The St. Petersburg Museum offers a glimpse into the world of anime

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – A special exhibition on comic and anime art opens at the Imagine Museum in Saint Petersburg. The exhibition hopes to shed light on the art of comic books.

“At the heart of this exhibition lies the desire to showcase comic, manga and anime art as the true visual art forms that they truly are,” said Francesca Brown, communications manager for the Imagine Museum.

A look inside the Imagine Museum.

The exhibition shows a wide range of media. Think of paintings, drawings, sculptures and of course glass art. Some feature well-known heroes and villains, such as Spider-Man and Batman.

Some are original comedic creations. The deep history of the medium is also explored through multimedia presentations.

“That we could bridge the gap between popular culture, museum culture and visual arts was our goal with this entire exhibition,” Brown said.

Sculpture on display in the Imagine Museum’s comic and anime exhibit.

Artists from all over the world are featured, with several local artists highlighted. Professional glass artist Jack Alden created a glass dragon fruit inspired by the long-running anime series ‘One Piece’.

“I started watching the show, and the idea behind the dragon fruit is that it gives the person who eats it these kind of mysterious magical powers,” Alden said. “Who doesn’t imagine as a child that he has these magical powers.”

Oil painter and sculptor Blake Emory went big with his contributions, including a large painting of Conan the Barbarian.

Artist Blake Emory stands in front of his painting Conan the Barbarian, on display at the Imagine Museum.

“I think the most important motivational piece for any artist is that when someone comes to see the art, it inspires them to create something themselves,” Emory said.

Visual artist Heather Tapia was inspired by vintage comics like Wonder Woman and created her own comic book covers.

“I thought about different friends or women in my own life, people who have inspired me, and I created characters based on that, because I thought that would be a fun twist,” Tapia said.

All three artists were thrilled to be part of an exhibition that is open to many to see.

“It opens up an avenue to like all the new possibilities, and then when you come in here, look at what this other artist has created, look at what has been done, and you see all these things that seem limitless,” Tapia said .

Graphic Worlds: Exploring Comic and Anime Art is on view until January 5.

Visit the Imagine Museum website for more information here.

Artwork on display in the Imagine Museum’s comic and anime exhibit.

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