Cartooning Basics for Teens & Adults

This is a free workshop for teenagers and adults who are interested in 2D cartoon art/character design to build their knowledge and drawing skills in a supportive, conversational, small-group setting. It's intended for people who enjoy drawing (at a beginner or intermediate level), and are interested in dipping their toes into the history, theory, and practice of cartooning as they continue developing their skills!

We will explore:

• A range of 2D cartoon art styles & traditions
• Core concepts in cartooning -- such as simplification and exaggeration
• How to use basic shapes for dynamic character forms and poses
• Storytelling through character design (faces, expressions, bodies, clothing, etc.)
• Other questions and topics based on the group's interests!

What to bring:

Whatever drawing supplies you have on-hand and are comfortable with:

• Something to draw on (e.g., scrap paper, sketchbook, laptop/tablet with a full battery)
• Something to draw with (e.g., pencils and erasers, ink pens, laptop/tablet pen)

Optional but encouraged:

• Personal artwork (to give the group a sense of who you are, or ask for constructive feedback on)
• Cartoon works that inspire you (artist names, screenshots on your phone, physical media the group can handle, etc.)

Venue & reserving seats:

This workshop will take place inside Crescent Beach Community Gallery at 12160 Beecher St, Surrey, BC. Parking around the gallery can be a challenge, so please leave yourself plenty of time to find a spot or use public transit (you can map out your trip using TransLink’s Trip Planner).

We have 10 seats available for workshop attendees and kindly require RSVPs to make sure we don't run out of chairs or supplies. (If the workshop fills up, you'll be prompted to join a waiting list if you'd like to be notified if someone else cancels. The facilitator is open to scheduling additional workshops if there's interest!)

Questions / contact:

Please email ArtAllAlong@gmail.com if you have any questions or accessibility requests.

Meet the facilitator

Danielle Mijo-Burch (www.mijoburch.com) is a cartoonist and graphic designer based in S'ólh Téméxw (Abbotsford, BC, Canada) who creates art rooted in nerddom, community care, and justice. She holds a BA in Ethnic, Gender, and Labour Studies from the University of Washington, and has spent the bulk of her 13-year career designing for non-profits and higher education. In 2021, she transitioned to freelancing to take on illustrative projects that indulge her love of fantasy, inclusive character design, and comedic storytelling. Some of her biggest influences include Over the Garden Wall, Studio Ghibli, Kate Beaton (Hark! A Vagrant), and Abby Howard (The Last Halloween, Scarlet Hollow).

Danielle has created art for the McElroy Brothers (of the hit comedy podcast My Brother, My Brother, and Me), Jam in Jubilee 2022–2024 (a summer arts/music festival hosted by the Abbotsford Arts Council), Tabletop Weekend 2024 at Capital Mall Olympia, and a variety of other causes that focus on nerdery and community connection. She also designed and illustrated Emails to Emily Dickinson (2022), a visual memoir by Amelia Glebocki about the 'invisible lives' of grocery store workers at the outbreak of COVID-19, which earned a nod online from award-winning author and McArthur fellow Kiese Laymon.

Danielle is one of six BC-based artists showing work at Crescent Beach Community Gallery from Nov. 21–Dec. 14, 2025, in a free art exhibition and workshop series titled ‘It’s Been Art All Along: Women Making Sense/Cents Through Art in a World on Fire.' You can read more about the show at bit.ly/ArtAllAlong.