View source for Raw (comics magazine)

{{Short description|Comics anthology edited by Art Spiegelman and Françoise Mouly}}
{{italic title}}
{{For|other magazines of that title|Raw (disambiguation)#Periodicals{{!}}Raw}}
{{Infobox comic book title  <!--Wikipedia:WikiProject Comics--> 
| title = Raw
| image = raw01.jpg
| image_size          = 220
| caption = Cover to ''Raw'' volume 1, #1 (July 1980), art by [[Art Spiegelman]]
| schedule = Annually
| ongoing = y
| genre = Alternative
| publisher = [[Raw Books & Graphics]] (1980–1986)<br />[[Penguin Books]] (1989–1991)
| date = July 1980 – 1991
| issues = 11
| Superhero =
| main_char_team =
| writers = 
| artists = 
| pencillers = 
| inkers = 
| colorists = 
| editors = [[Art Spiegelman]]<br />[[Françoise Mouly]]
| creative_team_month = 
| creative_team_year = 
| creators = 
| TPB = 
| ISBN = 
| TPB1 = 
| ISBN1 = 
| subcat=
| sort=Raw (magazine)
}}
'''''Raw''''' was a [[comics anthology]] edited by [[Art Spiegelman]] and [[Françoise Mouly]] and published in the United States by Mouly from 1980 to 1991. It was a [[flagship]] publication of the 1980s [[alternative comics]] movement, serving as a more intellectual counterpoint to [[Robert Crumb]]'s visceral ''[[Weirdo (magazine)|Weirdo]]'', which followed squarely in the [[Underground comix|underground]] tradition of ''[[Zap Comix|Zap]]'' and ''[[Arcade (comics magazine)|Arcade]]''.<ref>Kartalopoulos, Bill. [https://www.tcj.com/getting-weirdo-at-the-society-of-illustrators/ "GETTING WEIRDO AT THE SOCIETY OF ILLUSTRATORS"], ''[[The Comics Journal]]'' (June 19, 2019).</ref> Along with the more [[genre]]-oriented ''[[Heavy Metal (magazine)|Heavy Metal]]'' it was also one of the main venues for [[European comics]] in the United States in its day.<ref name="lambiek.net">{{cite web| url = https://www.lambiek.net/magazines/raw.htm| title = Comics, comix, and comic strips! - Lambiek Comic History}}</ref>

== Publication history ==
===Origins===
Spiegelman has often described the reasoning and process that led Mouly to start the magazine. After the demise of ''[[Arcade (comics magazine)|Arcade]]'', the '70s [[underground comix]] anthology he co-edited with [[Bill Griffith]], and the general waning of the underground scene, Spiegelman despaired that comics for adults might fade away for good. He had sworn not to work on another magazine where he would be editing his peers because of the tension and jealousies involved,<ref name=Cav>Cavalieri, Joey. "Jewish Mice, Bubblegum Cards, Comics Art, & Raw Possibilities: an interview with Art Spiegelman & Francoise Mouly", ''Comics Journal'' #65 (August 1981), pp. 98-125.</ref> but Mouly had her own reasons for wanting to do just that. Having set up her small publishing company, [[Raw Books & Graphics]], in 1977, she envisioned a magazine encompassing the range of her graphic and literary interests as a more attractive prospect than publishing a series of books. Spiegelman finally agreed on New Year's Eve 1979 to co-edit.<ref name=Cav /> The magazine was to provide an outlet for the kinds of comics that had difficulty finding a publisher in the US, in particular younger cartoonists who fit neither the superhero nor the underground mold, and European cartoonists who did not fit the sex-and-sci-fi appetites of ''[[Heavy Metal (magazine)|Heavy Metal]]'' fans.{{sfn|Heer|2013|pp=53–54}}

At the time, large-format, graphic [[Punk visual art|punk]] and New Wave design magazines like ''[[Wet (magazine)|Wet]]'' were distributed in [[independent bookstore]]s. Mouly had earlier installed a [[printing press]] in her and Spiegelman's fourth floor walk-up [[SoHo, Manhattan|Soho]] loft and experimented with different bindings and printing techniques.<ref name="lambiek.net"/> Mouly's approach was hands-on, and she gave great attention to every step of the printing process. She and Spiegelman eventually settled on a very bold, large-scale and upscale package. Calling ''Raw'' a "graphix magazine", they hoped their unprecedented approach would bypass readers' prejudices against comics and force them to look at the work with new eyes.{{citation needed|date=November 2019}}

