Signe Wilkinson Donates Political Cartoon Archive to University of Pennsylvania

Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist Signe Wilkinson has donated a substantial collection of her political cartoons and working materials to the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg School for Communication.

The collection includes original drawings, published cartoons, sketches, notes and other materials from Wilkinson’s career. It will be housed in the Annenberg Library Archives, where it will be available for research and teaching.  

Wilkinson spent more than three decades drawing editorial cartoons in Philadelphia, primarily for the Philadelphia Daily News and The Philadelphia Inquirer. In 1992, she became the first woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning.

Her cartoons have covered presidential politics, elections and public policy as well as issues closer to Philadelphia. The newly donated material provides a look not only at the finished cartoons but also at the sketches and notes behind them.

The acquisition is part of a growing political cartoon collection at Annenberg, bringing original editorial cartooning into an archive focused more broadly on journalism, media and political communication.  

The timing also connects the donation with a larger project at the university.

On September 17, Annenberg will open Witty and Gritty: Editorial Art of The Philadelphia Inquirer, an exhibition featuring more than 150 original cartoons and artworks by Wilkinson and fellow Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist Tony Auth.

The exhibition will look at decades of American life through political cartoons, with sections dealing with politics, media, social issues and Philadelphia culture. It will remain on view throughout the 2026–2027 academic year.  

Wilkinson is scheduled to take part in the opening program alongside curator, author and archivist David Leopold. The event will include a discussion of the work on display.  

For researchers, the Wilkinson collection offers something an exhibition alone cannot: the working material surrounding the published cartoons. Drafts, sketches and notes can show how an editorial cartoon develops before readers encounter the finished image.

The donation was originally announced by Annenberg in July and was featured again by the University of Pennsylvania’s Almanac on August 11.  

Witty and Gritty opens at the Annenberg School for Communication on September 17 and will remain on display for the 2026–2027 academic year.

Sources

University of Pennsylvania, Annenberg School for Communication — New Collection of Political Cartoons Donated to Annenberg
https://www.asc.upenn.edu/news-events/news/new-collection-political-cartoons-donated-annenberg

University of Pennsylvania Almanac — Pulitzer Prize-Winning Cartoonist Signe Wilkinson Donates Significant Collection of Her Political Cartoons to the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg School for Communication
https://almanac.upenn.edu/articles/pulitzer-prize-winning-cartoonist-signe-wilkinson-donates-significant-collection-of-her-political-cartoons-to-the-university-of-pennsylvanias-annenberg-school-for-communication/

Annenberg School for Communication — Witty and Gritty: Editorial Art of The Philadelphia Inquirer
https://www.asc.upenn.edu/news-events/events/witty-and-gritty