

Students visited for varying reasons, maybe they were just interested in what Comely had to say while others may have been aspiring artists who got value out of the experience. 

Kevin Beyer, a UMD student in potential pursuit of being a video game designer, was in awe of Comely’s ability to portray such a “well defined character” though Captain Canuck.

All the students expressed appreciation for hearing from an artist who was successful in making a living off of his creative works. Comely spoke of his production process which includes setting time aside to practice one's craft, doing events to market one's art and ways for the starving artist to stay fed.

“It was helpful to hear the process it took to get into making that kind of art,” aspiring manga artist Nadia Latvala said.

The room was packed in the beginning, filled with students, curious to see what was to come. The crowd thinned out over the course of the two hour event, the most dedicated of listeners stayed to the end to hear the details of the artist's life, invested in hearing his wisdom. 

Though the event was short, the many who were there will go on with their lives, having learned something new, applying the new knowledge to their lively pursuits, and is that not what College is about?