=== Volume 1 ===
In the midst of a commercial and artistic fallow period in the American comics industry, the lavishly-printed, {{convert|10+1/2|x|14+1/8|in|cm|abbr=on}} first issue of ''Raw'' appeared in July 1980.<ref>"Spiegelman and Mouly's Raw Premieres", ''Comics Journal'' #58 (Sept. 1980), p. 21.</ref> Its production values resulted in a $3.50 cover price, several times the going prices for comics, either mainstream or underground.

The first eight issues of ''Raw'' (Volume 1), published by Mouly and co-edited by Mouly and Spiegelman, were printed in [[black-and-white]] in an enormous, doormat-sized magazine format with a stapled binding. The physicality of ''Raw'' was evident in each issue: tipped-in plates, bubblegum cards, and torn covers were part of the aesthetic of the magazine, accomplished by hand by Mouly, Spiegelman, and friends at gatherings after the printing of a new issue.{{sfn|Heer|2013|pp=61–62}}

For example, one issue came with "City of Terror" [[trading card]]s and [[Chewing gum|gum]]; another issue contained a [[flexi disc]] with a [[sound collage]] made from excerpts of [[Ronald Reagan]]'s speeches;<ref name="lambiek.net"/> a third issue had a corner torn off the cover, with the missing corner from a ''different'' copy taped inside.

In 1987 [[Pantheon Books]] published a book collection of pieces from the first three issues titled ''[[Read Yourself Raw]]''.

=== Volume 2 ===
The final three issues of ''Raw'' (Volume 2) were printed in a "[[digest size|digest]]" or "[[paperback]]" format with a mixture of full-color and [[black-and-white]] pages, some of which were printed on differing [[paper]] stock. They featured longer stories that focused more on narrative than bold graphic experiments. These issues were published by [[Penguin Books]].

In 1991, Mouly and Spiegelman published the final issue of ''Raw'', which was no longer a small, hands-on operation, nor was it something they still thought necessary, as the artists then had a range of publishing outlets that had not existed when ''Raw'' first saw the light of day.{{sfn|Heer|2013|pp=77–78}}

==Contents==
Among the comics the first issue contained was the only strip Mouly herself was to produce, "Industry News and Review No. 6", an autobiographical strip in which she contemplates her late-1970s anxieties and thoughts of suicide.{{sfn|Heer|2013|pp=55—56}} Other strips in the eclectic anthology included an example of the early 20th-century newspaper strip ''[[Dream of the Rarebit Fiend]]'' by [[Winsor McCay]], and an excerpt from ''Manhattan'' by contemporary French cartoonist [[Jacques Tardi]].{{sfn|Heer|2013|p=59}}

As an editor, Mouly was hands-on, suggesting ideas and changes — an approach considered anathema to the editor-adverse underground spirit, but artists welcomed her input as in the end she did not interfere with their autonomy.{{sfn|Heer|2013|pp=67–68}}

''Raw'' featured a mix of American and European contributors (including some of Spiegelman's students at the [[School of Visual Arts]]), as well as various contributors from other parts of the world, including the Argentine duo of [[José Antonio Muñoz]] and [[Carlos Sampayo]], the [[Democratic Republic of the Congo|Congolese]] painter [[Chéri Samba]], and several Japanese cartoonists known for their work in ''[[Garo (magazine)|Garo]]''. Each issue contained a broad variety of styles linked by a common theme, be it urban despair, suicide, or a vision of America through foreign eyes.{{sfn|Heer|2013|pp=68–69}}

To comics academic [[Jeet Heer]], ''Raw'' was "a singular mixture of visual diversity and thematic unity".{{sfn|Heer|2013|p=68}}

