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Satire at the Nasher

Exhibit honors political caricature from the 19th century to the digital age

 "Bribes, high-handed arrests, volleys of grape-shot, murderers of rue Transnonain, she covers them all with her robe."

The artists gave political headaches to King Louis-Philippe. They equally went after Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and now Barack Obama. Political caricature is timeless, as politicans across the ages know.

Now, an unusual exhibit at the Nasher Museum of Art makes the connections from 19th century France to the digital age. And the museum is giving its audience a chance to engage the art in new ways.

"Lines of Attack: Conflicts in Caricature," which will be on exhibit through May 16, juxtaposes political cartoons from the past, such as works featuring French King Louis-Philippe (1830-1848) by Honoré Daumier and his contemporaries, with work produced more recently during the tenures of U.S. Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush (1993-2009).

 

Artists in the show include Garry Trudeau of the syndicated cartoon "Doonesbury," Steve Bell of the Guardian, Dwayne Powell of The (Raleigh) News and Observer, Gerald Scarfe of London's Sunday Times and such seasoned political cartoonists as Steve Brodner, Jeff Danziger and Pat Oliphant.

The exhibition will highlight the development of graphic satire as a significant journalistic medium and explore its strengths and limitations as a catalyst for political debate. The exhibit also will investigate caricature's prospective place within emerging Web-based media, as traditional print journalism adapts to new technological forms.

 

The exhibition has been organized by the Nasher Museum, with guest curator Neil McWilliam, Walter H. Annenberg Professor of Art & Art History in Duke's Department of Art, Art History & Visual Studies. Anne Schroder is the Nasher Museum's coordinating curator for the exhibition.

"We've seen unprecedented upheaval in the newspaper and magazine industry that calls into question the long-term role that political cartooning can play in the print news media," McWilliam said. "With this exhibition, we take stock and ask what function caricature can still fill as a critical voice in society."

In keeping with the spirit of the exhibit, the museum visitors can respond directly to the exhibit at a "Free Speech Booth" at the museum, where they can record comments about the exhibit. The videos, both positive and critical, are posted on the museum's YouTube site. (See video above)

 

Seven students assisted McWilliam in the organization of the exhibition: Duke graduate students Alexis Clark and Katherine de Vos Devine, Duke undergraduates Corina Apostol and Ruthie Chen, and graduate students Alison Hafera Cox, Kate Arpen and Mara West from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

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Online Gallery

See some of the political caricatures in the Nasher exhibit online at the Nasher Museum's website.