Dark moods: A painting of Johnny Cash from the graphic novel Cash – I See a Darkness, a novel by German author Reinhard Kleist. — Photo courtesy of the Goethe Institute Ha Noi

HA NOI (VNS) — Selected prints from novels by award winning German graphic artist and author Reinhard Kleist are on display at an exhibition at the Goethe Instiute in Ha Noi which runs until the end of the month.

The prints are part of an exhibition titled Comics and Graphic Novels as Reflection of Reality.

The exhibition will also display extracts and illustrations from six of Kleist's graphic novels, including two illustrations from his unpublished biography about singer Nick Cave.

Kleist's paintings of American singer-songwriter Johnny Cash, Venezuelan military and political leader Simon Bolivar and Cuban president Fidel Castro also feature.

Kleist is living and working in Ha Noi as artist in residence this month. During his stay, he will blog pencil scenes on a daily basis on www.goethe.de/vietnam/kleistcomics

The artist gained worldwide acclaim for his graphic novels Cash – I See a Darkness, a novel about the American singer, and The Boxer which tells the story of the Jewish boxer Hertzko Haft.

His latest publication The Dream of Olympia tells the story of sprinter Samia Yusuf Omar who represented Somalia at the Olympic Games in 2008 in Beijing. The athlete tragically drowned later while fleeing Muslim persecutors in her home country.

Kleist was born in 1970 and lives in Berlin. He has published numerous comics and won several awards, among others the Max und Moritz-Preis, the most significant award for graphic literature in Germany.

On May 20, the artist will hold a workshop with other artists. On the same day, he will talk about his artworks at 7pm.

The exhibition is taking place at the Goethe Institute Ha Noi, 56-58 Nguyen Thai Hoc Street. — VNS