The Truth In This Art: Stories That Matter
Rob Lee
Podcast
Episodes
Listen, download, subscribe
73 - How Did Precious Rubbish Take Shape? | Kayla E. (award-winning artist, Precious Rubbish, Fantagraphics)
Kayla E. joins The Truth In This Art to discuss Precious Rubbish. Kayla E. (award-winning artist, Creative Director at Fantagraphics, 2023–2024 Princeton Hotter Fellow) joins Rob Lee to discuss her debut full-length graphic memoir, Precious Rubbish. An award-winning artist whose practice spans comics and fine art—textiles, sculpture, video performance art, painting, and drawing—Kayla E. brings candid, instinct-driven storytelling about life, family, and making work on her own terms. In this episode, Kayla E. shares the story behind Precious Rubbish—why she made it for herself with no plan to publish, how every decision was guided by pure instinct, and how the book’s distinctive color palette was lifted from vintage “Komic Kards.” The conversation also digs into audience and context: setting aside what’s proper, traditional, or would sell; focusing on truth over convention; and connecting the memoir to a broader art practice across mediums. It’s about how comics and fine art can hold difficult life stories while inviting readers to look closer. Topics Covered: Making a memoir with no intent to publish—letting instinct lead form and contentLifting the color palette of Precious Rubbish from vintage comic cardsCollecting ephemera and old stuff as an aesthetic engineBalancing honesty and care when depicting a terrifying family historyFrom comics to fine art: textile, sculpture, video performance art, painting, drawingMake the conversation count: read Precious Rubbish—grab it from your library, Amazon, or thriftbooks.com. Kayla E.'s graphic memoir stays true to lived experience, trusts instinct, and turns memory into art without sanding off its edges. Host: Rob LeeMusic: Original music by Daniel Alexis Music with additional music from Chipzard and TeTresSeis. Production: Produced by Rob Lee & Daniel AlexisEdited by Daniel AlexisShow Notes courtesy of Rob Lee and TransistorPhotos: Rob Lee photos by Vicente Martin for The Truth In This Art and Contrarian Aquarian Media.Guest photos courtesy of the guest, unless otherwise noted.Support the podcast The Truth In This Art Podcast Fractured Atlas (Fundraising): https://www.fracturedatlas.orgThe Truth In This Art Podcast Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/thetruthinthisart.bsky.socialThe Truth In This Art Podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/truthinthisart/?hl=enThe Truth In This Art Podcast Website: https://www.thetruthinthisart.com/The Truth In This Art Podcast Shop: Merch from Redbubble ★ Support this podcast ★
The Truth In This Art: Stories That Matter RSS Feed
