Cartoonists in the Digital Age

An opinion piece on the Procartoonists blog.

© Roger Penwill @ Procartoonists.org

An excerpt:

"The Best Of Britain's Political Cartoons 2013"

Britain doesn’t just have some of the best journalists in the world, it has excellent cartoonists too. Here are 12 of the best from the last year, taken from The Best of Britain’s Political Cartoons 2013.

Some of my favourites from a top 10 list on BuzzFeed:

Zapiro Cartoon Not Cricket in India

From The India Times.

Johannesburg: Several community organisations here have called on the Indian cricket team to boycott the tour of South Africa, starting next month in the wake of the Ganesha cartoon controversy, involving cartoonist Jonathan Shapiro.

BBC News - Steve Bell sketches the roots of cartoon satire

A legacy of political satire is on show as two exhibitions in Aberdeen trace the history of sketching the great and powerful.

Reporter Kevin Keane viewed some of the artworks and newspaper cartoonist Steve Bell spoke to the Sunday Politics Scotland programme about his approach to cartoon satire.

"The Last Things He Saw" by Steve Brodner

Steve Brodner on his blog.

Bruce McCall Interview

… with Ken Rockburn on CPAC.

Author, illustrator and cartoonist Bruce McCall has lived in New York for the past 40 years but he grew up in the quiet, peaceful idyllic town of Simcoe, Ontario. Never a strong performer in school, Mr. McCall displayed, from a very young age, a talent for drawing and writing.

Bruno Bozzetto at the Walt Disney Family Museum in San Francisco

Raffaella Spinazzi in FANY-BLOG.

On November 21st, 2013, the Walt Disney Family Museum in San Francisco will host an exhibition of Bruno Bozzetto, almost entirely dedicated to his animated feature film Allegro non Troppo, an explicit homage to Disney’s Fantasia.

“Bruno Bozzetto: Animation, Maestro!”

The Walt Disney Family Museum 

November 21, 2013–March 17, 2014

International Day to End Impunity

Saturday November 23 is the International Day to End Impunity, a day dedicated to a call to action to demand justice for those who have been targeted for exercising their right to freedom of expression, and to shed light on the issue of impunity.  One of the people you can support (with a simple tweet) is Egyptian cartoonist and CM member Doaa Eladl.

Two Reviews of "Dear Mr. Watterson"

Gary Goldstein in The LA Times.

The hugely popular daily comic strip "Calvin and Hobbes," syndicated from 1985 to 1995 in as many as 2,400 newspapers, provides a surprisingly rich engine for filmmaker Joel Allen Schroeder's captivating love letter of a documentary, "Dear Mr. Watterson." The film, named for "Calvin" creator Bill Watterson, offers not only an in-depth look at the comic strip's unique influence but also a concise snapshot of the dwindling state of newspapers and their "funny pages."

The Changing Etiquette of Theft

David Apatoff in Illustration Art.

Lisa Congdon, a west coast illustrator, was outraged to discover that her art had been used without her permission by a corporation, Cody Foster Inc., for its line of Christmas ornaments. The illustrator complained that the stolen art was "100% mine" and launched a publicity campaign attacking the plagiarism of her work:

However, during her publicity campaign it was discovered that the illustrator herself had "borrowed" someone else's copyrighted work to make her illustrations.

I Wish I'd Drawn…(24)

… this wonderful cartoon by Vancouver's Dan Murphy.

Some other nice Rob Ford cartoons:

"Finding Vivian Maier" a film by John Maloof

From Web Burgr.

A self-portrait of Vivien Maier

Imagine this: perhaps the most important street photographer of the twentieth century was a nanny who kept everything to herself. Nobody had ever seen her work and she was a complete unknown until the time of her death. For decades Vivian’s work hid in the shadows until decades later (in 2007), historical hobbyist John Maloof bought a box full of never developed negatives at a local auction for $380.

Another Classic Barry Blitt "New Yorker" Cover

"Reboot" by Barry Blitt

Hank Ketcham

I've always admired "Dennis the Menace" creator Hank Ketcham's elegant artwork. I like the details in the background in the above drawing. We even see a sign on the other bench. And what clean lines.

Here are a few examples of a side of the artist we seldom see:

Britain: The Sun drops editorial cartoons from weekday editions

Andy Davey writes in Procartoonists.

Rome Burns, Andy Davey for The Sun

After more than 40 years, The Sun has cut editorial cartoons from the weekday editions of the paper.

Stephen Harper: The Portrait Gallery

Poster by Norman Takeuchi

This group show features accomplished artists who explore, through portraiture, the impact of Stephen Harper’s political philosophy and his actions as leader. Organized by Ottawa curator Don Monet, this show will include the famous naked portrait of our Prime Minister, Emperor Haute Couture, 2011, by Kingston artist Margaret Sutherland. Other featured artists include: Russell Yuristy, Mahshid Farhoudi, Reid McLachlan, Norman Takeuchi, Sharon Lafferty, Greg Ludlow, Peter Dolan, Clare Brennan, Tony Clark, Barry Padolsky, Tony Fouhse, Jeff Molloy and Katherine McNenly.

Banksy in New York (2)

Beth J. Harpaz in The Globe & Mail.

The secretive street artist Banksy ended his self-announced monthlong residency in New York City with a final piece of graffiti, a painting donated to charity and a debate: Is he a jerk or a genius?

I Wish I'd Drawn…(23)

…this gag by Chaz Maviyane Davies