Longtime comic artist's work celebrated at new Imagine Museum exhibit

Comic artist's work celebrated at new Florida exhibit

When Amanda Conner first heard about a potential exhibit at the Imagine Museum, she was surprised and even a little shocked.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - When Amanda Conner first heard about a potential exhibit at the Imagine Museum, she was surprised and even a little shocked. 

"I thought, wow, this is really happening, so it's exciting," Conner said. 

The Imagine Museum is known for glass pieces. Conner's new exhibit is an extension of Graphic Worlds, an exhibition that highlights the artform of comic books. That exhibit debuted last year and returned this year. 

What they're saying:

"I love the idea of having all the glass art and then the comic book art together because people who come to see the glass might actually have never thought about comics as an artform before, and people who come to the comics will see all of this incredible glass art and be exposed to more artform," Conner said. 

The exhibit, called "Drawn To Action: The Cover Art of Amanda Conner," features framed original pieces. They feature many notable characters, like Spider-Man, Wolverine, Wonder Woman and even the Flintstones. 

"The variety of art that I have there has been a real rollercoaster and a real fun ride," Conner said. "I love the idea of trying new characters out."

Dig deeper:

The exhibit also features some statues based on her artform, especially DC Comics' Harley Quinn. Conner and her husband, comic book writer Jimmy Palmiotti, are tied strongly to Quinn. They power couple created around 100 issues featuring Harley Quinn in the 2010s. Naturally, the character and her work have lots of fans. 

"It warms your heart to see a fan drawing Harley Quinn because they were inspired by some work you did because you know it's just going to keep going. It won't end. It'll always be there for generations to come," Conner said. 

What's next:

"What keeps you going, a love of visual storytelling. I love the idea of being able to get across an idea with pictures. It's one of the true American artforms. People love stories, and it's another really, really fun and engaging way to tell a story," Conner said. "It's an artform, and I think all art should be appreciated."