Dorothy Aniro P. reveals her comic book ‘The hidden room’ and more for TCAF 2024

Here’s my interview with Dorothy Aniro P. about her comic book series The hidden room and more at the Toronto Comic Arts Festival 2024 digital marketplace.

TCAF 2024 poster by Nina Bunjevac

The Toronto Comic Arts Festival (TCAF) exists to promote the breadth and diversity of comics and what is considered comics as a legitimate medium of literary and artistic worth. TCAF seeks to promote the creators of these works in their broad and diverse voices for the betterment of the medium of comics and to reach as broad an audience as possible for them. TCAF is held from May 11 to 12 at the Toronto Reference Library.

Dorothy is a visual artist based in Athens. Her artistic practice involves playing with natural and digital media and my language combines elements from comics, architecture, poetry and sculpture. Her work deals with light, move, the absence of those and healing. It involves the creation of designs for installations, fanzines and comic books, letters, sounds, 3D digital spaces, gifs and designs. Her latest comic book The hidden room has been awarded with an EBGE award (Greek Communication Design Awards). Last summer Dorothy completed her first residency in Krems, Austria where she exhibited one of her latest projects Dan sing on golden sand which focuses on the creation of a new language of light. Last year her comic books were presented in Fumetto festival in Switzerland.

Here is the written interview with Dorothy Aniro P. about her comic books at the Toronto Comic Art Festival 2024 digital marketplace.

What was the first comic book that you read?

I don’t actually remember, but one of my favourite ones is The fever in Urbicande and Uzumaki. I find very clever the use of architecture in the narration.

Who or what inspires you to create today?

I draw inspiration from people I meet, mythology, music, and my personal stories or dreams. Some of my artworks are connected to trauma therapy, transformation and healing. I use comic as a method of organisation for my artistic practice, therefore I sometimes combine my stories with installations or sculptures, so it is very usual that my other artworks can be inspiration for a new comic book or the opposite. Either way creation is a way of living for me, I can’t survive without it and it is my way of speaking. I have created my own universe and inspiration for this creation comes by following the flow, going deep inside myself and uniting the pieces of the puzzle.

What do you like most about conventions or festivals?

Well, I really appreciate that you can meet new people and also make connections with interesting artists. It is a lot of fun! And you can drink many beers. 

Do you have a favourite moment from a past convention or festival?

Yes of course! I really loved it at the Fumetto comics festival last year, in Lucerne, Switzerland. They organised a cruise in the lake for all the artists participating and it was very beautiful!

What will be on your table at TCAF?

I am participating in the digital marketplace!  I will have my zines, stickers and prints available. From my books you can find The hidden room 1: The shadow, The hidden room 2: The seed and The accordion. The first two ones are existential & experimental comics based on the myth of the Minotaur: 

‘The house has been turned into a maze and I am looking for my own Minotaur, amongst other minotaurs. Reality is hidden behind what seems to be, in between existence and non-existence, in the midst of pain, confinement and pieces. Each room tells a different story.’ They are part of a multi disciplinary project that addresses various social issues combining the fields of architecture, psychology, fine arts and illustration.

This series has been awarded with an EBGE Award in Greek Graphic Design and Illustration Awards in the Self-published/ experimental illustration category and has been presented in ‘The Yellow kid’ exhibition in Athens School of Fine Arts and Fumetto festival in Luzern, Switzerland.

My third book The accordion is a story about a street musician and a kid.

You can see the work that is available here: https://tcaf-digital-marketplace.myshopify.com/collections/dorothy-aniro-p?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaYdNZCKn8xYEMQ0Xx-dRklzMbc-jvZdGGjGKxdAyphKSLQazWAj_THsmrk_aem_ATFow2kiZEVtLxR_ujSaJB7MhIk0QiZx1ol0XGUtVtyiqqNHjB6aqiTShqfF9vuyV6dQf5NWBZk1z00zd19dv6Z0

How would you describe it to someone?

My work deals with light, movement and transformation. It is experimental and combines different kinds of fields. I have studied architecture and then fine arts so I like to mix various elements in my practice. My work is very lively, colourful and magical but can also get dark sometimes. 

Do you have any other up and coming projects you can talk about?

Yes, of course. I am working on a new zine that will combine some of my poems and artworks and I am also working on a project called ‘Memories from underwater’ which is a space design project of experimental digital environments. This project includes 3D designs, sculptures and moving images / gifs. I am also preparing a new scarf collection and some new paintings! 

Because you have experience in illustration and design I’d like to ask you to provide one piece of advice for something who is thinking about making their own comic book or graphic novel?

I would advise them to follow their heart and not get trapped in the rules or what other people think, so that their work can be unique. And of course to enjoy the process! 

Is there a website where you recommend people go to find out more about your current and future projects?

Yes of course, you can find some of my projects at my personal website aniroart.com
I have created a mini-map for them. You can also find me at Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/dorothy_aniro_p/

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