The ability of comics to educate is an undeniable thing. The
pictorial nature of comics allows them to bypass the dryness of textbooks, and
the magic of tangential learning makes it even easier to educate yourself while
enjoying something you love. In my perfect world, this would be common
knowledge and comics would be commonly used in classrooms or for personal
knowledge gain, but alas, not yet. Luckily, we have Isabella Rotman to help us get
there. Rotman saw a gap in education when it came to something very important –
sexual health and violence prevention, and decided to use her vast knowledge
and beautiful artwork to help change that.
Most important to education (and really, storytelling in
general) is the ability to be able to express things in a way that is clear,
concise, and engaging. Rotman’s work is a fantastic and wonderfully drawn
combination of all these things. She does not solely produce educational
comics, however. Included in her body of work are touching stories that are
both fictional and not, excellent art, skateboards, and much more. She often
deals with themes of loneliness and primarily LGBT+ romance, with a healthy
amount of marine and astrological imagery among a clear love for nature. I have
personally never picked up a comic, or anything else, from Isabella Rotman and
been disappointed in even the slightest. She is very obviously pushed by a
passion for the medium, and it comes out in her work in the best way possible.
Every time I have seen Rotman at a show she has had a pretty
wide selection of things to choose from. Her books Not On My Watch and You’re So
Sexy When You Aren’t Transmitting STD’s both deal with health issues. Not On My Watch is a bystander’s guide
to violence prevention – essentially what to do when you see sexual assault, or
what could later become sexual assault, or domestic abuse. It includes
information on consent, strategies for intervention, and ideas for what to do
if you suspect your friend is in an abusive relationship. You’re So Sexy deals with, as you might have gathered from the full
title, sexual health and safe sex techniques. Her comics Dig and Fireworks are
eloquent and beautiful – Dig discusses
the feeling of being cast out after major life changes, and Fireworks talks about dealing with a
break up. Two of Rotman’s other educational comics, Gatherer and Good to Know
are super convenient pocket sized books full of great knowledge – Gatherer about foraging and Good to Know being full things that are,
well, good to know.
If there is one thing that I can take away from simply
browsing through Isabella Rotman’s art, it’s that she is an excellent example
of why comics are important. Her easy to consume style and vast knowledge
combine into an almost perfect educational tool, addressing topics that are
necessary to talk about. She is an important and necessary part of the comics
community, and I look forward not only to the work that she will produce in the
future, but also watching as she gains the success she so thoroughly deserves.
