Patrick McDonnell
Gallery opening: Saturday, November 16 | 3-5pm
Animal welfare is a central theme in MUTTS. For many years, cartoonist Patrick McDonnell has shone a light on the plight of tethered dogs in his award-winning comic strip.
In November 2023, his beloved character Guard Dog was finally freed and found his forever home with his young champion, Doozy. This heartwarming, seven-week-long story captivated readers on social media and in newspapers around the world.
This exhibit celebrates the release of both Guard Dog and the new book by Abrams ComicArts, Breaking the Chain: The Guard Dog Story. Each one-of-a-kind print displayed here is hand-colored by the artist and includes an original remarque.
A portion of the proceeds will be donated to our local animal shelter, SAVE, to support homeless animals and real-life guard dogs in need.
In his heart-rending Guard Dog story, Patrick McDonnell proves once again that he is the kindest, most passionate cartoonist on record. In Breaking the Chain, McDonnell kindly and gently breaks the reader’s heart over and over again, and does so with such gentleness and grace that the reader, by the end, is in a state of elevated bliss. Not since Little Nemo in Slumberland has the comics page been gifted with such a gentle, reverential spirit. I don’t envy my friend Patrick having to deal with the fury of his fellow cartoonists, who haven’t realized that plain, simple humanity works on the comics page.
Patrick McDonnell is the creator of the internationally syndicated comic strip MUTTS and a New York Times bestselling, Caldecott Honor-winning children’s book author (Me…Jane, a biography of Jane Goodall). He is also a painter, with a 2021 solo exhibition at Ohio State University, and an award-winning playwright. A solo exhibition of his paintings, The Super Hero’s Journey, is on view in the Taplin Gallery alongside this current show.
In addition to Marvel Comics, McDonnell has collaborated on projects with Eckhart Tolle and the Dalai Lama. He serves on the boards of the Charles M. Schulz Museum and the D&R Greenway Land Trust. He is also a dedicated animal activist and a faithful dog walker.
