Comics Grinder

On the Wagon Train! Illustration by Henry Chamberlain.

Wandering through Tacoma can be like time travelling with so many finely restored historic landmarks. Add to that all the classic cars driving down the avenues. And add to all that the Washington State History Museum. It is a massive fortress filled to the brim with all sorts of pathways and portals into the past.

Yes, I gravitated to the pop culture!

I know that I love novel uses of words and pictures. It’s not just because I create comics and graphic novels. As both a writer and artist, and as a lifelong learner, I have always cherished the unique place that museums of all kinds have in our lives.

Washington State History Museum

I am especially grateful for the Washington State History Museum as an essential resource for state history. It serves as the state’s attic, a very special venue for all manner of items, large and small, a place for careful study.

Watercolor painting of Chief Leschi

Museums are for all ages. It could not be any other way. Mentors and cubs alike make great use of museums. But it is no secret that museums hold a special place for the kids. The great push forward from one generation to the next must always include quiet contemplation amongst the artifacts of bygone eras.

A small drama plays out at the train set.

And when you come right down to it, I love good visuals, which this museum has plenty. And, among them all, I love that massive train set! Like any elaborate train set worth its weight, this one has some unexpected dramatic scenes peppered about, even an accident site complete with ambulance and accident victim. We can only hope it was a minor accident!

Train Set at the Washington State History Museum

The train set exhibit brings to mind a fellow who has dedicated a big portion of his life to creating what is probably the world’s longest and most complex train set display encompassing football fields of space. That’s Northlandz in New Jersey. But this is not a competition. He has his train set and this wonderful museum has its train set, which is pretty massive!

Brass Lantern Clock, circa 1630

Vintage Women’s Suffrage Placard

Washington State History Museum is located at 1911 Pacific Avenue in the heart of Tacoma’s Museum District, adjacent to Union Station. For more details, visit the website right here.

“Locomotive / IDEOLO,” published by Centrala

“Locomotive / IDEOLO,” published by Centrala, is one beautiful and simple idea brought to life for all its worth: take a beloved famous Polish poem for children and then adapt it for adults. The poem is “The Locomotive,” by Julian Tuwim (September 13, 1894 – December 27, 1953) who is remembered for his satirical and subversive poetry. Listen to “The Locomotive” in Polish and, even if you don’t speak the language, it evokes the strains and struggles of the mighty steam-powered monster. What designer Małgorzata Gurowska and journalist Joanna Ruszczyk have done with this book is provide a unique format upon which to meditate on Tuwim’s poem.

I found this book to be a great form of therapy as I lingered upon each page. Gurowska and Ruszczyk provide an intoxicating mix of light and dark content. We have animals that appear to be undergoing an organized exodus while other animals have been neatly packed as surplus. And the same goes for humans. On the train cars, as we begin, it seems that we have everything we would ever need for anything: a celebration, a riot, the next all-out war. As we proceed from train car to train car, the stakes grow higher, the urgency more crushing. Countless suitcases are stored away never to be reunited with their owners. Troops are deployed. War is imminent or already unleashed.

And amid all the mounting tension, there is a cry for change. The political commentary is sly and well-placed challenging the reader to face difficult questions about national identity, racism, anti-Semitism, and attitudes towards ecology and animals. The design is impeccable and does a great job of evoking a highly regimented state of alert. The clean and sharp silhouettes of rabbits, soccer players, and suitcases will hit you with their significance. Contemplate each page and then spread out the entire book, just like an accordion, to fully appreciate it.

From Julian Tuwim’s THE LOCOMOTIVE:

A big locomotive has pulled into town,
Heavy, humungus, with sweat rolling down,
A plump jumbo olive.
Huffing and puffing and panting and smelly.
Fire belches forth from her fat cast iron belly