The Art of Dr Suess

For the first time, The Art of Dr Seuss comes to Palmerston North. Dr Seuss fans of all shapes and sizes will be enthralled with a new exhibition giving a rare insight into the secret works of the zany children's author and artist.

Theodor Seuss Geisel, a.k.a. Dr. Seuss, began his career as a little known editorial cartoonist in the 1920s. His intriguing perspective and fresh concepts ignited his career, and his work evolved quickly to deft illustrations, modeled sculpture and sophisticated oil paintings of elaborate imagination.

His unique artistic vision emerged as the golden thread which linked every facet of his varied career, and his artwork became the platform from which he delivered 44 children’s books, over 400 World War II political cartoons, hundreds of advertisements, and countless editorials filled with wonderfully inventive animals, characters and clever humour. Geisel single-handedly forged a new genre of art that falls somewhere between the Surrealist Movement of the early 20th century and the inspired nonsense of a child’s classroom doodles.

This exhibition offers a rare glimpse into the artistic life of this celebrated American icon and chronicles almost seven decades of work that, in every respect, is uniquely, stylistically and endearingly “Seussian.”

Works in this exhibition have been curated from significant public and private collections, including the University of California San Diego, The Lyndon Baines Johnson Presidential Library, The Charles Cohen Collection, The Collection of Charles I. Henderson and Susan A. Henderson, The Bernard Collection, and the Estate of Dr. Seuss. It is with tremendous enthusiasm that we present nearly 70 years worth of American history via the timeless, groundbreaking, and imminently fun work of Theodor Seuss Geisel.

For the first time in the Manawatu, the media and the public are able to gain a rare and fascinating insight into this great creative mind.

Attend a guided tour, chat with our host, watch one of the films and enjoy special readings in The Art of Dr Seuss.

Guided tours:
Sat 7 to Mon 9 April (Easter) - 11am, 1pm, 3pm
Tues 10 to Fri 13 April - 11.30am, 2.30pm
Sat 14 April - 11am, 1pm, 3pm

Readings:
Sat 7 – Sat 14 April - 10am, 11am, 12 Noon, 1pm, 2pm, 3pm

Movies:
Sat 7 – Sat 14 April

9.30am Horton hears a Who (1 1/2hrs)
11.30am The Best of Dr. Seuss (56mins)
1.00pm The Best of Dr. Seuss (56mins)
2.30pm Horton hears a Who (1 1/2hrs)