Carter, Curtis

English

epublications@Marquette

Marquette Universitye-Publications@MarquettePhilosophy Faculty Research and Publications Philosophy, Department of3-11-1971Cartoons Make Unique Show [A review of acaricature and cartoon exhibit, Milwaukee]Curtis CarterMarquette University, curtis.carter@marquette.eduCarter, Curtis. 1971. Cartoons Make Unique Show. Bugle American, March 11-17, Second Section,Vol. 2 No. 10 (No. 23).:·-·e·arto·6iis ···ma-K~e~ ;l!niql1(r7show~. By Curtis L. Carter , The secre~ of a good caricature is that it offers a visual interpretation of its s1,Jbject "which we can never forget and which the victim will al-ways seem to carry around with him _ like a man bewitched." These 'words of E.H. Gombrich are sufficient warning to any critic.-Let him who 'presumes to comment on the works of a caricaturist--much ress a whole~'legion"of them, such ,as are assembled in 'the exhibit at the home Qf Ml.a.nd--Mrs. Max Taglin of Shore-are T~e exhibit Iresents relati,{ely polished works of such artists as Bill Sanders of the Milwaukee JoUrnal; TomCuftis of the 'Milwauj{ee Sentinel; Don Glassford, Denis Kitchen, Jim Mitchell, , and Wendel Pugh of _ the ,,;Bugle-American; and John P. Schmel-zer oY'Madison.lt also includes works of college and high school students with ranging levels of achievement; The--form of caricature is totally abstract. Its vocabulary con'sists Of highly expressive lines and shapes,. ,'These are selectively applied to personalities and ,situations in such a manner as to bring out the ironies, absurdities, and the humor , that is inherent in Ufe's ,moments. The result , is non-realist but highly personal in-sight into the person or event being explored. -,' Sanders, as an editorial,'cartoon-ist, concerns himselfwith major po11- ' tical personalities and events of the day. Accordingly one finds portrayals of the preSident, the vice president, governor Regan, 'the mayor of Milwau-kee, as ~ell as international figures such as 'Jsraeli premier Golda Maier. Hisexcellentdrawingis sometimes marred by rather useless and unor-igin-al inversions ',of letters. They add to intell ectual, confusion but do not en-hance, the artistry' of the works. His "American gothic" places Martha and John Mitchell with tele- , phone an~ tape recorder respectivel~ in the place of the familiar fanner and wife of Grant Wood's famIliar work.. The portrayal of Agnew in , the play-room contains a splendidly draWn hobby hors~ which reveaJs som'e of the graphic talent '-supporting his biting social comment. to classic forms of caricature. It achieves, its, effect almost entirely through highly imaginative uses of physio go oml c pi ctorialcon ven tions. Accordingly, it relies much less on verbal accompaniments to make its point. Of the non-professional entries; , two showed 'particular promise. Don GlassfordJs "Hey Fella" is admirable for fine detailed draftman-ship, especially in the texture -of the hooded figure, the feet, and rope. His "Commies are' Comin' " is, for me, one of the funniest covers yet to ap-pear in the Bugle. , The , clear and direct style of Dermis Kitchen leads to fast percep-tual impact. It is alway s claar in its point. If there is a lack of depth in his Umessage," it is ,certainly com-pensated for by surety of skill with highly expressive lines. I, especially liked his _':Card Players" fo! its' ex,,-- _ pressive and distinc,ti ve character Whether at social commen tary as iIi the "Laos" piece and the anti-potlution work, or when attending to more universal human situation'S ,as in ."Smile," Mitchell's superior mas-tery of line and his subtle and humor-ous insight's are evident. My main ,criticism of his social commentaries , is that they tend~to spell out too much for the viewer. But this obj ection will no dqubt be corrected by experience. Wendel Pugh's entries in this exhibit lead in <a, direction opposite ",that suggested in' Mitchell's work. Pugh uses a mixture of verbal and pictorial elements in his composition. Verbal elements are not auxilliary but integral elements. The ,outcome is- a highly complex structure which invites the viewer to explore the re-sulting pictorial puzzle. _' ! "School T'eacher" by sixteen year old high school student James L. Kern picttu-es the v~olent character o( a hostile teacher. The style ~ 'undev-eioped but promising,' '~Who is the Slayer?" by Michael MaerSch is, a well rendered statement concerning ' Kent State. --portrayals. ' , Jim Mitchell's comic strip "Smile" is in some respect~ close~ - Every detail is significant and possible multiple le'vels of response are suggested. I have trouble reading some of the symbols in Pugh's ,work. Perhaps it is because they are not Autobiographical vitas accom-panying works in' the show are klter-esting for their own sake. Written by the artists, they reveal success, strug-g,1e, tragedy, and hope characteristic of artists "making it," or 'not. '-- The eXhibit is unusual in several meant to be 'public. ' , Theatre X orig inals Milwaukee's, Theatre X will pre- ' sent a program of original plays and sketches, "The Zipper is Stuck," Thursday through Saturday. The' pro- , ~gram will begin at 9 p.m., I!t the Coffee House, 631 N. J9th St. , lUlled ,as ~~an evening of social satire" The Zipper is Stuck will in-clude a revival of' ',The People vs •. The. People" which was performed in J~uary. The second half of the pro-gram includes new, original material in addition to pieces from last year's ' ",x Communication." Fallowing the pertormance. the audience is invited ' to participate in discussion and"informal improvisation with the company. Admission is $1.,. tickets available at the door. respects. First" the show was devoted exclusively to caric~ure and cartoon. , 'Phis is rare, if not unique, in itself. It occurred in a 'private home, organ-ized by two teachers, Mrs. Thelma Taglin and Mrs. Rona Steingart. Also it provided a " ,forum" for young and lesser known artists, as well as for SOme seasoned ones. Not the least important was the attempt on the part of the sponsors ~to bring together ,artists, working in a common area of art. . (Curtis L. Carter Is assistant professorof aestbeticsat M_arquette.), .' !. --+ Additional images from the exhibit reviewed in this article are provided below, courtesy of the artist Jim Mitchell.  Mr. Mitchell is pictured at the exhibit in the first image. MariJuana found to cause mental illness? "'~ .. 3 How to save money on groceries (see story Inside ) • latl.ar c .. 'nnn "'UI" • ,I,ll ., 1 ... , .... 'II'.' 

Cartoons Make Unique Show [A review of a caricature and cartoon exhibit, Milwaukee]

https://epublications.marquette.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1089&amp;context=phil_fac

Cartoons Make Unique Show [A review of a caricature and cartoon exhibit, Milwaukee]

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

epublications@Marquette