Eyre Apparent revisited

The current issue of the Inside UVA (University of Virginia) Online magazine (Feb. 3 - 16, 2006 Vol. 36, Issue 2) carries an article about the Eyre Apparent exhibit currently on display in the Rotunda’s Dome Room.

Suite Jane. The many faces of Brontë’s famous heroine
By Mary Carlson

The exhibit, which opened in early November and runs until May 1, marks the 150th anniversary of Brontë’s death and provides a lively, thoughtful, sometimes irreverent look at the novel that has inspired a multitude of spin-offs, rip-offs, sequels, prequels and paraphernalia. “Eyre Apparent” features some 400 items, including various editions, translations and adaptations that range from the quirky to the downright odd. There’s an illustrated comic book version in modern Greek and a sci-fi version called “Jenna Starborn,” with Jane as a space-traveling nuclear technician. There’s even an adults-only version — “Disciplining Jane” — that gives Brontë’s story a sadomasochistic twist. The exhibit makes clear that the book’s audience reaches far beyond what the author could ever have imagined. (...)

But most book publishers, like most movie producers, never let what authors actually write stand in the way of trying to boost their product’s consumer appeal. “Eyre Apparent” features an entire section of book covers dedicated to what Barbara Heritage, the exhibit’s co-curator, calls the “prettification” of Jane. Here we see a range of makeovers, from the subtle to the extreme.

If you are interested read the entire article, it's really worth while.

Photo by Dan Addison.
Barbara Heritage, co-curator of the “Eyre Apparent” exhibit.

Categories: Art-Exhibitions, Jane_Eyre, Charlotte_Brontë