Date of Exhibition: Summer 2024-Present
Curator: Lark Wilson (Master of Library and Information Science Graduate Student)
Location: Archives & Special Collections exhibit gallery, 3rd floor Hillman Library, University of Pittsburgh 3960 Forbes Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15260
Description: Novels without words, also called wordless novels and woodblock novels, were a unique genre of art book published between the the early 20th century until around the 1950s. Largely illustrated using woodcuts, the novels are now considered the precursor to the graphic novel and the genre has influenced artists and writers such as Art Spiegelman and Allen Ginsberg. Despite their influence, the genre remains largely unknown. This exhibit presents a small selection of works from the University of Pittsburgh Library System's Archives & Special Collections, offering a glimpse into this rich genre.
Passionate Journey: A Novel in 165 Woodcuts by Frans Masereel; introduction by Thomas Mann.
Publication Date: 1948, originally published in 1919
Vertigo by Lynd Ward.
Publication Date: 1937
Pour Quoi? 12 Bios Gravés by Frans Masereel.
Publication Date: 1954
Destiny: A Novel in Pictures by Otto Nückel.
Publication Date: 1930, originally published in 1926
Southern Cross: A Novel of the South Seas; Told in Wood Engravings by Laurence Hyde.
Publication Date: 1951
Notre Temps; 12 Bios Gravés by Frans Masereel.
Publication Date: 1952
My War by István Szegedi Szuts; introduction by R.H. Mottram.
Publication Date: 1932, originally published in 1931
The Parade: A Story in 55 Drawings by Si Lewen
Publication Date: 1957
The books in this list are available to check out and enjoy at home through the ULS!