Manga Mine

How do we respectfully navigate an increasingly culturally pluralistic society in a time in which belonging and not belonging, inclusion and exclusion, ownership and appropriation have become global hot topics? Cultural authenticity and hybridity seem, at times, mutually exclusive and hypocritical as we come to consider cultural identity. ‘Manga Mine’ is a collaborative graphic novel exploring notions of ‘Asianness’, cultural authorship, authenticity and identity through a part auto-ethnographic, part participatory visual project centred on the medium of Manga and its significance as a material culture, but also a contested space in which cultures interact, hybridise or clash. By tracing and quite literally drawing out individual lived experiences of Manga and Anime enthusiasts, ‘Manga Mine’ serves as a reminder that identities are plural. That experiences are shared but also unique. That material objects such as Manga carry vast and numerous significances. And that cultural identity is a topic which we must navigate with respect and willingness to reflect and renegotiate.