Everyone Is a Hero: A Comic and Cartoon Art Tribute to Our Local Heroes

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I Love Comic Book and Cartoon art! The Berkshire Art Association (BAA) announced the exciting comic and cartoon art exhibition “Everyone Is a Hero: A Comic and Cartoon Art Tribute to Our Local Heroes” will be on view from August 6 through August 28, 2021, at the Lichtenstein Center for the Arts. The show and its programs are made possible by the generous support of Pittsfield resident Paul Houston.

All are welcome to a sneak peek of the show on Friday, August 6, during Pittsfield’s First Fridays Artswalk. On Saturday, August 7, superheroes, artists, and friends are invited to celebrate the festivities at the opening party from 3-6 pm.

This is a family-friendly event and will feature music, face painting, and comic-making. Special guest artists Joe Staton and Luke McDonnell will be on hand drawing awesome characters and showing you how to make your own comics. Joe Staton has drawn for DC Comics including Green Lantern, Justice Society, and Scooby-Doo. Luke McDonnell has drawn Marvel Comics and DC, including Iron Man, Suicide Squad, and Batman. Come dressed in your best comic- and cartoon-inspired costumes!

The show is curated by BAA board member and Pittsfield resident Lawrence Klein, founder of the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art in New York City. The show will feature original artwork created by popular comic book artists.
Klein said,

“I came up with a few themes, and my idea was to ask American comic book artist Luke McDonnell and Portuguese comic book artist Penim Loureiro to create unique drawings from the same list of subjects, How do two artists from different parts of the world view the same subject matter? They took up the challenge of creating their own visions and the results are amazing.”

The show also features sketches by Bill Morrison, creative director of The Simpsons and Futurama, and autographed items from Patrick McDonnell, creator of MUTTS. Also presenting during the exhibit will be Danny Fingeroth, author of many books on comics, including his latest, A Marvelous Life: The Amazing Story of Stan Lee, the definitive biography of Lee. Fingeroth was a longtime executive editor and writer at Marvel Comics. Local Berkshire artists will also show their illustration work.

BAA member Liz Bevilacqua said,

“The show brings together an impressive group of artists and the result is great fun, You’ll see familiar heroes and heroines like Batman, Iron Man, and Harley Quinn in new and creative ways.”

A special fundraising event at the Berkshire Humane Society will feature Joe Staton creating custom art for sale and free hands-on art-making activities.

“Everyone Is a Hero: A Comic and Cartoon Art Tribute to Our Local Heroes” will be open Wednesday through Saturday in August at The Lichtenstein Center for the Arts at 28 Renne Avenue in Pittsfield.

All proceeds from the sale of art created for and during the show will benefit the Berkshire Art Association’s programs for art students across Berkshire County, including the high school field trip program and college art student fellowships.