Bianca Xunise

Bianca Xunise
portrait of Bianca Xunise, by Thayná Stvanin
Born
Chicago, Illinois, United States[1]
EducationUniversity of Illinois at Chicago (BFA)
OccupationsCartoonist, illustrator
Notable workSix Chix
AwardsIgnatz Award (2017)
Websitebiancaxunise.com

Bianca Xunise is an American cartoonist and illustrator. Their[a] work is nationally syndicated through the Six Chix comic strip collaborative.[1]

Early life

Xunise was born in Chicago to artistic parents; their mother was a fashion designer.[1] Their family has Creole roots.[2]

They have a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Illinois Chicago.[3]

They started as a fashion blogger, but quit "because they didn't want to indict George Zimmerman in the Trayvon Martin case and after that I realized I [didn't] care what I'm wearing anymore."[4]

Career

Xunise's influences include Tove Jansson, Ludwig Bemelmans, and Naoko Takeuchi.[2] They credit their professional start in comics to website HelloGiggles, which gave them a column in 2015.[5] Xunise was featured in The Nib and Shondaland when King Features Syndicate asked them to create a Popeye tribute strip.[6] In 2017 they won the Ignatz Award for Promising New Talent for their self-published "Say Her Name", an autobiographical story about police brutality.[7]

In 2020, they became the second Black woman at the time, after Barbara Brandon-Croft, to contribute to a nationally syndicated comic strip when they became one of the Six Chix.[5][6] With their Six Chix debut, Xunise also became the first Black nonbinary cartoonist to be nationally syndicated.[7]

They taught at DePaul University[7] and are a lecturer at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.[3]

In 2024, they released their first graphic novel, Punk Rock Karaoke.[8]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Nittle, Nadra (23 October 2017). "Meet the Black Girls of Goth". Vox. Retrieved 17 May 2020.
  2. 1 2 Gore, Sydney (16 November 2016). "Biana Xunise makes '60s-inspired comics for modern times". Nylon Magazine.
  3. 1 2 "Bianca Xunise". School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Retrieved 2026-06-21.
  4. ↑ Haparimwi, Charlene (8 December 2016). "Finding a New Voice: Bianca Xunise". Hooligan Mag.
  5. 1 2 Rockett, Darcell (24 February 2020). "Lincoln Square's Bianca Xunise becomes first black cartoonist for 'Six Chix' comic strip; Southland native to visit C2E2". Chicago Tribune.
  6. 1 2 Michael, Cavna (20 April 2020). "Newspaper comics hardly ever feature black women as artists. But two new voices have arrived". Washington Post. Retrieved 18 May 2020.
  7. 1 2 3 James, Nora (March 14, 2023). "Introducing Spring 3Arts/Bodies of Work Fellow Bianca Xunise". Bodies of Work | University of Illinois Chicago. Retrieved 2026-06-21.
  8. ↑ Xunise, Bianca (2024-09-23). "Punk Rock Karaoke". In These Times. Retrieved 2026-06-21.
  1. ↑ Xunise uses both they/them and she/her pronouns. This article uses they/them for consistency.
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