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‘The Cartoon Chronicles of Sandwich Bag Dad’ by Dave Blumenthal – online exhibition

Combining a love of art and wordplay, Boroondara dad, Dave Blumenthal, has drawn cartoons on his kids’ lunch bags since 2012. What started as an endearing idea to add some fun to his eldest daughter’s school day has since morphed into a collection of thousands of lunch bag cartoons and a social media following spanning the globe.

‘The Cartoon Chronicles of Sandwich Bag Dad’ is a celebration of Blumenthal’s lunch bag artworks that have entertained a growing, worldwide community of dad joke enthusiasts for nearly a decade. This community exhibition features a selection of Blumenthal’s greatest pun-filled, hand-drawn illustrations.

Detailed and whimsical, this exhibition will bring laughs, smiles, and endless creativity confined only by the size of a brown paper sandwich bag.

Visit Town Hall Gallery to view the full exhibition, on display from Tuesday 16 August until Saturday 24 September 2022.

Visit our Boroondara Arts shop to purchase an artwork.

 Image credit: Dave Blumenthal, ‘Born to Bee Wild’, 2020, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist.
A drawing of a bee in sunglasses riding a motorcycle, with the text 'Born to bee wild' above it
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Born to Bee Wild’, 2020, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Not for sale.

Artist’s statement: ‘I "wheelie" liked this one. It's one of the stings that really made me chuckle.’
A drawing of a stack of money in notes saying 'Wait Linda! I can change!' to a piggy bank who is looking away
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Wait Linda’, 2020, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Not for sale.

Artist’s statement: ‘Another "coiny" one.’
A drawing of a rake looking at a stack of hay, and saying 'Hay girlfriend!'
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Hay Girlfriend’, 2020, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Not for sale.

Artist’s statement: ‘She didn't Hay-te this bag …but she didn't like it much either.’
A drawing of a pen saying 'Looking sharp!' to a pencil, and the pencil replying 'And you look ink-redible!'
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Looking Sharp’, 2020, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Price: $100.

Artist’s statement: ‘Need a dad joke? You can always de-pen-d on me.’
A drawing of a man sitting at a restaurant table with a child crying near the table, and a waiter saying 'A little whine with dinner?'
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Whine with Dinner’, 2020, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Price: $100.

Artist’s statement: ‘This bag is full of dadjokey characters with nutty overtones and a dry finish. Pairs well with sandwiches!’
A drawing of a weasel using an inhaler, with the words 'puff goes the wheezer' beside it
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Puff goes the Wheezer’, 2020, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Price: $100.

Artist’s statement: ‘Another breathtaking one?’
A drawing of a police officer holding a bottle of sauce out like a gun at a container of hot chips and saying 'Fries!'
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Fries’, 2021, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Price: $100.

Artist’s statement: ‘Just another “wheezon” to roll your eyes.’
A drawing of two flowers, one which is being picked from the ground and the other calling out 'Don't worry! Everything will be bouquet!'
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Everything will be Bouquet’, 2017, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Price: $100.

Artist’s Statement: ‘I thought ‘thistle’ be funny, but she didn’t like it… not even a lily bit.’
A drawing of two inhalers, one saying to the other 'Oh Jan! He is so amazing... he takes my breath away!'
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Oh Jan’, 2017, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Price: $100.

Artist’s statement: ‘Another breathtaking one?’
A drawing of a stalk carrying a baby in cloth, with a 'Baby on board' sign on it's back and the words 'Baby on bird' below it.
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Baby on Bird’, 2021, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Price: $100.

Artist’s statement: ‘She wasn’t really “storked” about this cartoon.
A drawing of a giraffe saying 'Hey Gavin, you haven't seen my blue scarf have you?' to a bear who is sleeping with a blue scarf wrapped around them who says 'Nuh uh...'
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Gavin’, 2018, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Not for sale.

Artist’s statement: ‘This was one of my favourite cartoons of 2018. You could say I was ‘wrapped’ with how it turned out.’
A drawing of a coffee cup doing floor exercises with the word 'Pi-lattes' above it
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Pi-Lattes’, 2017, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Price: $100.

Artist’s statement: ‘Remember to drink while exercising.’
A drawing of the back of a red car with a chef and a cooked turkey inside, with a sign on the back saying 'Just marinated'
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Just Marinated’, 2019, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Price: $100.

Artist’s statement: ‘I purposely drew this bag with only one chef. Everyone knows too many cooks spoil the dad joke.’
A drawing of a tennis ball who is picking the petals off a flower and saying, 'She lobs me, she lobs me not...'
Dave Blumenthal, ‘She Lobs Me’, 2020, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Price: $100.

