The Palm Springs Public Library is hosting two unique but quite different exhibits in February.
“Presidents’” on display from Feb. 14 – 28 is highlighting the work of political cartoonist Herb Block, aso known as Herblock, and is presented at the library through the Herbert Block Foundation. The second exhibit comes from the Palm Springs Modern Committee, which has created and installed “Paul Rudolph: 100 Years of Space and Form” on display now through March 9th that highlights his architectural career.
President-watching was part of the job of being a political cartoonist, and Herblock insisted that no president was “above caricature or comment.” From Herbert Hoover to George W. Bush, Herblock took every opportunity to let presidents know he was right there with a keen eye and a bottle of ink. He spent most of his time at the Washington Post where he worked from 1946 to 2001. Over seven decades Herblock portrayed 13 presidents with characteristic humor, intelligence, and a passion for good government.
Block (1909-2001) became the most honored cartoonist of his time, winning three Pulitzer Prizes, and sharing a fourth for his Watergate cartoons which contributed to the resignation of President Richard Nixon. He was the only living cartoonist whose work was exhibited in the National Gallery of Art, and the only living cartoonist to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
The “Paul Rudolph: 100 Years of Space and Form” exhibit showcases the work of this sometimes controversial architect. Rudolph was widely recognized within the architectural profession as spontaneously brilliant — the unchallenged master of space and the manipulation of form.
Palm Springs Public Library, 300 S. Sunrise Way, 760-322-7323, or visit palmspringslibrary.org.
Herb Block spent 55 years at the Washington Post.