For Immediate Release — March 17, 2010
Language of Lines: Imaginary Places in the Comics
at the Charles M. Schulz Museum & Research Center
April 24 through August 22, 2010
Peanuts— detail October 30, 1960 Charlie Brown and Linus silhouetted in the Pumpkin Patch waiting for the Great Pumpkin.
(Santa Rosa, CA) Experience some of the funny page’s most memorable locales in the Charles M. Schulz Museum’s newest exhibition, The Language of Lines: Imaginary Places in the Comics, running Saturday, April 24 through Sunday, August 22, 2010.
Cartoonists have long created rich environments in which their characters live, work, and play. From the minimalism of Peanuts to the lush surroundings of Pogo’s Okefenokee Swamp, the Charles M. Schulz Museum presents an in-depth look at the choices cartoonists have made when creating the places their cartoon characters inhabit. This exhibition, the final installment of the The Language of Lines trilogy, explores the famous settings of many classic comics.
Imaginary Places in the Comics features over 60 comic strips and welcomes audiences to visit Li’l Abner’s Dogpatch, Krazy Kat’s Coconino County, and Beetle Bailey’s Camp Swampy. Among the exhibition’s highlights are a hand-colored drawing of the Krazy Kat cast visiting Monument Valley in 1925 by George Herriman; a map of Cul de Sac illustrated specially for this exhibition by Reuben-nominated cartoonist Richard Thompson; and three sequential Little Nemo in Slumberland pages created in1907 by the amazingly gifted Winsor McCay, featuring Nemo and Flip cavorting among Manhattan skyscrapers. Co-curated by cartoon historian Brian Walker, this exhibition seeks to present these famous yet imaginary places as silent characters within their respective comic strips.
The impact of these spaces and places can be discerned from references to specific settings—from the neighborhood appeal of Gasoline Alley to the suggestion of time and place as established by the props and scenery of Prince Valiant.
“Whether set in the realities of the contemporary world or an imagined past or present, the settings of comic strips play a vital role in the way that readers interpret and relate to humor and messages of them,” said exhibition co-curator Walker.
IMAGES
If you would like any of the images from Language of Line: Imaginary Places in the Comics to print in a publication, contact Gina Huntsinger at gina@schulzmuseum.org or (707) 284-1268.
Copyright and image instructions:
Copyright for all Peanuts image should be: Peanuts © (year of strip) Peanuts Worldwide LLC
FOR USE OF ALL IMAGES IN THIS RELEASE. This art may not be altered in any way. You may not crop, flop, compress or squeeze the images. You may enlarge or reduce its size to fit your publication; and you must do so proportionately. You may not create or change words or thought balloons for the characters.
Peanuts—February 5, 1979 Snoopy’s doghouse, perhaps one of the most iconic symbols of the strip is a classic example of the whimsy and playfulness that Peanuts exudes.
Peanuts—February 17, 1952 Notice the pain-staking attention to detail in the setting that would later disappear from Peanuts as its landscape became more abstract and minimal.
Peanuts—July 4, 1957 The ordinary wall at which the Peanuts characters often philosphize with each other was such a intriguing piece for Schulz that he actually built one himself by hand along the driveway to his own house.
ABOUT THE CHARLES M. SCHULZ MUSEUM & RESEARCH CENTER
The Charles M. Schulz Museum opened in August 2002 to fulfill its mission of preserving, displaying, and interpreting the art of Charles M. Schulz. The museum carries out this mission through changing exhibitions and programming that: build an understanding of cartoonists and cartoon art; illustrate the scope of Schulz’s multi-faceted career; communicate the stories, inspirations and influences of Charles Schulz; and celebrate the life of Charles Schulz and the Peanuts characters.
LOCATION
The Charles M. Schulz Museum is located 50 minutes north of San Francisco by car on Highway 101. The Museum is located at 2301 Hardies Lane, Santa Rosa, California, 95403.
HOURS
Weekdays Monday thru Friday (except Tuesdays*) 11am – 5pm
Saturday & Sunday 10am – 5pm
Closed Tuesdays*
*Open everyday throughout the summer (Memorial Day through Labor Day)
ADMISSION FEES
Free – Museum Members, Children 3 and under
$5.00 – Children 4-18, college students with valid I.D. card, and Seniors 62+
$10.00 – Adults
For more information consult the Museum web site: www.schulzmuseum.org.
Charles M. Schulz Museum & Research Center
2301 Hardies Lane Santa Rosa, CA 95403
www.facebook.com/schulzmuseum
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