Artist’s statement: ‘This one was a smash hit.’
A drawing of a kettle holding a mug up and saying 'To breakfast!', and a toaster replying 'Hey! I do the toasting around here!'
Dave Blumenthal, ‘To Breakfast!’, 2021, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Not for sale.

Artist’s statement: ‘This is a reprisal of one of my earliest bags. I re-created especially for this exhibition - and to remind Sandwich Bag Daughter 1 that my dad jokes have ALWAYS been like this!’
A drawing of cinderella and her fairy godmother, who is saying 'I can't actually help you get to the ball, but here are the details for the Zoom dial-in'
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Zoom Dial-in Details for the Ball’, 2020, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Price: $100.

Artist’s statement: ‘If fairy tales happened during COVID-19.’
A drawing of a bar graph with the title 'Sharks most feared by adults', and a small bar next to 'Gummy sharks', a slightly larger bar next to 'Hammerhead sharks', a slightly larger bar next to 'Great white', and the largest bar next to 'Baby shark doo do doo do doo'
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Sharks Most Feared by Adults’, 2019, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Price: $100.

Artist’s statement: ‘This one finally made my eldest daughter laugh. Unfortunately now I just can’t get that song out of my head!!!!’
A drawing of a person in a tie, glasses and a helmet, riding a scooter with the words 'Born to be mild' above them
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Born to be Mild’, 2020, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Not for sale.

Artist’s statement: ‘Tough guys reconcile their tax receipts weekly.’
A drawing of a pug wearing a polo tshirt, slacks and reading glasses with the words 'Polo Ruff Lauren' next to it
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Polo Ruff Lauren’, 2022, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Not for sale.

Artist’s statement: ‘Keeping on-trend with fashion can be ruff sometimes.’
A drawing of a younger viking saying 'Hey look, I didn't ask to be bjorn!' to an older viking, with the words 'Viking teenagers' above them
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Viking teenagers’, 2020, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Price: $100.

Artist’s statement: ‘Teenagers have probably always been the same.’
A drawing of two frames on a wall, with one that is crooked sayign to the other 'Grr! I can't believe I wasn't hung straight!' and the other replying 'Relax... you're just hangry...'
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Hangry’, 2018, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Price: $100.

Artist’s statement: ‘She wasn’t in the right “frame” of mind to fully appreciate this one.’
A drawing of two birds eating seeds, and one is saying to the other 'If at first you don't suck seed, try, try again!'
Dave Blumenthal, ‘If at First You Don’t Suck Seed’, 2021, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Price: $100.

Artist’s statement: ‘Might tweet this advice later.’
A drawing of a baby wearing sunglasses and doing the sign of the horns with it's hand while sitting in a baby chair, with the words 'Born to rock!' above them
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Born to Rock, 2021, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Price: $100.

Artist’s statement: ‘Rock n’ Rollover.’
A drawing of a man in a suit with an apple covering his face, holding the hand of a small girl in a pink dress holding an apple phone infront of their face, with the words 'The son of man... with daughter' above them
Dave Blumenthal, ‘The Son of Man… with Daughter’, 2021, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Price: $100.

Artist’s statement: ‘She is clearly the apple of his eye :)’
A drawing of a man sitting at a table with a puzzle box on it and puzzle pieces, and one of the pieces is saying to him 'You want a piece of me buddy!?'
Dave Blumenthal, ‘You want a piece of me?’, 2021, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Price: $100.

Artist’s statement: ‘Reflections from a rainy day stuck indoors.’
A drawing of a man bringing a hotdog up into his mouth labelled 'Upward dog', a man bringing a hot dog down into his mouth labaelled 'Downward dog', a man looking stressed labelled 'The worrier pose', and a man throwing a tantrum on the floor labelled 'Child's pose'
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Sandwich Bag Dad’s Guide to Beginner Yoga’, 2020, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Not for sale.

Artist’s statement: ‘Yoga. I have a feeling you have been doing it wrong all this time.'
A drawing of a cop who has pulled over a car with a mr potato head inside who is saying 'Of course I realise I was spudding officer... it's all I know'
Dave Blumenthal, ‘Spudding’, 2020, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Not for sale.

Artist’s statement: ‘This one had to be posted on a Fries-day of course!’
A drawing of two tomatoes, one saying to the other 'C'mon, you can truss me!'
Dave Blumenthal, ‘C’mon you can truss me,’ 2020, pencil on sandwich bag, 25 x 21cm, image courtesy of the artist. Price: $100.

Artist’s statement: ‘Tomatoes are why have truss issues.’

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