"If you care about graphic novels, you need this book." -- New York Times bestselling author Neil Gaiman Graphic Witness features rare wordless novels by five great twentieth century woodcut artists from Europe and North America. The stories they tell reflect the political and social issues of their times as well as the broader issues that are still relevant today. Frans Masereel (1899-1972) was born in Belgium and is considered the father of the wordless graphic novel. Graphic Witness includes the first reprint of his classic work The Passion of a Man since its 1918 publication in Munich. American Lynd Ward (1905-85), author of the provocative Wild Pilgrimage, is considered among the most important of wordless novelists. Giacomo Patri (1898-1978) was born in Italy and lived in the United States. His White Collar featured an introduction by Rockwell Kent and was used a promotional piece by the labor movement. Erich Glas's (1897-1973) haunting wordless novel Leilot, created in 1942, foreshadows the Holocaust, which was not widely known about at the time. Southern Cross by Canadian Laurence Hyde (1914-87) was controversial for its criticism of U.S. H-bomb testing in the South Pacific. Author George A. Walker draws on his expertise as a woodcut artist to provide insight into the tools and techniques used to create these works of art. As well, he examines the importance of the role of artists as witnesses and critics of their times, and the influence of the genre on the emergence of comics and the modern graphic novel. This newly expanded edition of Graphic Witness, which features an afterword by cartoonist Seth, will appeal to readers interested in social issues, printmaking, art history and contemporary culture.

Graphic Witness: Five Wordless Graphic Novels by Frans Masereel, Lynd Ward, Giacomo Patri, Erich Glas and Laurence Hyde

Comics & Graphic Novels

MASEREEL, Frans

WARD, Lynd

Hyde, Laurence

Walker, George A.

Patri, Giacomo

Glas, Erich

Graphic Novels

Firefly Books

Produced in 1919, Passionate Journey uses Masereel's simple and precise woodcuts to present a story of one man's life and loves in post-World War I Berlin.

Passionate journey (Mein Stundenbuch);: 167 woodcuts

Literature & Fiction

Literary

Dover Publications

"An absolute song for an ongoing visit with timelessness." — The New York Times This graphic novel by an Expressionist master offers a stunning depiction of urban Europe between the world wars. First published in Germany in 1925, it presents unforgettable images from the tense and dynamic Weimar period, rendered in 100 woodcuts of remarkable force and beauty. A pacifist during World War I, Belgian-born Frans Masereel (1889-1972) sympathized with the struggles of the working classes and strived to make his art accessible to ordinary people. His evocative woodcuts convey scenes of work and leisure, wealth and deprivation, and joy and loneliness. Banned by the Nazis, Masereel's works were championed in Communist countries; however, the artist steered clear of political affiliations. His clarity of vision transcends any propagandist use of the images, which stand as timeless indictments of oppression and injustice. Thomas Mann described Masereel's works as "so strangely compelling, so deeply felt, so rich in ideas that one never tires of looking at them." Epic and unflinching in its scope, The City continues to influence modern fine and graphic art, while recapturing the mood of a vanished era.

The City: A Vision in Woodcuts (Dover Fine Art, History of Art)

Arts & Photography

Individual Artists

"Look at these powerful black-and-white figures, their features etched in light and shadow . . . Has not this passionate journey had an incomparably deeper and purer impact on you than you have ever felt before?" — Thomas Mann Belgian-born Frans Masereel (1889–1972) was one of the greatest woodcut artists of the twentieth century. Ingeniously portraying the human experience through dramatic art, this novel-without-words — crafted from 167 intricate woodcuts — is considered to be the Flemish artist's masterpiece. A feast for the eyes and the imagination, this powerful visual narrative details the life of an ordinary man. From the first bustling frame to the last haunting image, we are deeply drawn into the hero's day-to-day encounters, and discover a spirit in quest — one that we can profoundly relate to, emotionally and intellectually. Through each extraordinarily vivid depiction, readers feel the hero's happiness, grief, awe, and despair.

Passionate Journey: A Vision in Woodcuts (Dover Fine Art, History of Art)

Rich in symbolism, these compelling graphic novels feature more than 200 starkly beautiful woodcut illustrations. The passionate, dynamic narratives include The Sun, a somber exploration of one man's struggle with destiny; The Idea, a depiction of the triumph of an artistic concept over attempts at its suppression; and Story Without Words, a tale of thwarted romance. Belgian-born Frans Masereel illustrated the works of Tolstoy, Zola, and Oscar Wilde, but he made the greatest impact with his wordless novels. These three stories, dating from the early 1920s, reflect the German Expressionist revival of the art of the woodcut. Precursors to today's graphic novels, they also represent a centuries-old tradition of picture books for unschooled audiences. Masereel combines allegory and satire in his explorations of love, alienation, and artistic creation. Thomas Mann praised these striking Expressionistic images as "so compelling, so deeply felt, so rich in ideas, that one never tires of looking at them."

The Sun, The Idea & Story Without Words: Three Graphic Novels (Dover Fine Art, History of Art)

Graphic Design

Woodcuts depict the tragedies, loneliness, and pleasures of city life during the period between the two world wars

The City

Schocken

Woodcuts show rural and urban life in the period between the two world wars

Landscapes & Voices

The Ballad of Reading Gaol (Journeyman Chapbook)

Wilde, Óscar

History & Criticism

Riverrun Pr

Frans Masereel, 1889-1972: The Radical Imagination (Journeyman Chapbook)

Herman, Josef

"If you care about graphic novels, you need this book." - New York Times best-selling author Neil Gaiman 
 Graphic Witness features rare wordless novels by four great 20th-century woodcut artists European and North American. The stories they tell reflect the political and social issues of their times as well as the broader issues that are still relevant today. 
 Frans Masereel (1899-1972) was born in Belgium and is considered the father of the wordless graphic novel. Graphic Witness includes the first reprint of his classic work, The Passion of a Man, since its 1918 publication in Munich. American Lynd Ward (1905-85), author of the provocative Wild Pilgrimage, is considered among the most important of wordless novelists. Giacomo Patri (1898-1978) was born in Italy and lived in the United States. His White Collar featured an introduction by Rockwell Kent and was used a promotional piece by the labor movement. Southern Cross by Canadian Laurence Hyde (1914-87) was controversial for its criticism of U.S. H-bomb testing in the South Pacific. 
 An introduction by George A. Walker places each wordless novel in its context and examines the influence of these works on contemporary culture, including film, comic books and contemporary graphic novels. 
 Graphic Witness will appeal to readers interested in social issues, printmaking, art history and contemporary culture.

Graphic Witness: Four Wordless Graphic Novels by Frans Masereel, Lynd Ward, Giacomo Patri and Laurence Hyde

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