about kayla e.
Kayla E. is a Texas-born artist of Mexican-American descent. Her comics practice centers around her childhood and functions as a map-making exercise. Leaning heavily on the fixed compositional structure and aesthetic codes of post-war American comics, she imposes order onto recollections once disorganized by intrafamilial abuse, addiction, and sexual violence. Her textile work and painting practice are concerned with memories that present as unmappable. She currently works as the creative director at Fantagraphics and is the co-founder and former president of Nat. Brut Inc. She holds a B.A. from Harvard University, where she received the Albert Alcalay Prize in Visual Arts and served as the art director for the Harvard Lampoon. Kayla is also a public speaker and has been invited to speak about her work at universities and conferences across the country. In 2023, she was granted a Princeton Hodder Fellowship to support the completion of her first book. Kayla resides in a small town in North Carolina with her wife and two dogs. Her upcoming graphic memoir, Precious Rubbish, will be published by Fantagraphics and is available for pre-order.
Early praise for Precious Rubbish by Kayla E.
“FIVE STARS STUNNING! Precious Rubbish has the biblical-level artistry and poetry of William Blake combined with the playful commercialism of Mad Magazine.” — Maria Bamford
“This is the scariest book I have ever read.” — Mark Newgarden
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“Precious Rubbish may help you come to terms with some things you’ve been privately avoiding or even things about yourself you didn’t know.” — Chris Ware
Pre-order from Fantagraphics today!
HONORS & AWARDS
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Mary Mackall Gwinn Hodder Fellow | Princeton University | Lewis Center for the Arts | 2023-2024
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Rockower Award in Layout and Design | American Jewish Press Assoc. | 2021
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American Illustration 40 | AI-AP | 2021
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Whiting Literary Magazine Prize| Nat. Brut | 2020
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American Illustration 37 | AI-AP | 2016
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Albert Alcalay Prize | Harvard University | 2013