Looking at things well, it was very difficult for the artists to coexist. Angela Perez and Carlos Andres Martinez Hoyos a publication did not appear. As roommates of an apartment located in the Stadium sector, both artists created Voltage, a publication with all the look and spirit of the comic magazines published in the nineties. Jelly -she and Tape deck –he– have been in the comics business since 2015 and since then, through different paths, they have made a place for themselves in the Antioquian comic circuit.
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Casetera is a celebrity on social media while Gelatina has made a name for herself in the world of fanzines thanks to raccoon comics, a publisher that publishes small print runs of graphic novels. Although they have different temperaments, they have managed to come together for the edition of a magazine that brings together the lines and vignettes of 19 authors based in Colombia.
On the balcony of their apartment, Gelatina and Casetera remember that they came up with the name of the magazine after making a list of options. They wanted it to be a single word, easy to remember and with a strong street accent. So, after discarding others, they came up with the word voltaje, which in popular language is used to talk about powerful things. Then, they contacted Colombian comic authors and invited them to send two pages of their drawings, with the indication that it should have some element of humor. Not all the comics are humorous, but the invited authors did respond to the invitation of their colleagues. This collaborative spirit is usually the norm in the world of comics, at least that is how it seems from the outside. “The objective of this publication is to make national comics visible,” says Casetera.
On the table where we do the interview is, in a visible place, the first issue of Voltaje. There is also a sample of the individual works of Casetera y Gelatina. There are issues of Mazamorry, a fanzine with humorous comics, from him, while there are several books from her. There is a graphic novel that explores the romantic comedy register, but in an alternative key. The story is about a girl who falls in love with a dough – yes, think of plasticine or a similar substance. I ask them how they met and the answer refers to the socialization scenarios of these times: social networks. “I learned about Casetera’s work because I saw on Instagram the comic he made answering the question what would happen if Goku were paisa,” she says. The themes and drawing styles of both are different, but they are united by their interest in comics, something that they both acquired in childhood while reading the press.
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That’s why they edit a magazine. By knowing the art that feeds them and gives meaning to their lives in the pages of newspapers or books, they have a particular connection with physical media. Of course, everyone has an account on social networks and they share their drawings there, but that doesn’t take away one bit from the romanticism of printing fanzines, magazines, and small-run books. So much so that they have made three presentations of the magazine, in different bookstores and cultural spaces in Medellín. “People have gone to the events and some buy the magazine,” says Casetera. Voltage has a commercial price of thirty thousand pesos. People can buy it at the Grammata bookstore or send a message to their managers’ Instagram accounts to request a copy. “With the money we get we are going to publish the second issue, which will have other authors and themes.”
At the end of the interview, Casetera and Gelatina talk about their respective political and artistic ideals. They also say that he earns his living from the copies of Mazamorry, which he sells at local and national fairs. She, on the other hand, has a job outside the world of comics, something more of an office job. “I wish she could dedicate herself to comics: she is very talented,” says Casetera. Beyond these things of daily life, the truth is that this Voltage is part of a century-old Colombian tradition of comic book publications, which began with Mojicón, by Adolfo Samper“This year marks the 100th anniversary of that comic,” says Casetera.
