A retrospective on Betty Boop. A showcase of three Tijuana-based comic artists. An exhibit on an award-winning, Southern California graphic novelist.
Those are the three new exhibitions coming to the Comic-Con Museum in Balboa Park this year.
Museum officials, including Executive Director Rita Vandergaw, announced the new exhibits Friday at WonderCon, a three-day pop culture event in Anaheim that is organized by the same group that runs the annual San Diego International Comic-Con.
Vandergaw said the new exhibits are part of the museum’s efforts to continue evolving and offer new attractions. Since it opened three years ago, the museum has hosted 20 exhibits.
The new events are:
Becoming Betty Boop
This will highlight the history and evolution of the iconic cartoon character that was first introduced in the early 1930s. The exhibit will feature a mix of never-before-seen artifacts, artwork and animated films.
Vandergaw is excited about being able to spotlight an historic pop culture icon.
“Some would way she was the first model of feminism,” she said.
The exhibit is scheduled to open in late June.
Border Blitz: Artistas del Cómic de Tijuana
This event is being featured in celebration of the World Design Capital San Diego-Tijuana, a year-long series of events and programs that will showcase the local border region.
The exhibit will feature the art of art of Tijuana artists Charles Glaubitz, Alejandra Yépiz Portillo, and Urbano Mata, showing their diverse stories and perspectives.
“We’re excited to show their art here,” said Vandergaw.
This exhibit is scheduled to open May 9.
Collaboration(s)! A Journey with John Jennings
This exhibit explores the work of John Jennings, an Eisner Award-winning comic artist and author who is also a professor of media and cultural studies at the University of California, Riverside.
Jennings runs a company that publishes graphic novels focusing on the experiences of people of color.
This exhibit is also scheduled to open May 9.