Graphic Novels

Born in Whitehorse, Yukon, in 1977, then raised between Snow Lake, MB and Vancouver, BC has given Lars Stoltz a truly unique outlook on life and what is important within. As an Indigenous artist from Opaskwayak Cree Nation, Art is his passion. In 2012, Lars had the ingenuity to pick up a butterknife and start making intricate wood burnings with it as he lived on Vancouver Island.

The desire to help his family has brought him back to Manitoba, where he continues to create works that inspire others to seek their own inner artist. During his career, Lars has created customized works for many celebrities and famous artists, and he always appreciates those who inspired him from an early age. From  Stan Lee and showcasing a custom Thanos in his museum, Robert Englund signing his Freddy Krueger, and Zakk Wylde enjoying a custom Skullthrone in California, to Ted Raimi, Meatloaf and the Sheepdogs, Lars has always enjoyed giving back to those who inspire his own arts.

Recently, The Burton Cummings Theatre chose to honor him with the front lobby display of a 4x8 Larsworks piece that had been given to Mr. Burton Cummings on his New Year’s Eve Birthday bash in 2022. Lars has been invited to tour North American festivals and events every year and always looks to encourage others to see art as a career. His own non-profit arts foundation has recently taken shape to bring a more modern aspect to the arts in Northern Manitoba.

In 2012, I graduated from The University of British Columbia with a BFA in Creative Writing. Since then, my written work has been published in Canadian anthologies and literary magazines such as onecoolword, CV2, Prairie Fire, Poetry is Dead, The Winnipeg Free Press, and Oratorealis.

While attending classes at UBC, I was introduced to spoken word and performance poetry through the Vancouver Poetry Slam community and my writing was forever changed. Since moving back home to Winnipeg in Treaty One Territory, I’ve built a presence in the local community as a fixture on stage at the Winnipeg Poetry Slam where I am also its co-artistic director.

As the former Winnipeg Individual Slam Champion, Grand Slam Champion, and Uniter 30 Favourite Writer, I’ve featured on stages at local writers, spoken word, improv and fringe festivals – the latter for which I’ve produced multiple engaging shows. I’ve also toured the nation, featuring on various community and festival stages like the Canadian Festival of Spoken Word, The Victoria Spoken Word Festival, and The Saskatoon Poetic Arts Festival.

As a mentor I’ve facilitated various groups and workshops via programs with The Manitoba Council for International Cooperation, Creative Manitoba, The Manitoba Writers Guild, and Poetry in Voice, and have developed lesson plans for classroom residencies with the Manitoba Arts Council’s Artists in Schools Program, where I empower students to explore their self-expression and community building through spoken word poetry.

Natalie Mark 麥月明 is a local Winnipeg/Treaty 1 illustrator and cartoonist.

In 2023-4, Natalie received an award for emerging cartoonists and made a comic for CAKE Chicago. They have also facilitated various community and public art projects for Winnipeg’s Chinatown, and run many art and comics workshops in Winnipeg and beyond including the Snoopy and the Red Baron traveling exhibit from the Charles M. Schulz Museum, at VanCAF in Vancouver, and MICE in Boston.

Natalie’s comics are somewhere between a reflection of life and small curiosities. Their work plays with myth-making and whimsical fantasies projected onto social realism. Storytelling is Natalie's primary tool for understanding themselves and exploring the world around them.

When they are not drawing, Natalie loves going to their local library, playing TTRPGs, and going on picnics! Visit their site: https://nataliemark.ca or follow along with their art journey @floodkiss across the internet.

Rhael McGregor is an award winning Métis, 2Spirit/Queer, Winnipeg-based cartoonist and animator. Their published works include Mortified, Touching Grass, Little by Little, and The Unbeatable Sonya Ballantyne. Rhael is also the writer and director of 'Dracudate', an award winning short film with around 2M views on youtube as of 2025. Rhael's work ranges from sweet stories of witches falling in love to more serious autobio comics about learning love while surrounded by abuse or grappling with Métis identity politics.

No matter what they create, Rhael always hopes their work spreads joy and representation, inspires connection, and brings a bit more light into the world.