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People of the World: Relax!

“People of the World: Relax!” is excerpted from “The Complete C Comics,” a collection of Joe Brainard’s innovative work, and featured in LARB Quarterly no. 47: “Security.”

By Joe BrainardDecember 2, 2025

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This comics excerpt is a preview of the LARB Quarterly, no. 47: Security. Become a member for more fiction, essays, criticism, poetry, and art from this issue—plus the next four issues of the Quarterly in print.


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The cover page of "People of the world relax!" by Joe Brainard

A man with a fedora thinking "Beware of boys in tight pants" with a tiny man resting on his hat and thinking "...they are perverts"

A comic of people dancing and thinking about being beware about tight pants and about not feeling guilty if showers turn you on

A comic with Nancy on a swing saying "Hi folks" and then an unfinished girl talking about the desire to be a dancer

A comic with a girl blowing bubbles that says "People of the world RELAX! ... take it easy and smoke a lot... make all the noise you want on the toilet..." and Dennis the Menace-esque boy saying "other people will hear you... but it does not matter"

A comic that starts with an unfinished sky panel, and then panels of people thinking "Put on a clean white shirt and RELAX... do not be afraid... some of the best people I know are not afraid... Do not be afraid of death... it will not hurt you"

An unfinished drawing of a couple posing with the text: This is a good life. Go out-of-doors a lot. Smell flowers. sit down in the grass. It will not hurt you. Look at the tree. The sky is blue. Climb every mountain. Air is the only hope. Do not kill ants. they are your best friends."

An unfinished sketch of a couple posing under the book title with thought bubbles that read "The world is yours... Here, take it"

LARB Contributor

Joe Brainard was an American artist and writer associated with the New York School, known for his innovative use of comics as a collaborative poetic medium.

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