The last post was getting a little long, and I was getting a little sleepy … so over a week later, I’m here to complete that thought.
Four Tall Tales: A Graphic History of the RPL was a very fun project, but even the most enjoyable projects aren’t without their controversies. Behold, as I reveal a potentially morally reprehensible image!
That's not so bad
Pretty innocent, right? Well, sure. Except for the fact that this was the original panel:
GASP! Think of the children!
Yeah. Someone at the library felt that a dog licking its crotch would offend some readers. I had some kind of lengthy, and possibly pretentious, statement about the dichotomy of high art vs. low art … but in the end it seemed like a petty point to argue. I felt bad for the curators at the Dunlop because they were very supportive and tried to offer me some ‘outs’ (i.e.: maybe the dog is just hiding his face?).
Still, an artist friend of mine found the whole controversy hilarious. If memory serves me, he said something like, “Who’s going to be offended by something you can see on the street, legally?!”
Oh well. If I ever become a famous artist, people will be begging me to make dogs lick their crotches. That’ll learn ‘em.
To close, here are a couple more pages from the comic. The story itself ended up tying together a number of moments in Regina’s history through a Wizard of Oz framework. I used to hate drawing buildings, but working on this comic made me love buildings … especially when I realized how many beautiful buildings Regina used to have before they started knocking them down in the name of progress. But that’s another post.
Downtown Regina
Legislative Building
Four Tall Tales is available at the Dunlop Art Gallery in Regina for $15.