The best-known work to run in ''Raw'' was a serialization of Spiegelman's (eventual) [[Pulitzer Prize Special Citations and Awards|Pulitzer Prize]]–winning [[graphic novel]] ''[[Maus]]'',{{sfn|Heer|2013|p=75}} which ran as an insert for the duration of the magazine{{sfn|Kaplan|2006|p=113}} from the December 1980 second issue.<ref name=Cav />

Individual chapters were packaged as small comic books bound within each issue of ''Raw'' Volume 1; starting with ''Raw'' Volume 2 (a few color comics, such as Spiegelman's "Two-Fisted Painters: The Matisse Falcon" and [[Yoshiharu Tsuge]]'s "Red Flowers", were also packaged as inserts). By Volume 2 ''Raw''{{'}}s own dimensions had shrunk to match those of ''Maus''.{{sfn|Kaplan|2008|p=171}}

Although comics were the main focus, many issues included galleries of non-comics [[illustration]] and illustrated prose or non-fiction pieces; for example, ''Raw'' Volume 2, #2 featured one of the earliest published articles on [[Henry Darger]], complete with fold-out color reproductions of his paintings and diaries. ''Raw'' also frequently reprinted [[public domain]] works by cartoonists and illustrators of historical significance such as [[George Herriman]], [[Gustave Doré]], and Winsor McCay.<ref name="lambiek.net"/>

==Issues==
'''Volume 1'''
* #1 (July 1980): "The Graphix Magazine of Postponed Suicides"
* #2 (December 1980): "The Graphix Magazine for Damned Intellectuals"
* #3 (July 1981): "The Graphix Magazine That Lost Its Faith in Nihilism"
* #4 (March 1982): "The Graphix Magazine for Your Bomb Shelter's Coffee Table"
* #5 (March 1983): "The Graphix Magazine of Abstract Depressionism"
* #6 (May 1984): "The Graphix Magazine That Overestimates the Taste of the American Public"
* #7 (May 1985): "The Torn-Again Graphix Magazine"<ref>Carr, C. "Fine 'Tooning", ''Village Voice'' (June 4, 1985).</ref>
* #8 (September 1986): "The Graphic Aspirin for War Fever"

'''Volume 2'''
* #1 (1989): "Open Wounds from the Cutting Edge of Commix" ({{ISBN|9780140122657}})
* #2 (1990): "Required Reading for the Post-Literate"      ({{ISBN|9780140122817}})
* #3 (1991): "High Culture for Lowbrows"                   ({{ISBN|9780140122824}})

===Notable works published in ''Raw''===
* ''[[Maus]]'' by [[Art Spiegelman]]
* "[[Here (comics)|Here]]" by [[Richard McGuire]]
* "[[The Boulevard of Broken Dreams (comics)|The Boulevard of Broken Dreams]]" by [[Kim Deitch]]

==Contributors==
Notable ''Raw'' alumni include:
{{columns-list|colwidth=22em|
* [[Lynda Barry]]
* [[Mark Beyer (comics)|Mark Beyer]]
* [[Charles Burns (comics)|Charles Burns]]
* [[Sue Coe]]
* [[Robert Crumb]]
* [[Kim Deitch]]
* [[Julie Doucet]]
* [[Justin Green (cartoonist)|Justin Green]]
* [[Bill Griffith]]
* [[Fletcher Hanks]] (posthumous)
* [[Kamagurka]] & [[Herr Seele]]
* [[Ben Katchor]]
* [[Kazimieras G. Prapuolenis|Kaz]]
* [[Krystine Kryttre]]
* [[Jacques de Loustal|Jacques Loustal]]
* [[Richard McGuire]]
* [[Javier Mariscal]]
* [[Francis Masse]]
* [[Lorenzo Mattotti]]
* [[Ever Meulen]]
* [[Alan Moore]]
* [[Jerry Moriarty]]
* [[Françoise Mouly]]
* [[José Antonio Muñoz|José Muñoz]]
* [[Mark Newgarden]]
* [[Gary Panter]]
* [[Chéri Samba]]
* [[Robert Sikoryak]]
* [[Edward Sorel]]
* [[Art Spiegelman]]
* [[Joost Swarte]]
* [[Jacques Tardi]]
* [[Yoshiharu Tsuge]]
* [[Chris Ware]]
}}

