Growing up in Pittsburgh, PA, I was always inspired by the Sunday newspaper funnies and ink illustrations I found in books like Encyclopedia Brown and the amazing Choose Your Own Adventure book series. Since then, I have always dreamed of being an artist and cartoonist. After getting an art degree and spending decades in the dot com web industry, I finally found ways to share stories I care about through the medium of comics.
I officially began my professional comics career in 2001, self-publishing the minicomic series Namby Pamby, which included humorous slice-of-life tales and autobio adventures of my family. Stories from Namby Pamby were collected in the book Whirlwind Wonderland co-published by Sparkplug Comic Books and Tugboat Press. Soon after, my online comic about motherhood, Beginning’s End, published by Mutha Magazine, was nominated for an Eisner Award for Best Short Story in 2015. It was reprinted in the book, Blame This on the Boogie, which was an homage to the American Musical, exploring themes of escapism, ethnic identity, family, and pop-culture fanaticism. The book appeared on best of year lists from Forbes, London Free Press, and on Publishers Weekly’s Critics Poll.
My latest book, The Man in The McIntosh Suit, is a Filipino-American take on Depression-era noir featuring mistaken identities, speakeasies, and lost love in San Francisco’s Manilatown. It has been nominated for the 2023 Harvey Award Book of the Year and an Ignatz Award for Outstanding Graphic Novel. It was also listed as one of the Best Books of 2023 by the New York Public Library.
Throughout my career, I have contributed to various anthologies and have been lucky to be a part of some inspiring art exhibitions and collaborations with the Arlington Art Center, the Cartoon Art Museum, Giant Robot, the SF Art Commission, Asian Art Museum, University of San Francisco’s Thacher Gallery, 836M, Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum, and the Charles Schulz Museum. I also teach MFA and BFA comics students, lead cartoonist workshops for all age groups, and give talks about comics around the country.
Currently, you will find me based in the Bay Area, always making, teaching, and sharing my abundant love for the art of comics.
Rina Ayuyang 