Laughing Matters: Arizona Humor
January 15-March 8, 2009 in the Exhibit Hall

They say that laughter is the best medicine for what ails us, so perhaps it is apt that in this anxious time in American life we are offering an exhibit to help us forget our troubles! Laughing Matters: Arizona Humor will present artworks in a variety of media expressing what artists think is funny about our region — from the whimsical to the satirical, the silly to the absurd. Serving as humor advisor to the exhibit is the Arizona Daily Star’s editorial cartoonist, David Fitzsimmons.

Historically, the arts have used comedy to comment on society’s ills and to release tension associated with tragedy. Humorous art works play with puns, surprise us with the unexpected, or are just plain goofy.
Laughing Matters will explore the comical side of Arizona life in artworks that may lampoon the state’s landmarks and symbols such as the official state neckwear (bola ties) or the state flower (saguaro blossom), unusual animals (think Gila monsters, coyotes and roadrunners), the myth and reality of the wild West, tourism, current events, and amusing historical and political figures, something with which Arizona has been amply “blessed!”