(STOCKBRIDGE, Mass.) – An exhibition showcasing the work of R.O. Blechman, an award-winning illustrator, animator, children’s book author, graphic novelist, and editorial cartoonist, opens on Saturday, May 11, 2013, with a reception from 6 to 8:30 p.m., at Norman Rockwell Museum, as part of the Distinguished Illustrator Series. Blechman will be in attendance at the opening reception, and is scheduled to offer remarks at 6:30 p.m. The exhibit, R.O. Blechman: The Inquiring Line, will remain on view through June 30, 2013.

With a career spanning the past six decades, R.O. (Bob) Blechman has become well known for his memorable advertisements for Capezio and Alka-Seltzer (featuring a talking stomach), and for his witty and expressive cartoon illustrations for the New Yorker,  New York Times, and the Huffington Post. Along the way he has received many prestigious professional honors, including membership in the Society of Illustrators Hall of Fame, Designer’s Hall of Fame, and a Lifetime Achievement Award from The National Cartoonists Society.

The artist’s work has also been exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art, and in 1984 he won an Emmy as director of the PBS program, The Soldier’s Tale. The exhibition “R.O Blechman: The Inquiring Line” offers a thorough retrospective of the artist’s imagery for magazines, illustrated books, advertisements and animations.

“Throughout his celebrated career, Bob Blechman’s inquiring line has engaged and entertained us,” notes Joyce K. Schiller, PhD., curator of the Rockwell Center for American Visual Studies. “Quavering and active with telling starts and stops, the marks of the artist’s hand are an essential aspect of his art. His fine calligraphic strokes are a kind of nervous energy that gives the sense that his drawings could spring from the page.”

 

Exhibition-Related Programs

Exhibition Opening

Saturday, May 11, 6 to 8:30 p.m.

Artist Commentary at 6:30 p.m.

Meet R.O. Blechman, an award-winning illustrator, animator, children’s book author, graphic novelist, and editorial cartoonist. His influential imagery created for magazines, illustrated books, advertisements and animations will be on view. A festive reception will follow, including refreshments and a cash bar. Members free, guests $20. RSVP at 413.931.2221 or rsvp@nrm.org.

 

ART TALK

My Son the Art Director, My Dad the Illustrator:

A Conversation with R.O. Blechman and Nicholas Blechman

Saturday, June 15, 5:30 p.m.

Spend an evening with two gifted visual communicators who also happen to be father and son. Nicholas Blechman is an internationally recognized illustrator, designer and art director whose art has appeared in “GQ,” “Travel + Leisure,” “Wired,” and “The New Yorker.” The son of famed illustrator R.O. Blechman, he is currently the Art Director of “The New York Times Book Review.” $10, $7 Museum members.

 

FAMILY DAY

Doodle Day!

Saturday, June 22, 1 to 4 p.m.

This lively celebration of the art of drawing is sure to get your pen and pencil moving, with inspiration from the works on view in “R.O. Blechman: The Inquiring Line.” Tours, performances, and workshops are sure to make a doodler out of you! Free with Museum admission.

 

About The Distinguished Illustrator Series

The Norman Rockwell Museum Distinguished Illustrator Series honors the unique contributions of outstanding visual communicators today. Presented by the Rockwell Center for American Visual Studies, the nation’s first research institute devoted to the art of illustration, the Distinguished Illustrator Series reflects the impact and evolution of Norman Rockwell’s beloved profession, exploring a diverse and ever-changing field.

About Norman Rockwell Museum

Norman Rockwell Museum holds the largest and most significant collection of art and archival materials relating to the life and work of Norman Rockwell. The Museum also preserves, interprets, and exhibits a growing collection of original illustration art by noted American illustrators, from historical to contemporary. The Norman Rockwell Museum Art Collection and Norman Rockwell Archive inspire a vibrant year-round exhibition program, national traveling exhibitions, and arts and humanities programs that engage diverse audiences. The Museum’s collections, which are made accessible worldwide, are a comprehensive resource relating to Norman Rockwell and the art of illustration, the role of published imagery in society, and the American twentieth century.

Since its inception, the Norman Rockwell Museum has explored the impact of illustrated images and their role in shaping and reflecting our world through changing exhibitions, publications, and programs. Dedication to a deepened understanding of the art of illustration has led to the formation of the Rockwell Center for American Visual Studies. The first of its kind in the nation, this research institute supports sustained scholarship and establishes the Norman Rockwell Museum’s leadership in the vanguard of preservation and interpretation relating to this important aspect of American visual culture.

Norman Rockwell Museum is located on 36 park-like acres in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, Rockwell’s hometown for the last 25 years of his life. The Museum is open year-round; closed Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day. From May through October, hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily; from November through April, hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends and holidays. Rockwell’s studio is open May through October, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Museum admission is $16, $14.50 for seniors, $10 for students, $5 for kids, and teens 6 to 18, and free for Museum member, active military personnel, and children 5 and under.