MariNaomi
MariNaomi in 2021
MariNaomi in 2021
BornMari Naomi Schaal
(1973-08-02) August 2, 1973
Texas, U.S.
https://marinaomi.com/

MariNaomi (born as Mari Naomi Schaal; born August 2, 1973) is an American graphic artist and cartoonist who often publishes autobiographical comics and is also well-known for creating three online databases of underrepresented cartoonists.

Career

MariNaomi's has been drawing comics since 1997, starting out as a zine creator.[1][2] Their comics are usually autobiographical. They talk about the search for their roots, their status as a mixed race queer woman, as well as their feminism. Their article "Writing People of Color" discusses how people of color should approach writing about people from a race that is not their own.[3] MariNaomi stated "I feel like race is such a sensitive issue that I wanted feedback and I wanted to know how better to do it and to share that information.".[2]

MariNaomi wrote an article It Happened to Me: I Was Sexually Harassed Onstage at a Comic Convention Panel for XOJane in 2013 describing their experience of being harassed on stage as a panelist at a comics convention.[4] They did not name their harasser, but Scott Lobdell later came forward and issued a public apology for his actions.[5][6]

MariNaomi founded and maintains three online databases of cartoonists: the Cartoonists of Color Database, the Queer Cartoonists Database and the Disabled Cartoonists Database.[7][8][9] In 2014, they began the Cartoonists of Color Database and created the Queer Cartoonists Database soon after.[10][11] In 2019, they launched the Disabled Cartoonists Database.[12] The opt-in per creator database Queer Cartoonists contains 775 entries as of May 2018 and has been reported to be helpful in the professional careers of upcoming cartoonists.[13] Librarians and archivists specializing in comic book studies have also highlighted the need for open access databases like these.[14]

MariNaomi has written and drawn comics columns for several websites, including The Rumpus and SFBAY.ca.[15][16] In 2016, they were featured at the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center conference on imagined futures.[17] MariNaomi’s column on The Rumpus won an honorable mention in Houghton Mifflin’s Best American Comics 2013 and a SPACE prize.[18] Their art can be found in the Smithsonian, De Young Museum, Cartoon Art Museum, Asian Art Museum, the Japanese American Art Museum, and the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts.[19][18] MariNaomi also taught classes for California College of the Arts Comics MFA program.[20]

Since 2017, they and fellow author Myriam Gurba have been hosting an advice podcast called AskBiGrlz Archived 2021-11-26 at the Wayback Machine where they answer listener questions.[21] In 2011 and 2018, MariNaomi toured with Sister Spit and is also a guest editor of PEN Illustrated.[20]

In 2021, MariNaomi created a Stop AAPI Hate mural in Garvey Park in Rosemead, California. The comic-strip inspired 60-by10-foot mural covers the side of a recreational park building.[22][23] Connie Chung Joe of Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Los Angeles said the mural is "a wake-up call that Asian-Americans in this country have been scapegoated. Not just by this pandemic, but time and time again in American history.”[24][25]

In May 2023, MariNaomi released their book, I Thought You Loved Me. In this book, MariNaomi goes on an emotional, reminiscent journey to try and figure out why their friendship with Jodie ended abruptly with a phone call. They used details from old journal entries and told the story through colorful collages made with mixed media such as drawings, email threads, and postcards.[26][27] During the publication process, MariNaomi faced budget issues and even a cancellation, until Fieldmouse Press picked it up.[28]

Personal life

Their mother is Japanese and their father is a Caucasian American. Born as Mari Naomi Schaal in Texas in 1973, they grew up in Mill Valley, California and later moved to San Jose, California.[2] They began using the name MariNaomi in 2003. They worked in illegal hostess bars while they briefly lived in Japan.[29] They wrote about those experiences in their memoir, Turning Japanese.[30]

Publications

  • Kiss & Tell: A Romantic Resume, Ages 0 to 22 (Harper Perennial, 2011) ISBN 0062009230
  • Dragon's Breath and Other True Stories (2dcloud/Uncivilized Books, 2014) ISBN 1941250017
  • Turning Japanese (2dcloud, 2016) ISBN 1937541169
  • I Thought YOU Hated ME (Retrofit Comics, 2016) ISBN 1940398495
  • Losing the Girl (Graphic Universe, 2018) ISBN 1541510445
  • Gravity's Pull (Graphic Universe, 2018) ISBN 1541545265
  • Distant Stars (Graphic Universe, 2020) ISBN 1541587006
  • Dirty Produce (Workman Publishing Company, 2021) ISBN 1523513314
  • I Thought You Loved Me (Fieldmouse Press, 2023) ISBN 1956636161

