Edited by Alex Halberstadt, this is a vibrant anthology of comics inspired by senior writers, creative teams, Arlette Hernandez, Associate Educator, interpretation, research and digital learning, visits to comics fascinated by MoMA. John Allen, Gabriel Bell, Barbara Brandon Croft, Jessica Campbell, Ted Crosson, Ali Fitzgerald, November Garcia, Anna Highfish, Mari Canstad Johnsen, Patrick Keck, Lee Lai, Ellen Lindner, John Vaske Mejas, Danica Novgorodov, Ben Pasmore, Sarvira, Bishakh Som, Karl Stevens, Erin Williams.
Read the official collection description below.
Have you ever left a museum that you feel inspired or delighted? Have you ever made your laugh? cry? Do you think about the world differently? For contributors attracted to MoMA, Art has done more. Since 2019, the Museum of Modern Art has been asking cartoonists and illustrators to create stories about their experiences both inside and outside the museum. Gathered here are 25 hilarious, moving, and thought-inducing selections from a series by acclaimed graphic artists including Gabriel Bell, Roz Chast, Walter Scott, Tomi Parrish, Marie Canstad Johnsen and Chris Wear. In their own unique style, they talk about their visit to MOMA, explore their favourite artwork and artists, meditating on love, friendship as creators, and the struggles and rewards of life.
Painted in MOMA: Comics inspired by contemporary art, published in 2025 by Museums in New York, New York. Image Museum Museum of Contemporary Art.
Beat emails editors Halberstadt and Hernandez to discuss how to bring the collection to life, what the curation process looks like, and how to bridge the gap between comics and other arts attracted to MoMA.
Ollie Kaplan: How do the things depicted in the Moma anthology embody the “art for everything” philosophy?
Alex Halberstadt & Arlette Hernandez: The phrase “Art for All” encapsulates a variety of concepts, but this is one of the ideas we continue to return to. Sometimes these connections manifest themselves organically. Finally, think about the time you saw the artwork that stopped you on the track. Also, it is not the experience of seeing the artwork that stimulates connection, nor the experience of witnessing it through the eyes of others. This requires vulnerability, a willingness to listen and share. Every artist who contributed to the series left a part of himself on the page in all its iterations.
Kaplan: As pointed out in the preface, comic book art was historically considered less than art. Because it is intended to be consumed by the masses (relatively, don’t start the Charles Dickens tangent). How does what is depicted in MOMA aim to bridge that division?
Halber Stadt & Hernandez: The truth is that what is portrayed in MoMA can only do a lot to change the culture of how cartoons are perceived. To make meaningful changes, there must be a major change in the culture of the person who defines what “fine art” means and how the process occurs. That said, one of our hopes for this series is to demonstrate an intimate connection between “fine art” and the comic. Artists in this series have their work displayed on the walls of gallery, and often think about their craft as deeply as contemporary artists who are in conversation with these artists.
Anna Highfish. Drawnn Moma: Comics Inspried by Modern Art, New York, New York, 2025.
Kaplan: What does this anthology say about the role of critics and critics as artists?
Halberstadt & Hernandez: I think there are as many important perspectives in this book as there are stories. As editors, we wanted to encourage conversations between different stories, but we also wanted to emphasize the throughline that passes through each: the spirit of disrespect. You might call it fun too.
Kaplan: How did you curate which artists and moments you include from your mom’s history?
Halber Stadt & Hernandez: The series selection process is as extensive as the styles included in the anthology. It’s very common for us to sit and start a conversation by discussing recent graphic novels that inspired us, as well as stumbling gins as we explore Comix’s stores like Desert Island. From there, the conversation unfolds with questions you want to hear about perspectives, hidden stories that artists can bring to life, themes explored within the gallery, or even calendar events that invite reflection on experiences like motherhood and strangeness.
Mari Canstad Johnsen. Drawnn Moma: Comics Inspried by Modern Art, New York, New York, 2025.
Kaplan: What were the biggest editorial challenges and rewards when curating this anthology?
Halber Stadt & Hernandez: It’s probably not surprising that the biggest editorial challenge was the fact that it was limited to choosing a 25-storey building from over 50 stories depicted in the MOMA feature. Another challenge was to print these web first stories. I was very fortunate to work with Kayla E., creative director of Fantagraphics and author of the new graphic novel Precious Rubbish. Kayla helped to see the series in a new way, bringing a lot of attention and creativity to challenges that initially seem insurmountable.
Kaplan: What do you want to take away from the readers depicted in Moma, not from traditional museum guides or exhibition catalogs?
HalberStadt & Hernandez: Unlike the exhibition catalogue, which is usually organized around the vision of the Curatorial Team, it is a more polyphonic project drawn in MOMA. They provided contributors with rather open-ended prompts in both perspectives, style and subject matter, so the results are varied, unruly and sometimes internally contradictory. It’s very exciting.
A lot of our collaborations have been creating dialogues about art. I felt that the next step drawn in the MOMA series was to create new conversations in the form of printed anthology. In the early stages of production, I was constantly wondering about how IIT felt like turning pages of every written story about art. How do these stories discuss each other and allow readers to immerse themselves in a variety of sensibilities and worlds? We also wanted to celebrate the incredible work of artists who contributed to this series by helping these stories find new homes beyond the web.
Weng Pixin. Drawnn Moma: Comics Inspried by Modern Art, New York, New York, 2025.
Kaplan: Did MOMA explore comics and graphic storytelling at exhibitions and archives before this project? What role did that history (or lack of history) play in this project?
Halber Stadt & Hernandez: In 2007, MoMA opened the comic abstraction of the exhibition. Image destruction, image creation. This explored how artists borrowed and adapted visual languages of comics, comics and animation. Some of the exhibition’s works referenced comic elements, such as visual representations of sounds, such as grooves between panels and explosions. The exhibition was a major inspiration for a series of features featured in MoMA’s magazine in September 2021. This is how we created a comic in collaboration with comic scholar Chris Gabberer.
Kaplan: Can you expect more volume?
Halber Stadt & Hernandez: We certainly hope so!
Here’s the purchase drawn on MOMA!
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