Hemingway In Comics Lecture with Curator Robert K. Elder

  • May 19, 2024 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM
  • Dennos Museum Center

    1410 College Drive
    Traverse City, Michigan 49686
Ticket Price $0.00-$10.00 Register Now
Description

Hemingway In Comics Lecture with Curator Robert K. Elder

Sunday, May 19th
12:00 PM

Ernest Hemingway casts a long shadow in literature—reaching beyond his status as a giant of 20th-century fiction and a Nobel Prize winner—extending even into comic books. Appearing alongside Superman, Captain Marvel, and Cerebus, Hemingway has even battled fascists alongside Wolverine in Spain and teamed up with Mickey Mouse in Italian comics.

Robert K. Elder’s research into Hemingway’s comic presence demonstrates the truly international reach of Hemingway as a pop culture icon. In more than 120 appearances across multiple languages, Hemingway is often portrayed as the hypermasculine legend: bearded, boozed up, and ready to throw a punch. But just as often, comic book writers see past the bravado to the sensitive artist looking for validation. Hemingway’s role in these comics ranges from the divine to the ridiculous, as his image is recorded, distorted, lampooned, and whittled down to its essential parts. 

As Elder notes, comic book creators and Hemingway share a natural kinship. The comic book page demands an economy of words, much like Hemingway’s less-is-more “iceberg theory,” only in graphic form. In addition, he turned out to be the perfect avatar for comic book artists wanting to tell history-rich stories, as he experienced beautiful places during the most chaotic times: Paris in the 1920s, Spain during the Spanish Civil War, Cuba on the brink of revolution, France during World War I and during World War II just after the Allies landed in Normandy. Hemingway in Comics provides a unique lens for considering one of our most influential authors. Not only for the dedicated Hemingway fan, this book will appeal to all those with an appreciation for comics, pop culture, and the absurd.

Robert K. Elder is the curator of the exhibition Hemingway In Comics on view in the museum through May 26, 2024.

Please register in advance. The ticket price reflects the cost of admission to the museum. This event is general admission. Seats are available first come first serve. Should you need a wheelchair-accessible seat, please contact us in advance at dmc@nmc.edu or call 231-995-1055.

*Please be advised that photographs and/or video will be taken at this event for use on the Dennos website, press, marketing materials, social media, and/or other NMC publications. By entering this event, you consent to the Dennos Museum Center photographing and using your image and likeness.

Date & Time

Sun, May 19, 2024 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM

Venue Details

Dennos Museum Center

1410 College Drive
Traverse City, Michigan 49686 Dennos Museum Center
Dennos Museum Center

The Dennos Museum Center builds community, sparks conversation, and inspires change for audiences of all ages through its exhibitions, programs, and the collection and preservation of art.

Opened in 1991, the Dennos Museum Center at Northwestern Michigan College is a premier cultural facility in northern Michigan offering a dynamic array of exhibitions and programs in the visual arts, sciences, and performing arts. The Museum includes temporary exhibition and permanent collection galleries, an elegant sculpture court, and a hands-on Discovery Gallery. The permanent collection features regional, national, and international art from the 19th-21st centuries. The Milliken Auditorium hosts events and concerts with performers from around the world. Visit the Museum Store for great shopping, including a fine selection of Inuit art for collectors.

 

The Museum's signature collection is Inuit art of the Canadian Arctic, one of the largest and most historically complete collections of these distinctive sculptures and prints in the United States. A significant collection of outdoor sculptures by noted international and Michigan artists surrounds the Museum on the beautiful campus of Northwestern Michigan College. In 2000, the Dennos Museum Center was recognized by ArtServe Michigan with the Governor's Award for Arts and Culture. The Museum expanded its original building in 2018, adding new galleries and auditorium spaces with wide support from the community.

 

In 2021, the Dennos joined a network of more than 200 other Smithsonian Affiliates in the U.S., Puerto Rico, and Panama. Established in 1996, the affiliations program is designed to facilitate a two-way relationship among Smithsonian Affiliates and the Smithsonian to increase discovery and inspire lifelong learning in communities across America. Smithsonian Affiliates are collaborators on many of the Smithsonian’s strategic priorities, adding local content, context, and expertise to national initiatives to help tell a fuller story.


Find more Dennos Museum Center Events and Community & Culture events in Traverse City