Mass. humor contest draws world's cartoonists

Chinese cartoonist Yang Xiang Yu addresses freedom with a drawing of the Forbidden City and a medical mask over Mao's mouth. Iranian cartoonist Mohammad Fatehi Kahvarin sees images of nuts and bolts lined up military style while listening to a nut giving a speech. Serbian artist Milenko Kosanovic envisions a man cowering behind a chair, hiding from a television that is broadcasting the word "freedom."

These are just a few samples of political cartoonists from around the world who have submitted works on two themes - freedom and the late-Massachusetts Sen. Edward Kennedy - for an international humor contest scheduled in September.

Organizers of the first Bostoon's Boston International Humor Festival said about 400 cartoonists have submitted more than 1,000 works before Friday's deadline.

"We're getting them from all over, from Africa to Poland to the Middle East," said Mario Barros, 56, of Wilmington, and the brainchild behind the contest. "It's been hard to keep up."

A Cuban refugee and history teacher at Somerville High School, Barros came up with the idea for the festival as editor of a humor website, El Bus de Lenguaviva. The two-year-old website, whose name loosely translates to "The Bus of Living Language," has content mainly written in Spanish but takes cartoon and photo submissions from artists around the world.

Barros said he noticed in recent months that the website was getting more cartoon submissions, but he couldn't publish them all.

"So I thought, 'Why not bring them all to Boston and show them to the public at a humor festival?'" said Barros. "The work is amazing."

Humor festivals are common in other countries but rare in the United States. A typical one includes a cartoon and essay contest, along with a night of standup comedy.

Barros said he wanted to recreate a humor event similar to the ones he remembered in Cuba, minus the censorship. After making a few calls and checking with his fellow artists, Barros sent out a call for entries. Cambridge College then agreed to host the event from Sept. 9 to 12.

The work of 200 finalists will be shown at the college and attendees will be able purchase reprints of the best cartoons.

The winner of the freedom theme contest will win $5,000. The artist with the top Kennedy caricature will receive $3,000.

The festival also will feature a humor essay contest in Spanish and humor workshops and lectures for cartoonists and writers.

Barros' girlfriend, 59-year-old Christine Hauray, said he has been getting entries at all hours of the night.

"He keeps telling me: 'Look at this one,'" said Hauray, an English teacher at Somerville High School. "They're intense."

Cartoonists from Serbia to China have submitted drawings tackling censorship and freedom of expression. Others, including some from Australia and Latin America, have entered various caricatures highlighting Kennedy's work in the U.S. Senate.

Barros said he added the Kennedy contest to give the competition a New England theme but also as a way honor the late senator.

"He did a lot for a lot of people," said Barros. "But he was also funny."

Still, Barros said he's not getting a lot of entries from his native country.

"Not a surprise," he said with a chuckle. "Wouldn't expect a lot of people in Cuba trying to sneak out a cartoon about freedom or a Kennedy."