9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 So 24 years ago, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I was brought to the New Yorker[br]as Art Editor to rejuvinate 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 what had by then become[br]a somewhat stayed institution, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and to bring in new artists 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and to try to bring the magazine[br]from its ivory tower 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 into engaging with its time. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And it was just the right[br]thing for me to do 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 because I've always been captivated[br]by how an image can -- 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 a simple drawing -- 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 can cut through the torrent of images[br]that we see every single day. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 How it can capture a moment, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 how it can crystallize a social event[br]or a complex event 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 in a way that a lot of words[br]wouldn't be able to do, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and reduce it to its essence[br]and turn it into a cartoon. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 So I went to the library 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and I looked at the first cover[br]drawn by Ray Irvin in 1925 -- 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 a dandy looking at a butterfly[br]with his monocle, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and we call it, "Used to ... " 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And I realized that as the magazine[br]had become known for its well -- 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 in-depth research and long reports, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 some of the humor had gotten[br]lost along the way, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 because now often [...][br]was seen as hoity dandy, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 but in fact, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 in 1925, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 when Ray Irvin first drew this image, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 he did it as part of the humor magazine[br]to amuse the use of the era, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 which was the flappers[br]of the roaring '20s. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And in the library I found the images[br]that really captured the zeitgeist 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 of the Great Depression. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And it showed us not just[br]how people dressed 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 or what the cars looked like, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 but also what made them laugh, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 what their prejudices were, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and you really got a sense of what[br]it felt like to be alive in the '30s. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 So I called on contemporary artists[br]such as Adriane ..... 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I often call on narrative artists, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 cartoonists, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 children's book authors, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and I give them themes such as, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 you know, what it's like[br]to be in the subway, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 or Valentine's Day, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and they send me sketches. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Once the sketches are approved[br]by the editor David Remnick, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 it's a go. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I love the way those images are actually[br]not telling you what to think, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 but they do make you think, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 because the artist is actually -- 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 it's almost a puzzle -- 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 the artist is drawing the dots, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and you the reader[br]have to complete the picture. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 So to get this image on the left[br]by Anita Kuntz, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 or the one on right by Tomar Atica, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 you have to play spot the differences, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and it is something that -- 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 it's really exciting to see[br]how the engagement with the reader 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 how those images really capture -- 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 play with the stereotypes, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 but when you get it, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 it rearranges the stereotypes[br]that are in your head. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 The images don't just have to show people, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 sometimes it can be a feeling. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Right after September 11th, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I was at a point -- 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 like everybody else, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 where I really didn't know how[br]to deal with what we were going though, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and I felt that no image could[br]capture this moment, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and I wanted to just do a black cover, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 like no cover. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And I talked to my husband, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 cartoonist Art Spiegelman, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and I mentioned to him[br]that I was going to propose that, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and he said, "If you're going[br]to do a black cover, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 then why don't you do a silhouette[br]of the Twin Towers, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 black on black?" 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And I sat down to draw this, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and as soon as I saw it, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 a shiver ran down my spine 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and I realized that in this refusal[br]to make an image, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 we had found a way to capture loss 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and mourning 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and absence. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 It's been a profound thing[br]that I learned in the process -- 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 that sometimes some of the images[br]that say the most 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 do it with the most spare means. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And a simple image can speak volumes. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 So this is the image[br]that we published by Bob Stack 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 right after the election of Barack Obama, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and captured an historic moment. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 But we can't really plan for this, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 because in order to do this, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 we have to let the artist experience[br]the emotions that we all feel 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 when that is happening. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 So back in November 2016, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 during the election last year, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 the only image that we[br]could publish was this, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 which was on the stand on the week[br]that everybody voted. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 (Laughter) 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Because we knew somebody would feel this -- 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 (Laugther) 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 when the result of the election[br]was announced. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And when we found out the result, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 we really were at a loss, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and this is the image that was sent[br]by Bob Stack again, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and that really hit a chord. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And again, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 we can't really figure out what's[br]going to come next, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 but here it felt like we didn't[br]know how to move forward, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 but we did move forward, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and this is the image that we published[br]after Donald Trump's election, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and at the time of the Women's March 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 all over the US. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 So over those 24 years, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 I have seen over 1,000 images[br]come to life week after week, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and I'm often asked which[br]on is my favorite, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 but I can't pick one 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 because what I'm most proud of[br]is how different every image is, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 one from the other. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And that's due to the talent[br]and the diversity 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 of all of the artists that contribute. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And now, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 well, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 now, we're owned by Russia, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 so -- 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 (Laughter) 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 In a rendering by Barry Blitt here, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Eustis has become Eustis Vladmir ... 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 so the butterfly is nonother than[br]a flabbergasted Donald Trump 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 flapping his wings, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 trying to figure out how to control[br]the butterfly effect, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and the famed logo that was drawn[br]by Ray Irving in 1925 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 is not in syrillic. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 So what makes me really excited[br]about this moment 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 is the way that a free press[br]is essential to our democracy, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and we can see from[br]the sublime to the ridiculous 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 that artists can capture what is going on 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 in a way that an artist armed with just[br]india ink and watercolor 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 can capture and enter into[br]the cultural dialogue. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 And it puts those artsits[br]at the center of that culture, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 and that's exactly where[br]I think they should be, 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 because the main thing we need[br]right now is a good cartoon. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 Thank you. 9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000 (Applause)