References

  1. ↑ Monnier, Mia Nakaji (14 September 2016). "This Cartoonist Perfectly Captures the Highs and Lows of Friendship". Los Angeles Magazine. Archived from the original on 1 January 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2019.
  2. 1 2 3 "Illustrating the Awesome and the Awkward: MariNaomi's Memoirs". Giant Robot Media. 11 July 2017. Archived from the original on 1 January 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2019.
  3. ↑ "Writing People of Color by MariNaomi". Midnight Breakfast. Retrieved 2019-06-25.
  4. ↑ "IT HAPPENED TO ME: I Was Sexually Harassed Onstage at a Comic Convent…". archive.fo. 2013-12-21. Archived from the original on 2013-12-21. Retrieved 2019-06-25.
  5. ↑ Polo, Susana (20 December 2013). "Scott Lobdell Outs Self as Comic Con Panel Sexual Harasser". The Mary Sue. Archived from the original on 18 February 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2019.
  6. ↑ MacDonald, Heidi (2013-12-19). "Scott Lobdell: I apologize to MariNaomi". The Beat. Retrieved 2019-06-25.
  7. ↑ "About MariNaomi". MariNaomi.com. 2019-02-13. Retrieved 2019-06-25.
  8. ↑ Aoki, Deb (2019-04-17). "MariNaomi Shines a Light on Diverse Cartoonists". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved 2019-06-25.
  9. ↑ Steyels, Mike (2016-09-24). "A Peek Inside the Essential 'Cartoonists Of Color' Database". Vice. Retrieved 2019-06-25.
  10. ↑ Steyels, Mike (24 September 2016). "A Peek Inside the Essential 'Cartoonists Of Color' Database". VICE. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
  11. ↑ MariNaomi. "MariNaomi, Cartoonist/Community Organizer - XOXO Festival (2018)". YouTube. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
  12. ↑ MariNaomi (October 8, 2019). "I am very pleased to announce that we have just now full-on LAUNCHED the DisabledCartoonists.com database!". Twitter. Retrieved June 3, 2021.
  13. ↑ Bergdahl, Esther (28 May 2018). "Rainbow Connection: LGBTQ Publishing 2018". Publishers Weekly.
  14. ↑ Quamme, Margaret. "Virtual Art+Feminism events at Ohio State highlight databases". The Columbus Dispatch.
  15. ↑ "MariNaomi, Author at SFBay". SFBay. Retrieved 2022-03-12.
  16. ↑ "MariNaomi". The Rumpus.net. Retrieved 2022-03-12.
  17. ↑ Center, Smithsonian Asian Pacific American. "MariNaomi » CTRL+ALT: A Culture Lab on Imagined Futures". CTRL+ALT: A Culture Lab on Imagined Futures. Retrieved 2022-03-12.
  18. 1 2 "MariNaomi". PEN America. 2015-12-11. Retrieved 2023-05-24.
  19. ↑ "MariNaomi". Simon & Schuster. Retrieved 2023-05-24.
  20. 1 2 "MariNaomi | Fuse Literary". Retrieved 2023-05-24.
  21. ↑ Gurba, Myriam; MariNaomi. "AskBiGrlz". AskBiGrlz. Archived from the original on 2021-05-13. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
  22. ↑ "Murals pop up in San Gabriel Valley to combat Asian hate". Pasadena Star News. 2021-08-19. Retrieved 2022-03-12.
  23. ↑ "'A call to action': New mural in Rosemead takes aim at wave of anti-Asian hate". San Gabriel Valley Tribune. 2021-05-28. Retrieved 2022-03-12.
  24. ↑ "Stop AAPI Hate Comic by MariNaomi Installed as a Mural in Rosemead, California". Multiversity Comics. 2021-05-29. Retrieved 2022-03-12.
  25. ↑ Anderson-Minshall, Jacob (23 June 2021). "Queer Comic Artist's LA Mural Combats Anti-Asian Hate". Out Traveler. Archived from the original on 3 February 2023. Retrieved 12 March 2022.
  26. ↑ "Cartoonist MariNaomi Goes Digging for Closure in 'I Thought You Loved Me'". KQED. 2023-02-28. Retrieved 2023-05-24.
  27. ↑ Oksman, Tahneer (16 May 2023). "Why friendships end — and why our memories of them fade". The Washington Post (Book review). ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on 17 May 2023. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  28. ↑ Kirby, Rob (18 January 2023). "Never Gonna Give You Up: PW Talks with MariNaomi". Publishers Weekly. Archived from the original on 24 May 2023. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  29. ↑ Davies, Rachel (2016-05-24). "Exploring Japanese Identity as a Hostess in Illegal Expat Bars". Vice. Retrieved 2019-06-25.
  30. ↑ Dueben, Alex (2016-06-17). "MariNaomi Explores Being Young and "Turning Japanese"". CBR. Retrieved 2019-06-25.
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