Suzy Varty is a noted British

comics a medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, captions, and onomatopoeia can indicate ...

artist, writer, and editor. In the late 1970s, she compiled, contributed to and edited ''Heröine'', the first anthology of comics by women to be published in the U.K. Throughout the 70s, she was part of the

Birmingham Arts Lab The Birmingham Arts Laboratory or Arts Lab was an experimental arts centre and artist collective based in Birmingham, England from 1968 to 1982 – an "arts and performance space dedicated to radical research into art and creativity". Loosely org ...

, and she has participated in the

Underground Comix Underground comix are small press or self-published comic books that are often socially relevant or satirical in nature. They differ from mainstream comics in depicting content forbidden to mainstream publications by the Comics Code Authority, ...

and

Wimmen's Comix ''Wimmen's Comix'', later titled ''Wimmin's Comix'', is an influential all-female underground comics anthology published from 1972 to 1992. Though it covered a wide range of genres and subject matters, ''Wimmen's Comix'' focused more than other an ...

movements in the U.S. Varty remains active in the British Comics scene, frequently appearing at such conventions as Thought Bubble Comic Arts Festival in

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

and th
Canny Comic Con
in Newcastle.

Career

Suzy Varty's work has appeared alongside the work of such renowned

underground comix Underground comix are small press or self-published comic books that are often socially relevant or satirical in nature. They differ from mainstream comics in depicting content forbidden to mainstream publications by the Comics Code Authority, ...

creators as

Trina Robbins Trina Robbins (born Trina Perlson; August 17, 1938, in Brooklyn, New York) is an American cartoonist. She was an early participant in the underground comix movement, and one of the first female artists in that movement. In the 1980s, Robbins beca ...

Phoebe Gloeckner Phoebe Louise Adams Gloeckner (born December 22, 1960), is an American cartoonist, illustrator, painter, and novelist. Early life Gloeckner was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her mother was a librarian and her father, David Gloeckner, was ...

, and

Hunt Emerson Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...

. Varty's artistic career began as she found herself part of the

, an alternative arts center created in 1968. Varty's first comic was published in the Arts Lab's ''Street Comix'' in 1976. Varty was also a contributor to and editor of the 1978 underground comic book ''Heröine'', the first all-female comics anthology published in Britain. A

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

comic that gained praise for going against beliefs of what was considered "feminine," ''Heröine'' was praised for challenging social stereotypes by being a form of anarchy against the otherwise strict depictions of political standpoints in Britain. After ''Heröine'' was published, the Birmingham Women's Liberation Movement conference praised the work for its contribution to feminist art. As the first anthology of comics by women to be published in the U.K., ''Heröine'' is credited with opening doors for the creation of the British Women's Comic Collective in 1991. While in Birmingham Varty published a

fanzine A fanzine (blend word, blend of ''fan (person), fan'' and ''magazine'' or ''-zine'') is a non-professional and non-official publication produced by fan (person), enthusiasts of a particular cultural phenomenon (such as a literary or musical genre) ...

during 1979 along with fellow artists Connie Klassmen and Syd Freake. The fanzine was called ''Brass Lip'' and contained interviews with the bands

Kleenex Kleenex is a brand name for a variety of paper-based products such as facial tissue, bathroom tissue, paper towels, tampons, and diapers. Often used informally as a genericized trademark for facial tissue in the United States and Canada, the nam ...

The Mekons The Mekons are a British band formed in the late 1970s as an art collective. They are one of the longest-running and most prolific of the first-wave British punk rock bands. The band's style has evolved over time to incorporate aspects of ...

, Poison Girls, and The Raincoats. The zine focused on political narratives and feminist culture; another important focal point of the zine was the topic of sexism in the punk/rock industry. ''Brass Lip'' was a representation of feminist ideologies that were forming in the late 1960s and early 1970s. In 2003, Varty discussed the lasting appeal of

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byr ...

BBC Four BBC Four is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was launched on 2 March 2002

, alongside comics expert Paul Gravett. In 2014, she was one of the judges for the

British Comic Awards The British Comic Awards (BCA) were a set of British awards for achievement in comic books. Winners were selected by a judging committee; the awards were given out on an annual basis from 2012 to 2016 for comics made by United Kingdom creators publ ...

. Varty has garnered international success as well, with her comics being published in Finland, England, and America.

Selected bibliography

* ''Street Comix'' (

Press 1976)—contributor * ''Heröine'' (

Press 1978)—contributor, editor * ''Mama! dramas'' (Educomics 1978)—contributor * ''The Comic Book of First Love'' (

Penguin Books Penguin Books is a British publishing, publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers The Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the following year.Penguin Books Penguin Books is a British publishing, publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers The Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the following year.Wimmen's Comix ''Wimmen's Comix'', later titled ''Wimmin's Comix'', is an influential all-female underground comics anthology published from 1972 to 1992. Though it covered a wide range of genres and subject matters, ''Wimmen's Comix'' focused more than other an ...

) #17 ( Rip Off Press 1992)—contributor * ''My Story''
BBC Raw
2008)—contributor * ''Nelson'' (

Blank Slate Books Blank Slate Books (BSB) is a publishing company based in the UK. It publishes primarily comic books, graphic novels and comic strip collections, with an emphasis on new work by British artists and translated work by European artists. The books ...

2011)—contributor

References

External links

Suzy Varty on the Comic Book Database

{{DEFAULTSORT:Varty, Suzy Living people 20th-century English women artists 21st-century English women artists British female comics artists English comics artists English comics writers English illustrators English cartoonists Feminist artists Female comics writers People from Gateshead Writers from Tyne and Wear Underground cartoonists Year of birth missing (living people)