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Exhibition Drawn to Purpose

Drawn to Purpose

Playing with Place Names

Maira Kalman (b. 1949) and Rick Meyerowitz (b. 1943). Sketch for New Yorkistan, 2001. Cover for New Yorker, December 10, 2001. Porous point pen and ink. Gift of the artists, 2002. Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (029.01.00)
LC–DIG–ppmsca–02127 © Maira Kalman © Rick Meyerowitz
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Playing with Place Names

An unusual collaboration between two illustrators, Maira Kalman and Rick Meyerowitz, resulted in this New Yorker cover design. In the wake of 9-11, they developed their visual concept through jointly produced sketches and notes. Channeling their considerable knowledge and distilled experiences of the city's neighborhoods, they invented pseudo-national place names that suggest myriad cultural and global parallels. Their co-creation underscores the aesthetic scope and conceptual potential of cover art.

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