More than Words: American Illustrations from the Collection

A picture is worth a thousand words,” or so the well-worn adage goes. But what happens when a picture is combined with words? 

More than Words: American Illustrations from the Collection reveals the varied possibilities that result from a mingling of image and text. It highlights how artists translate authors’ words, sometimes precisely and other times with a dose of creative license. 

Their illustrations amplify stories—both fictional and factual—propel them forward and pull us in deeper. Some push beyond the text to offer new details. Others are stand-alone images only later bound together with words. In all instances, whether as original art or presented in a book or periodical, the illustrations on view delight the eye and spark the imagination.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website