Virginia Woolf’s Orlando, Remixed for a New Generation by Jules Scheele
Virginia Woolf’s *Orlando* isn't just a cornerstone of early 20th-century modernism; it’s a living document, perpetually morphing and finding new meaning with each generation that discovers its fluid heart. Now, artist Jules Scheele is offering perhaps its most vibrant and timely reinterpretation yet: a solo graphic novel adaptation due from Avery Hill this June. This isn’t simply another retelling; it’s a deeply personal, technicolor conversation with a text whose core questions about identity, time, and gender are more resonant than ever.
For an artist already respected for his contributions to graphic nonfiction guides on gender and sexuality, notably an Icon Books trilogy co-written with Meg-John Barker, Scheele’s take on *Orlando* represents a significant evolution. This marks his first solo effort, a move that speaks volumes about the weight of his artistic vision and his desire to fully immerse himself in a narrative that profoundly mirrors his own journey. He first encountered Woolf’s novel as a teenager, feeling a connection but acknowledging a "dissociated" relationship with gender at the time. The real connection blossomed after his own transition, leading him to watch the Sally Potter film adaptation and ultimately embrace the opportunity from Avery Hill publisher Ricky Miller to tackle the graphic novel himself. It’s a compelling arc, illustrating how personal transformation can unlock a deeper understanding of canonical works.
Rejecting Muted Tones: A Deliberate Palette for "Big Feelings"
The instinct, particularly when adapting a literary classic, can often be to adopt a restrained, perhaps even muted, aesthetic. We’ve been conditioned to associate seriousness with browns, grays, and a certain realism in adult comics. Scheele directly challenges this. His artistic choices for *Orlando* are a deliberate, joyful rebellion. He’s opted for an explosion of bright, almost dopamine-inducing colors, specifically to "explore the narrative" and allow readers to "disappear into" what he calls *Orlando*'s "big feelings."
This isn't just a stylistic preference; it’s a philosophical statement on how complex, emotionally charged stories can and should be presented. Scheele firmly believes that a serious topic doesn't demand a neutral tone. By infusing the adaptation with a sense of the magical from start to finish, he's making an argument for emotional richness and visual exuberance as valid, even essential, components of profound storytelling. It asks us to reconsider our preconceptions of what "literary" graphic novels should look like.
Orlando's Enduring Mirror for Gender Fluidity
Woolf’s *Orlando* is arguably one of the earliest and most insightful literary explorations of gender fluidity, written at a time when such concepts were barely articulated in public discourse. Scheele, from his contemporary vantage point, illuminates precisely why it continues to resonate with such force. He sees Woolf as a sharp observer of "the absurdity in gender presentation and the societal rules of it," a satirical lens that finds direct parallels in modern queer communities.
He points to popular memes that playfully declare "the two genders" to be two random, unrelated things – a direct counterpoint to rigid, prescriptive ideas of trans identity. This observation is crucial. It highlights how Woolf, long before our current lexicon for gender identity, was already pushing back against the "rigorous idea that you can only be trans if you check certain boxes." For Orlando, transition affects her materially – she "misses running people through with a rapier" – but fundamentally, she remains the same person, simply "trying new things and having a good time." Woolf, as Scheele notes, doesn't "hold hands and ask uneducated questions," an approach that feels remarkably modern and respectful. The text champions the idea that gender is fluid, a performance, and often, profoundly silly in its expectations.
The Art of Reinterpretation: A Call to Creativity
The real power of *Orlando*, Scheele argues, lies in its narrative looseness and its capacity to inspire endless reinterpretations. It’s a text that encourages rather than dictates, inviting artists and scholars to infuse it with their own voices. Every adaptation, from Sally Potter’s film to Paul B. Preciado’s academic work, feels profoundly unique, reflecting the artist’s individual perspective.
This graphic novel is more than just an accessible entry point to a classic. It’s a testament to the idea that literature isn't static; it lives and breathes through new eyes and new contexts. While acknowledging that parts of the original, like its "Orientalism," are dated, Scheele emphasizes that the central message – a search for identity, the realization of multiple selves, and the impossibility of distilling someone down to a single thing – remains profoundly relevant.
This project from Avery Hill and Jules Scheele is a significant marker for the graphic novel space. It signals a continued embrace of graphic adaptations as a legitimate, even superior, medium for re-engaging with literary heritage. More than that, it reinforces the critical importance of diverse voices bringing new lived experiences to classic texts, thereby ensuring their relevance and vitality for generations to come. It’s a powerful reminder that the best art continues to ask big questions, and sometimes, it takes a fresh, vibrant perspective to truly hear the answers.
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