MEDIA CONTACT: Terri Berns

561-297-1164, tberns@fau.edu

FAU Libraries Present “BocaRatoons: Editorial Cartoons by Ray Russotto for the Boca Raton News” Exhibition

The Series of Cartoons are also Available as a Limited Edition, Hand-Bound Book  from FAU’s Minerva: the Press at Wimberly, Special Collections

            JUPITER, Fl(March 17, 2006) – Florida Atlantic University Libraries presents Boca Raton cartoonist and FAU alumnus Ray Russotto’s collection, “BocaRatoons: Editorial Cartoons by Ray Russotto for the Boca Raton News,” in an exhibition at  FAU’s MacArthur Campus Library, featuring 33 cartoons to be on display from Monday, March 27 through Wednesday, May 10.  The exhibition is free and open to the public..

The collection was originally introduced at FAU as the first book from Minerva: The Press at Wimberly, which is Florida Atlantic University’s book arts press, and includes a foreword by Boca Raton Mayor Steven Abrams.  “I don’t know if we all are strange looking enough to be instantly recognizable.  But I do know that a good political cartoonist can capture likenesses and encapsulate the issues of the day in such a way that the caricatures often just speak for themselves.   Ray Russotto has excelled in his renditions,” notes Abrams.

BocaRatoons cartoons deal with topics local, national and international, all flavored with that particularly ‘Boca’ viewpoint. Cartoonist Russotto muses over the origins of South Florida weather, the demise of the International Museum of Cartoon Art and battles over citrus canker – all in good spirit.

Born in Brooklyn, Russotto moved to Florida at age four.  As a grade-schooler, he earned pocket money by drawing funny pictures of his teachers and classmates.  After graduating from FAU with a bachelor’s degree in English, he had a brief stint playing bass guitar in his brother’s rock band before settling on the relatively ‘secure’ occupation as a freelance cartoonist.

Russotto has contributed to a number of publications in his twenty-plus years as a cartoonist/illustrator, including the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, the Miami Herald, Boca Raton Magazine, Jazziz, New Times and Mutual Funds Magazine.  In addition to his studio work, he also stays busy doing caricatures at special events.

For additional information about the hand-bound, limited edition book, contact John Cutrone at 561-297-0455 or jcutrone@fau.edu.  For information on the exhibit, call 561-799-8530 or visit www.library.fau.edu/npb/npb.htm

-FAU-