The social construction of comic books as a (non) recognised form of art in Australia

Since the 1990s there has been an emergent community of comic book artists within Australia. Nevertheless, comic books within Australia still appear to be poorly recognised as an art/literature form in everyday life and in mainstream academic spheres. The aim of this article is to describe the social construction of comic books as a (non) recognised form of art/literature in Australia since World War II - that is, the way this perception has been constructed and/or built by social interaction - while attempting an understanding of the socio-politico-economic conditions in which the comics arise in Australia.