LECTURE SERIES AND BOOK LAUNCH: Dante's Divine Comedy: A Graphic Adaptation by Seymour Chwast

Friday, September 24th, 2010 6:30pm - 8:30pm Society of Illustrators 128 East 63 St, (between Lexington and Park Ave) $20 non-members, $15 members, $10 students

The "left-handed designer," Seymour Chwast has been putting his unparalleled take--and influence--on the world of illustration and design for the last half century. In his version of Dante's Divine Comedy, Chwast's first graphic novel, Dante and his guide Virgil don fedoras and wander through noir-ish realms of Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise, finding both the wicked and the wondrous on their way.  Dante Alighieri wrote his epic poem The Divine Comedy from 1308 to 1321 while in exile from his native Florence. In the work's three parts (Inferno, Purgatory, and Paradise), Dante chronicles his travels through the afterlife, cataloging a multitude of sinners and saints--many of them real people to whom Dante tellingly assigned either horrible punishment or indescribable pleasure--and eventually meeting both God and Lucifer face-to-face.  In his adaptation of this skewering satire, Chwast creates a visual fantasia that fascinates on every page: from the multifarious torments of the Inferno to the host of delights in Paradise, his inventive illustrations capture the delirious complexity of this classic of the Western canon. Seymour Chwast was born in New York City and is a graduate of the Cooper Union, where he studied illustration and graphic design. He is a founding partner of the celebrated Push Pin Studios, whose distinct style has had a worldwide influence on contemporary visual communications. In 1985 the studio's name was changed to the Pushpin Group, of which Mr. Chwast is the director.Spend an evening with Seymour Chwast who will discuss his work on his first graphic novel.  This will be followed by a book signing and a cocktail reception. RSVP to Katie Blocherkb@societyillustrators.org or call 212 838 2560