Just finished teaching the Comic Book Art short course at Chelsea College of Art & Design.
The course ran for five Saturdays, with the objective of creating 1-2 pages of comic book artwork by the end. The students worked really hard, and in many case produced much more work than was asked for. They all finished with inked up linework, with a few having time to add colour. They should all be at the stage where they can finish off their work (adding lettering and so on), without too much trouble.
As five weeks is not a lot of time, I didn't focus too much on improving their basic drawing skills, concentrating more on storytelling. I gave the students a framework from going from a blank page or loose ideas, to developing a story, thumbnailing it and drawing out the full-size panels. I also asked them to consider the layout of the page(s) as a whole, to make sure they flowed properly, and the pacing fitted with the story.
It was my first experience teaching (though I've taken many adult education classes), so I'm pleased it went well overall. The student artwork was great, and I'm currently putting together a mini anthology of their work for them.
