Born in Sweden and raised in Queens, Spiegelman’s drawings have been exhibited both nationally and internationally. He taught history and aesthetics of comics at the School for the Visual Arts and with his wife founded the avant-garde comics magazine “Raw.” His story of the Holocaust in Maus I and Maus II won him the Pulitzer Prize in 1992. He is a contributing editor to the “New Yorker.” Compelled by the events of 9/11, Spiegelman produced In the Shadow of No Towers. Spiegelman, his wife and their two children all learned to read by reading comics.

Inspired by European “clear line” artists, Ware is the creator of Jimmy Corrigan, the Smartest Kid on Earth and Quimby the Mouse. First- rate stories and meticulous, elaborate drawings characterize Ware’s work. He is famous for his “do-it-yourself” kits embedded in his comics, like The Acme Novelty Library in which the reader has to assemble a bookshelf and the books to put in it. Chris Ware is a master of color and composition.

The “God of Manga,” Tezuka was Japan’s most cherished and prolific manga and anime artist. He was responsible for the characteristic “puppy-dog eyes” which became the trademark of Japanese animation and comics. Heavily influenced by the works of Walt Disney, he formed his own production company. His Buddha and Adolf series are historical graphic novels. Tezuka ignored his medical degree to concentrate on his art and became the first commercial manga artist to have an exhibit at the National Museum of Modern Art in Tokyo.