Have you ever wanted to see your favorite musicians drawn with highly disproportional bodies? If you visited the Elihu Burrit Library between July 8 to August 20, you probably did.

During the summer, an exhibit entitled “People of Note- Caricatures and Quotations of Famous Musicians” was held on the second floor of CCSU’s library. The exhibit featured a collection of celebrity caricatures drawn by artist Robert Carley. Carley drew the artists with exaggeratedly large heads and skinny bodies. There were more than 80 caricature posters on display, featuring musicians such as Snoop Dogg, Elton John, Drake, and Lady Gaga. At least five glass cases were filled entirely with caricatures of musicians from several different eras and music styles. An artist reception for the exhibit was held on July 20, complete with live acoustic music played by Jim Hett.

In addition to the celebrity caricatures, each poster also included famous quotes from each of the musicians. Some of these quotes were highly inspirational. One quote on Mick Jagger’s poster was, “The past is a great place and I don’t want to erase or to regret it, but I don’t want to be its prisoner either.” This quote forces people to wonder if they are letting their past control their future.

Another insightful quote comes from Sir Elton John’s poster. In regards to music, he said, “If you write great songs with meaning and emotion, they will last forever because songs are the key to everything. Songs will outlast the artist and they will go on forever if they’re good.” This quote makes people think about the legacy they are leaving behind.

In contrast, other quotes Carley included from the celebrities were quite humorous. A quote on Snoop Dogg’s poster read, “When I’m no longer rapping, I want to open up an ice cream parlor and call myself Scoop Dogg.” Whether Snoop Dogg is serious or not, this is a funny scenario to think about.

Another funny quote comes from Rod Stewart. When talking about marriage, he said, “Instead of getting married again, I’m going to find a woman I don’t like and just give her a house.” Instead of dwelling on his failed marriage, Stewart makes a joke out of it.

Aside from the posters, Carley also displayed photos of him meeting some of the celebrities he drew. The photos were captioned with details of the encounters. One of them recounted his experience showing Latoya Jackson his caricature of her brother, Michael Jackson. Carley wrote, “I told Latoya, pointing to the caricature that she probably knew all the quotes that I had collected and I told her that I hoped she liked it… She responded, ‘I don’t like it, I love it.’”

In addition to meeting Latoya Jackson, Carley also had his caricatures signed by Billy Idol, Johnny Cash’s daughter Rosanne and Cher’s son Chaz.

“People of Note” was a lovely addition to the Elihu Burritt Library, providing entertainment to summer patrons. If you missed this particular exhibit, there will hopefully be more throughout the course of the semester.