Cartoonist Nicole Hollander gave a lively, illustrated lecture titled "Oh No, It's Monday, and I've Run Out of Ideas: A Cartoonist's Crisis," on March 15 at the Library of Congress. Hollander charmed an audience of Library staff, cartoonists and devoted followers of her comic strip, "Sylvia," as she talked about the challenges of staying creative.
Jeremy Adamson, chief of the Prints and Photographs Division, introduced Hollander, noting that she is a member of a select sisterhood: one of a handful of women cartoonists who have their work published in comics across America. She is well known as the creator of the strip "Sylvia," whose feisty, brash character enlivens the pages of more than 60 daily or weekly newspapers. These include The Boston Globe, Chicago Tribune, The Detroit News, The Seattle Times, San Francisco Examiner, The Denver Post and the online publication Women's eNews.
Sylvia, with her trademark feather boa, open-heeled bedroom slippers and cigarette, made her first appearance in Hollander's first book of cartoons, "I'm in Training to Be Tall and Blonde," published by St. Martin's Press in 1979.
"Is this you?" from the "Sylvia" comic strip, March 25, 1998
Hollander began her talk by humorously addressing the challenge faced by all cartoonists—how to confront a crisis in creativity, the cartoonist's equivalent of writer's block. Noting that everyone, including artists, has days when they run out of ideas, she observed wryly, "Artists are the only ones who whine about it."
What does she do when she runs out of ideas? Hollander unveiled her strategies for coping with creative crises as she showed slides of her work environment (also her home) and her neighborhood. When she has no ideas, for example, she said she might look at her refrigerator, shown empty in her slide. When she is really desperate, she might look under her sink where she stores her cleaning supplies. Or she might think about feeding her cats, Izzy and Buddy.
"Perimenopausal Barbie" from May 15, 1998
She followed this sequence with slides of personalities and businesses in her neighborhood. "If it's lunchtime I might go to Hell—Doug's Hot Dogs—an establishment that proudly offers ‘encased meats,' or to Victory's Banners, or to Hard Boiled Records and Video. … Everything is grist for the mill."
Hollander interspersed images of her home and neighborhood with pictures of her parents and others who influenced her life. She recalled that her father was very interested in politics, and her mother was funny and sarcastic. She said that she unconsciously modeled Sylvia on one of her mother's close friends, Esther, a tall, long-legged and full-figured woman.
Throughout her talk Hollander also showed slides of her work, including recent unpublished examples of "Sylvia," noting that she creates strips four weeks before publication. The sharp, amusing thoughts and imaginings of Hollander's heroine shape and drive the comic, which has no action or story line. The strip frequently satirizes popular culture and comments on timely political subjects as well as timeless themes in human relationships. Sylvia, a stay-at-home mother and advice columnist, converses with her friends, her cats, space aliens and her daughter.
"Had I but known..." from Sept. 25, 1998
The strip often has a feminist tone. Recurring characters and themes, such as "The Woman Who Does Everything Better Than You," "The Woman Who Worries About Everything," "The Woman Who Lies in Her Professional Journal," "The Woman Who Is Easily Irritated," the "Fashion Cop," the "Love Cop" and "Alien Lovers" highlight Hollander's inventiveness and showcase her elegant drawing.
Hollander has published some 10 collections of the strip as well as two humorous books on cats. She has also contributed illustrations to The New York Times Review of Books, The Washington Post Magazine and Chicago Magazine and illustrated children's books, co-edited a historical survey of cartoons and collaborated on a stage play based on "Sylvia." Hollander's newest book is "An ABC of Vice: An Insatiable Women's Guide, Alphabetized," a collaboration with Regina Barreca, humorist and professor of English literature at the University of Connecticut.
Hollander grew up in Chicago, studied art at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, worked as a graphic designer, an art instructor and a book illustrator. She has been a cartoonist since 1979.
"The Rhino Series" from Nov. 14, 1998
The Prints and Photographs Division mounted a small display for the lecture of original drawings by Hollander that were selected from her recent gift to the Library of 22 drawings. These include excellent examples of the major characters and inventions that she has created for "Sylvia" over the years.
Members of the audience followed up Hollander's presentation with a wide variety of questions—on creativity, her favorite cartoonists and her perceptions about the effects of September 11, 2001, on cartoonists and other artists. When asked about what part of the creative process was most important to her, she responded that she is very interested in drawing but also loves writing.