== Reception ==
''Raw'' had a strong critical reception, and also sold surprisingly well.{{sfn|Heer|2013|p=71}} It was also not without its critics, who charged it with being highbrow and elitist,{{sfnm|1a1=Heer|1y=2013|1pp=71–72, 74–75|2a1=Hancock|2y=2013|2p=594}} or claimed it to be a one-man Spiegelman show.{{sfn|Heer|2013|pp=71–72, 74–75}}

Pioneer underground cartoonist [[Robert Crumb]] responded in 1981 with the magazine ''[[Weirdo (magazine)|Weirdo]]'', intended to remain free of editorial intrusion and stay true to comics' lowbrow roots.{{sfn|Heer|2013|pp=71–72}}

==Spin-offs==
Several [[Raw Books#Titles published|solo books]] by ''Raw'' contributors were published with the subtitle "A ''Raw'' One-Shot". Other solo books were labeled "A ''Raw'' Book".

In 2000, Mouly started a Raw Junior division and launched the ''[[Little Lit]]'' series. These hardcover anthologies of children's comics were published by [[HarperCollins]]/Joanna Cotler Books, and featured work by some of ''Raw'''s most famous contributors as well as established [[Children's literature|children's book]] artists such as [[Maurice Sendak]] and [[Ian Falconer]].

In the spring of 2008, Mouly's Raw Junior division launched the first [[Toon Books]]. This collection of 6" × 9" hardcover comics for children claimed to be the first time anyone had published comics specifically for young children learning to read,<ref>[http://www.toon-books.com/about.php "About Toon Books"], {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090531083525/http://www.toon-books.com/about.php |date=2009-05-31}} Toon Books website. Accessed Nov. 23, 2008.</ref> and brought Mouly (together with Spiegelman, who was an advisor) full-circle back to her roots as a small publisher, confirming her as one of comics' most persistent groundbreakers.

==See also==
* ''[[Rip Off Comix]]''

==References==
=== Citations ===
{{Reflist}}

=== Works cited ===
* {{cite book |last=Hancock |first=Michael W. |chapter=RAW |pages=592–599 |title=Icons of the American Comic Book: From Captain America to Wonder Woman |editor1-last=Duncan |editor1-first=Randy |editor2-last=Smith |editor2-first=Matthew J. |date=2013 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |location=Santa Barbara, California |isbn=9780313399244}}
* {{cite book
|last      = Heer
|first     = Jeet
|title     = In Love with Art: Françoise Mouly's Adventures in Comics with Art Spiegelman
|url       = https://books.google.com/books?id=zcutAAAAQBAJ
|year      = 2013
|publisher = [[Coach House Books]]
|isbn      = 978-1-77056-351-3
}}
* {{cite book
|last      = Kaplan
|first     = Arie
|title     = Masters of the Comic Book Universe Revealed!
|publisher = [[Independent Publishers Group#Chicago Review Press|Chicago Review Press]]
|year      = 2006
|isbn      = 978-1-55652-633-6
}}
* {{cite book
|last      = Kaplan
|first     = Arie
|title     = From Krakow to Krypton: Jews and Comic Books
|publisher = [[Jewish Publication Society]]
|year      = 2008
|isbn      = 978-0-8276-0843-6
}}

==External links==
* [https://www.lambiek.net/magazines/raw.htm Lambiek Comiclopedia article]
*"[https://web.archive.org/web/20080210081618/http://64.23.98.142/indy/winter_2005/raw_01/index.html A Raw History]" by Bill Kartalopoulos for ''Indy Magazine''. Exhaustive two-part history of the magazine, with detailed descriptions of each issue and interviews with all relevant personnel.

{{Art Spiegelman}}

[[Category:Raw (magazine)| ]]
[[Category:Comics magazines published in the United States]]
[[Category:1980 comics debuts]]
[[Category:1991 comics endings]]
[[Category:Metafictional comics]]
[[Category:Magazines established in 1980]]
[[Category:Magazines disestablished in 1991]]
[[Category:Defunct American comics]]
[[Category:Magazines about comics]]
[[Category:Comics about comics]]
[[Category:Annual magazines published in the United States]]