I was chatting with old friends in Toronto last week, and our conversation came round to the subject of Japanese manga. I made clear my reservations regarding the popularity of pulp manga in Japan, and bemoaned the fact that many manga artists have even had gallery shows here.

Maybe I should have shut up at that point, for when I went on to suggest that guys who draw comic books would never be invited to show in a good Canadian gallery or museum, it was brought to my attention that one of Toronto's most respected art spaces, the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO), has just opened a one-man exhibition featuring a 42-year-old Canadian comic book artist named "Seth."

So I went and had a look.