The Graphic Medicine conference is returning to Chicago! We first hosted this conference in 2011 and we are excited to welcome friends old and new to participate in the 2022 conference. This will be a hybrid conference, with in-person and virtual attendance options.

The conference theme is (Re)Connecting. We will explore this theme broadly — reconnecting as a community and forging new connections as we navigate a changing world.

We invite the submission of a wide variety of abstracts focusing on health, illness, caregiving, and disability as they intersect with comics in any form (e.g. graphic novels and memoir, comic strips, manga, mini comics, web comics, etc.). We anticipate submissions will explore the following questions and topics, or others you feel are relevant to the field:

• How are you connecting comics to health, well-being, caregiving, illness, and disability in your work?
• How are you connecting comics to the pandemic?
• How are you connecting Graphic Medicine in and to educational settings?
• How is Graphic Medicine connecting and creating dialogue across disciplines and addressing important topics, like reproductive and disability rights, health disparities and equity, dying and death, and social justice (to name a few)?
• What is the history of Graphic Medicine?
• What is the future of Graphic Medicine?

Presentation Formats:

• Lightning talks: These 5-minute presentations should provide an engaging and concentrated synopsis of new, ongoing, or completed scholarly, creative, or professional work in Graphic Medicine. This format is designed with the promotion of sustained conversation in mind.
• Oral presentations: These 15-minute presentations are largely for collaborative, interdisciplinary, or other work that requires and engages a longer presentation format.
• Panel discussions: These 90-minute interviews or presentations by a panel of speakers are meant to address a single topic from a variety of perspectives.
• Workshops: These 90-minute, hands-on, activity-driven sessions are for participants who wish to obtain particular skills with regard to comics. Suggested topics include, but are not limited to:
• drawing for health
• accessing personal stories
• comics and storytelling
• mini-comic tutorial

Hybridity plan: Conference sessions will be available for viewing online for those unable to attend. A select number of proposals will be accepted as prerecorded video if the presenter is unable to attend in person.

Submission and Selection Process 

Proposals should be submitted as a PDF and the abstract of the proposal should not exceed 300 words.

Please include the following information in this order:

• Author(s)
• Affiliation(s)(if applicable)
• Email address of primary contact
• Title of proposal
• Abstract of proposal (300 word maximum)
• Sample images or web links to work being discussed (if applicable)
• Presentation format preference(s) (see options above)
• Equipment needed (e.g. AV projection, whiteboard, easel, etc.)

Proposals should be submitted by January 31, 2022 to: GMChicago22@gmail.com

We will acknowledge the receipt of all proposals. Abstracts will be peer-reviewed by an interdisciplinary selection committee. Notification of acceptance or rejection will be completed by the week of March 15, 2022. While we cannot guarantee that selected presenters will receive their first choice of presentation format, we will attempt to honor preferences.

Please note: Presenters are responsible for costs associated with their session (e.g. handouts and supplies) and personal expenses (travel, hotel, and registration fees). All presenters must register for the conference. Registration fee levels (to be determined) will be posted on the conference registration page in early 2022. Our intention is to make this conference logistically and financially accessible. Discounted rates and some limited scholarships will be available for students, artists, and others in need. Disability accommodations will be made available by request and all venues will comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Proposals must be submitted no later than January 31st, 2022.

Please direct all questions about the submission process to GMChicago22@gmail.com