R. Sikoryak's Declaration/Emancipation Illustrated: Comics Meet American History

During a recent session of the PRINT Book Club, cartoonist R. Sikoryak shared insights about his new release, Declaration/Emancipation Illustrated. This unique double-sided volume juxtaposes the Declaration of Independence with the Emancipation Proclamation and the Gettysburg Address, featuring the original texts in their entirety. Each page showcases over 100 illustrations inspired by various American comic artists and characters. Sikoryak's inspiration comes from his childhood love for superhero parodies and his collaboration with Art Spiegelman and Françoise Mouly at RAW, where he first explored retelling Dante's Inferno through Bazooka Joe comic styles. His creative process involves fragmenting historical texts, crafting visual interpretations, and exploring comic history to uncover new meanings, humorously termed 'a very diligent kind of forgery.' Released as the nation approaches the 250th anniversary of the Declaration, the book reinterprets essential American texts, revealing contradictions about equality. The session, moderated by Debbie Millman and Steven Heller, is available for those who wish to listen.