Edible Comics Workshop

Last Friday a group of year 7 girls from Breakfast Club participated in an edible comics workshop with writer Canan Marasligil and illustrator Karrie Fransman. Canan has been joining us at Breakfast Club for the past few weeks, getting to know the students and encouraging them to tell stories around the breakfast table. Over this time the girls wrote a story about their favourite head teacher Miss Dibb. At the workshop on Friday we were joined by Karrie, who has created comics for a range of publications including Time Out and The Guardian, who helped to turn the story into an edible comic strip. Instead of drawing on paper, each girl was given a paper plate upon which to illustrate a scene from the story. And instead of using traditional drawing materials, the girls made their comics out of food, using fruit, nuts, vegetables and biscuits. The story charts a surreal adventure Miss Dibb has one morning on her way to school, in which she encounters talking strawberries, takes a ride inside a giant apple, and flies on the back of a butterfly! The girls came up with some great ideas, using parsley for hair and mushrooms for heads. Great fun was had by all in what proved to be a creative and enjoyable exercise in telling stories. Next Thursday the girls will be showcasing photographs of their edible comic at the Free Word Centre as part of the Islington Word Festival.