Comic books were never meant to last forever. Conceived as cheap, disposable entertainment, they were printed on inexpensive paper and sold at pocket-money prices, to be read, enjoyed – and then discarded. Yet the passage of time has shown us that comic books, in their own way, offer a gaudy, vibrant record of our times.

The exhibition Heroes & Villains: Australian comics and their creators celebrates the colourful, and sometimes controversial, history of Australian comic books from the 1940s to the present day.

Comic books as we know them may have been born in America, but, as visitors to this exhibition will discover, Australia once had a thriving comic-book industry.

Australian comic-book characters were more than just lines drawn on a page. They were exported to Britain, translated for South America, turned into toys and made the stars of their own radio shows.

Heroes and Villains pays tribute not only to the comic-book characters that have entertained generations of Australians, but also to the men and women who penned their adventures, sometimes with little or no recognition.

The exhibition features many items from the State Library of Victoria’s own collection of Australian comics, including the recently acquired Kevin Patrick Collection, which comprises nearly every Australian comic book published between 1975 and 2005. 

Heroes and Villains brings together a display of rare comic books, original artwork and memorabilia to explore the cultural, economic and technological forces that have influenced Australian comics, and to examine how Australian creators have shaped the medium, at home and abroad.