Comic Book Illustrators to Appear as Part of Downtown Art Walk

Dr. Jamye Foster, assistant professor of marketing at The University of Southern Mississippi, wants to show her students that “you don't have to live in New York or Los Angeles to make a living as a high-profile professional.”

Foster hopes to illustrate that point as part of the Spring Art Walk set for Saturday, April 16 in downtown Hattiesburg. Foster and her husband, Barry Herring, are owners of Southern Fried Comics which opened on Front Street in the downtown area last August. On Saturday, they will host acclaimed comics creators Kody Chamberlain and Rob Guillory.

Louisiana natives who both currently reside in Lafayette, Chamberlain and Guillory will be on hand from 4-9 p.m. signing their work, selling original designs and creating live artwork.

“These are critically acclaimed up-and-comers in the comics world and it would be great to show them that Hattiesburg can support such big names,” said Foster. “And the fact that they're becoming quite famous and still able to work from an area such as Lafayette is a great example for our students who might not be able to pursue their dreams in a big city.”

Chamberlain is the creator/writer/artist of “Sweets,” set in pre-Katrina New Orleans where detectives are tracking a serial killer who leaves behind traces of pralines. Guillory is the co-creator/artist of “Chew,” a high concept detective series spotlighting Tony Chu, a cibopath – someone who can take a bite out of anything (except beets) and feel a psychic sensation of what happened to that particular object.

For more information about the artists or Southern Fried Comics, call 601.329.4127 or visit www.southernfriedcomics.com