“Charles Addams New York” Exhibit Opens at the MCNY

Last night was opening night for the new Charles Addams exhibit at the Museum of the City of New York.  And I happened upon this fantastic post on the EditouristNYC blog, which I have copied here verbatim – right down to the pictures.  I hope you enjoy it - I know I did! 

The Addams Family (image © the Tee & Charles Addams Foundation)

Andrew and I were lucky enough to score an invite to the Charles Addams’ show opening tonight, and I couldn’t be happier that we went. The exhibit is well-designed, interesting, pertinent, and extremely entertaining. I suspect I’ll be back before it ends in May.

The macabre comedic genius that is Charles Addams will never, in my opinion, be topped in the world of the print cartoon. It may seem strange to place the words “macabre” and “comedic” in such close proximity to each other, but if you have any awareness of the

Addams Family, you know what I’m saying. The exhibit places the Addams Family into a surprising context. Addams used these characters and their relations to each other to comment on the ideal nuclear family of the time. His work comments on other societal and political norms as well, from the “battle of the sexes,” to pop culture and media, to technology, to the economy, and so on.

Addams’ cartoons can easily be taken for granted: a timely joke here, an ironic, postcard-worthy cartoon there. Of course, the creation of the Addams Family was no small task. However, it wasn’t until tonight, seeing so many of his creations in one place, that I truly felt I understood the overwhelming impact of his work: It forces New Yorkers to stand back and look at themselves, for better or for worse.

And stand back and look at themselves they did. Almost as intriguing as viewing Addams’ cartoons was watching the others guests’ reactions and listening in on their discussions. It seemed that every person found something of themselves in one image or another. My favorite reactions of the night revolved around Addams’ depiction of a harried man carrying his jewelry-drenched wife into a pawn shop: “Oh, that’s horrible,” one older woman said to another, passing quickly by. Less than two minutes later, two men stopped in front of the cartoon and let out full-on belly laughs. Like it or not, Addams strikes a chord.

(image © the Tee & Charles Addams Foundation)

What I find truly amazing is how his pieces take on such contrasting tones. As Andrew and I walked around the room tonight, we found ourselves continually surprised. One image made us laugh, while the next on the wall caused us to think, “Yeah, I can relate to that,” in a sad sort of way. Specifically, Addams’ series of wind-up men, roboting around the city until winding out of energy, comes to mind. He depicts them big and small, alone on the side of the street or shuttling around in huge masses. Sure, the comparison between people and machines has been made before—who hasn’t suffered the rat-race rush through Penn Station in the morning? I know I have—but the idea of people as wind-up toys is something different, and deflating. So much of his work that was relevant during his time remains relevant today and, I suspect, will remain relevant for ages to come.

(And speaking of relevant, this night has absolutely upped my anticipation level for the new Addams Family musical.)