Home > Letters to CR James Sturm On My Response To His Essay on Virginia Lee Burton posted June 2, 2009
I thought mentioning the Masters show would be an effective way to make the point that comics history is dominated by men— so in that sense you are right, it was a rhetorical ploy. It was not my intent to call out the curators of the Masters show whose efforts I applaud or even to suggest Virginia Lee Burton belonged in that show as it was configured.
The greater point I was trying to make was that this new generation of cartoonists has as much if not more in common aesthetically with the the great children's book authors -- many of whom are woman. By acknowledging Virginia Lee Burton as a "master" the history of comics becomes even more interesting and inviting to aspiring cartoonists (especially woman) who may not see their concerns reflected in the work of artists like Caniff, Eisner, or Kirby.
