EDWIN H. SIMMONS CREATIVE MINDS SERIES

The Ripple Effect is Wild
How small projects can have huge unexpected impacts

James Spooner
Graphic novelist, filmmaker and tattoo artist

James Spooner is an award-winning graphic novelist, filmmaker and tattoo artist. His debut graphic novel, The High Desert, was named “Best of 2022” by Publishers Weekly, The Washington Post and The New York Public Library.

The High Desert is the 2023 recipient of the American Library Association’s Alex Award and the Cartoonist Studio Prize. Spooner co-edited an anthology of Black punk writers and comic creators titled, Black Punk Now. The book was named in the top 10 Music Books of 2023 by Pitchfork, top 5 Music Books from the Guardian and received a Kirkus star. Pantheon has recently acquired his forthcoming second memoir, set for publication in 2025. He is also a regular contributor to RazorCake Magazine.

Spooner directed the seminal documentary Afro-Punk which premiered at national and international film festivals, including Toronto International and The American Black Film Festival. He also co-founded the AfroPunk Festival, which currently boasts audiences in the hundreds of thousands around the world.

Spooner’s work has been recounted in various publications, including NPR, the Los Angeles Times, Vice, The Village Voice, The New Yorker, MTV, NBC News and Variety. He was a recipient of the ReNew Media Rockefeller Grant, is an ongoing guest curator for the Broad Museum in Los Angeles, and previously programmed for the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

Spooner continues to screen Afro-Punk around the world, giving talks on punk, comics and Black identity.

The first 100 attendees will receive a copy of The High Desert. Spooner will be available for book signings immediately following the onstage presentation in the Wolfe Center lobby. Additional items will be available for purchase.

This event is free and open to the public.