Upcoming
Join New York Times bestselling and award-winning author S.K. Ali, as she reads and signs copies of her new book, Love From Mecca to Medina. There will be a discussion and Q&A, moderated by Ardo Omer (FOLD – Festival of Literary Diversity, and co-host on Put A Blurb On It). Books will be available for purchase and signing, and refreshments will be served.
Past
Cartooning-Related Practices: Their Present and Future in Canada
Virtual
Tuesday May 11 2021 at 12PM
WATCH THE EVENT AT THE LINK ABOVE OR LINK HERE
“We hope to explore the present and future of cartooning, and ways in which illustration-based works can be used to create positive social change. Our discussion will address the use of comics, graphic novels, illustrated zines, and other related media to center minoritized voices. We will also discuss how these mediums can play a role in reshaping education and the ways in which these artistic tools can contribute to the articulation of agencies that have been and continue to be threatened and ignored in popular culture.”
TIFA Kids! Our Little Kitchen: Jillian Tamaki
Virtual
Sunday November 1 2020 at 11AM
A morning (Reading and Q&A) with illustrator, Canadian-cartoonist and winner of the Governor General’s Award and Caldecott Honour, Jillian Tamaki. Tamaki is the author of the lively food and community picture book, Our Little Kitchen. When a crew of neighbours come together to cook a meal, fun, adventure and new lessons are learned. Ages 4-8.
Interviewer: Ardo Omer
The Storyteller Tour
Sunday, February 17 at 2PM at Brampton Chapters
Join Ardo Omer as she welcomes bestselling YA authors, E.K. Johnston, Kristen Ciccarelli, and L.L. McKinney to discuss their latest novels. Book signing to follow. Chapters Brampton
2019 Toronto Comic Arts Festival
I’ll be at TCAF again for the seventh year in a row and will be moderating 3 panels again. I’ve listed them below and they’re all free events with one of them needing advance registration. I’ll be there as a pro and will also help table at the Zine Terrace with Megan Purdy!
Creator Resource’s Short Stories & Zines Panel & Social with Jason Loo, Victor Martins, Cleopatria Peterson with Ardo Omer as moderator.
Been There Dundas: Fives Years of Toronto Comics with Jason Loo, Steven Andrews, Stephanie Cooke, Allison O’Toole and Ardo Omer as moderator.
Queer YA Comics from First Second with Kevin Panetta, Savanna Ganuchaeu, Cathy G Johnson, Ellen T Crenshaw, Colleen AF Venable, Mariko Tamaki, Rosemary Valero-O’Connell and Ardo Omer as moderator.
2020 Reading is Magic Festival
Monday, September 28, 2020 at 1:30 PM GMT
Why We Need Comics with Ardo Omer, Caitlyn Bannatyne and Katie Yamasaki
A celebration of the power of an image to tell stories, to express identity and to be a tool for activism whether in comics, picture books or painted large on the side of a building. Join three young voices talking about why a picture for them tells more than a thousand words. This event is brought to you by Brooklyn Book Festival, with Toronto based comic writer and critic Ardo Omer, New York based mural artist and picture book illustrator Katie Yamasaki and comic-focused computer art student Caitlyn Bannatyne.
Word on the Street, Toronto
Great Books Marquee, Harbourfront Centre
Sunday September 22 2019 at 1PM
Stephanie Cooke, Jason Loo and Andrew Stevenson discuss comic artistry in Toronto with moderator Ardo Omer.
Canadian Comics Open Library’s Storytelling in Comics Panel
Saturday, November 24, 2018 at 12PM
I was invited to be on a panel as part of the Canadian Comics Open Library launch. It was about storytelling in comics and was moderated by Dr. Brooke Winterstein. It was the second time I’ve been on a panel and it was great especially because my fellow panelists were Ryan North, Jason Loo, Georgia Webber, Stephanie Cooke and Hana Shafi. You can watch the panel in its two parts here.
2018 Toronto Comic Arts Festival
I’ll be moderating at TCAF for the first time! Here are the three panels:
Summer Camp Comics with Vera Brosgol, Mariko Tamaki, Brooklyn Allen, Melanie Gillman and Ardo Omer as moderator.
Adventure Teens! with Hope Larson, Alexander Forbes, Molly Ostertag, Dylan Edwards and Ardo Omer as moderator.
More Life: Coming of Age Comics with Michael DeForge, Hope Larson, Hartley Lin, Max de Radigues, Melanie Gillman, Kevin Czap and Ardo Omer as moderator.
Ardo Omer 