Silent Pictures, running from September 1 through October 11, 2009, in the James Gallery, will focus on aspects of comic book structure and syntax that do not depend on words to advance an image sequence. The exhibition is inspired by artist and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Art Spiegelman’s personal collection of wordless comics and graphic novels—mostly black and white rare artist books from the 1930s. The show will feature a selection of these books, as well as more recent “abstract comics,” and a related film program—all of which investigate essential qualities and aesthetics of this hugely popular medium.

The exhibition will also feature a specially commissioned wall drawing by Renée French, a hand-drawn animated film by the British artist team Rachel Cattle and Steve Richards, and a new collaborative project for the Graduate Center’s Fifth Avenue lobby display windows by Gayle Fitzpatrick and Carl Ostendarp. In addition, Columbia University art historian and film scholar Noam Elcott will curate a related film program titled “Comic-Film-Strip.” To be installed in a small gallery-within-the-gallery, this program will feature mostly wordless, animated historic films, in which the frame-by-frame narrative parallels developments in the wordless comics that also emerged during the first half of the twentieth century. “Comic-Film-Strip” will include selections of films by Emile Cohl, Walter Ruttmann, Norman McLaren, and Robert Breer, as well as a very early partially animated film by William Kentridge. Elcott will elaborate on “Comic-Film-Strip” in a public conversation to be held September 25, 2009, 4–6 p.m. in the Graduate Center’s Skylight Lounge.

The James Gallery is located off the lobby of the Graduate Center. Hours are Tuesdays through Fridays, 12–8 p.m., and 12–6 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. Admission is free; for more information, call 212-817-7138 or visit http://www.gc.cuny.edu/events/art_gallery.htm.