University Park, Pa. -- A panel discussion, "Graphic Novels: A Conversation," will feature Harvey Pekar and Phoebe Gloeckner, two active artists in the field of graphic novels, at 4 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 22, in the Foster Auditorium, 101 Pattee Library, University Park. A reception will follow in the Mann Assembly Room, 103 Paterno Library.
The program is being held in conjunction with an exhibit, "Graphic Novels: Comics as Art, History and Literature," selections from the University Libraries' collection, on view through March 2 in the Diversity Reading Room, 109 Pattee Library.
Pekar is the creator of the critically acclaimed comic book series "American Splendor." Cartoonist, illustrator and novelist Phoebe Gloeckner is author of "A Child's Life and other Stories" and "Diary of a Teenage Girl." The conversation with the artists will be moderated by Penn State Altoona professor J. Jerome Zolten, author, record producer and co-host with R. Crumb of "Chimpin' the Blues," a syndicated public radio program on the history of blues.
The event will include a discussion about the history and current status of graphic novels; the work of Pekar and Gloeckner, as well as other artists and writers in the field; and the future of the graphic novel as an emerging genre.
Pekar, a native of Cleveland, created and began self-publishing the autobiographical slice-of-life comic book series "American Splendor" in 1976. The stories are first-person accounts of his life as a clerk in a Veteran's Administration hospital, where he worked for 35 years. In 1987 Pekar was honored with the American Book Award for the series. A film adaptation of "American Splendor" was released in 2003 to critical acclaim, and it featured Paul Giamatti as Pekar, as well as appearances by Pekar himself.
Gloeckner's comics and stories depict in an intense, meticulously detailed manner childhood trauma and the dark side of growing up female. Before pursuing a career in cartooning, she studied medical illustration and her training is evident in her art, which often prominently feature the human body. Her superb, evocative illustrations of internal anatomy were featured in J.G. Ballard's novel "The Atrocity Exhibition."
In 1998 a collection of Gloeckner's stories "A Child's Life and Other Stories" was published. In her 2002 novel "The Diary of a Teenage Girl," Gloeckner revisits the troubled life of the young characters featured in some of her earlier comics using an unusual and unique combination of prose, illustration and short comic scenes.
The program has been funded by The Charles W. Mann, Jr. Lecture in the Book Arts through the Mary Louise Krumrine Endowment, the Pennsylvania Center for the History of the Book and the Pennsylvania Center for the Book.
For information, call the Eberly Family Special Collections Library at (814) 865-1793.
For a video story about graphic novels, check http://live.psu.edu/video/132 online.