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Ohio: The Start of It All

Decorative Arts Center of Ohio Curator Series

Curator Daniel Chudzinski from the Mazza Museum will talk about OHIO: The Start of It All, which pairs original works of art from beloved picture books with facts about Ohio history and innovations.

Curator Daniel Chudzinski from the University of Findlay's Mazza Museum will talk about OHIO: The Start of It All, now on display at the Decorative Arts Center of Ohio, September 24-December 31, 2022. OHIO: The Start of It All pairs original works of art from beloved picture books with facts about Ohio history and innovations, from the earthworks of Ohio’s Indigenous Peoples, to aviation and astronautical science, to the creation of comic book superheroes that have shaped popular culture in the U.S. and around the world.

The exhibition reveals the fun and unique Ohio connections among 60 works of original art for children. For instance, an original prototype from Matthew Reinhart’s DC Heroes: The Ultimate Pop-Up Book, featuring numerous superheroes engaged in an epic battle, will be paired with the creation in 1933 of the world’s first superhero – Superman – by Cleveland high school students Jerry Siegel and Shoe Shuster. Artwork from Steven Kellogg’s Barney Bipple’s Magic Dandelions will be paired with facts about the world’s first police car and the first speeding ticket issued in America.

Artists represented in the exhibition include some of the most celebrated illustrators and author/illustrators in the genre: Marc Brown, creator of Arthur the Aardvark); Rosemary Wells, creator of Max & Ruby; Syd Hoff, Creator of Danny and the Dinosaur; Alice and Martin Provensen, whose book The Glorious Flight won the Caldecott Medal, the foremost award for picture book illustrations – and others.

Curator Bio

With a command of techniques rivaled only by his diverse interests, sculptor and museum curator Dan Chudzinski's quest to improve his artistic skillset has led to a host of unusual adventures. Throughout various chapters of his life, he has worked as a zoo taxidermist, apprenticed under master marble carvers in the mountains of Northern Italy, made functional artillery pieces for film and television, and created totem poles with Tlingit master carvers in Alaska. Born and raised in Fremont, OH, Dan received a B.F.A. in Sculpture and a B.A. in History from Miami University. He received an M.F.A. in Three Dimensional studies from Bowling Green State University. In 2015, Dan was named Curator of the Mazza Museum of International Art from Picture Books (University of Findlay), which houses the world's first and largest collection of original illustrations from picture books. His adventures can be followed at "Dan Chudzinski Studio" on Instagram.

This program is in partnership with Decorative Arts Center of Ohio. 

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