Humanities Inquiry

POLITICAL CARTOON

EXHIBIT:
The HISTORY of POLITICAL CARTOONS

March 1 – 31
Bainbridge Public Library
1270 Madison Ave. N., Bainbridge Island
(30 min. walk from Bainbridge ferry)
Free. Open to the public during regular library hours.
Information: 206-842-7901.

"Give me a good cartoonist," legendary editor H. L. Mencken once said, "and I can throw out half the editorial staff.

From Benjamin Franklin's drawing of the first American political cartoon in 1754 to David Horsey's Pulitzer Prize winning jabs at the Clinton and Bush administrations, editorial cartoons have been a mainstay of American journalism and politics. While the style of cartoons has changed from the ballooned, multi-peopled woodcuts and engravings of the nineteenth century to the simple-pen-and-ink sketches we see today, the use of skillful juxtaposition of picture and words, caricatures and symbols, in order to galvanize public opinion remains largely unchanged.

A 34-piece exhibit on the history of American political cartoons is on view at the Bainbridge Public Library, 1270 Madison Ave. N., Bainbridge Island, during regular library hours through March. The exhibit is free. Call 206-842-4162 for library hours.

In addition, two-time Pulitzer Prize winning editorial cartoonist David Horsey presents a slide talk on his three decades of work for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, March 15, at the Bainbridge High School LGI (Large Group Instruction) Room, 9330 N.E. High School Road, Bainbridge Island. Admission is $10 for adults and $5 for students and seniors at the door. Breaking News series pass holders are reminded to arrive at least 15 minutes early to secure their reserved seats.

The program is the fifth in the Bainbridge Island Arts & Humanities Council's 2004 Humanities Inquiry, Breaking News: The State of Today's Information Media. The inquiry, which takes place throughout March and early April, is a series of events and conversations on the role, responsibilities, and impact of today's news media.

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Image: Courtesy of David Horsey and
the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

DAVID HORSEY
POLITICAL CARTOONS

Monday, March 15, 2004 7:30 p.m.
Bainbridge High School LGI Room
9330 NE High School Road, Bainbridge Island
(30 min. walk from Bainbridge ferry terminal)

Tickets: $10 adults, $5 students & seniors
available at the door.

Breaking News is co-presented by The Washington News Council, a Seattle-based nonprofit organization whose mission is to help maintain public trust and confidence in the news media. The program is funded in part by a grant from Humanities Washington, a state-wide non-profit organization supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities and local contributors.

Horsey's work for the Post-Intelligencer has taken him to national political party conventions, presidential primaries, the Olympics, Japan and Europe. He received a B.A. in communications from the University of Washington where he was editor of the student newspaper, The Daily. After a stint as a government reporter and political columnist at the state capital, he joined the editorial page of the Post-Intelligencer. In 1986, as a Rotary Foundation Scholar, Horsey earned an M.A. in international relations from the University of Kent at Canterbury (U.K.).

In addition to winning the 1999 and 2003 Pulitzer Prizes for editorial cartooning, Horsey was recipient of the National Press Foundation's 1998 Berryman Award for cartoonist of the year, among many awards. He has published five collections of his professional work and will be signing copies of his most recent book, From Hanging Chad to Baghdad, at the presentation.

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