Seth Laments the Demise of The Guelph Mercury Record

Seth for The Globe and Mail.

I don’t know – was I surprised or not surprised by the sudden closing of our local newspaper, the Guelph Mercury? 

Turkey Bans Cartoonist Latuff's Website

From Cartoonists Rights Network International.

Brazilian cartoonist Carlos Latuff has reportedly had his website banned by the Turkish government. Latuff’s cartoons have frequently taken aim at Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Canadian artists weigh in on Grand Prix D'Angoulême sexism 'debacle'

John Sufrin from the CBC website.

Illustration by Philippe Pochep

When Montreal illustrator Julie Delporte saw the nominee list for this year's Grand Prix D'Angoulême — one of the most prestigious lifetime achievement awards in the comic book world — she was incredulous. The previous year's list was short on female nominees, so Delporte had hoped the prize, which will be announced Wed., Jan 27, would take the opportunity to be more inclusive. She was wrong. This year's list was exclusively male.

I wish I'd drawn... (38)

... this very funny cartoon by the talented Dan Murphy.

Kosobukin and Pirana Exhibition

Jan Oplinus from the ECC Cartoonbooks Club website.

The European Cartoon Center in Kruishoutem, Belgium is now hosting an exhibition of renowned Ukranian cartoonist Yuri Kosobukin (1950-2013) and Belgian cartoonist Pirana.

Kate Beaton, Lisa Hanawalt, MariNaomi, Rokudenashiko Head Slate for 2016 Toronto Comic Arts Festival

BK Munn in Sequential.

The Toronto Comic Arts Festival has announced the first batch of headline guests for its 2016 event, scheduled for May 14-15. 

World Press Cartoon 2015 (my cartoons)

I received the 2015 catalogue of the Cascais, Portugal World Press Cartoon competition.

A drawing of mine was selected in each of the three categories:

The 2015 United Nations / Ranan Lurie Political Cartoon Award

From the United Nations / Ranan Lurie Political Cartoon Award.

First Place - $10,000 Winner

Aristides Hernandez Guerrero, Courrier International

I wish I'd drawn... (37)

... this very funny cartoon by Geoff Olson.

The Vancouver Courier, January 14, 2016

Arab cartoonists hope to prove the pen is mightier than the sword

From Equal Times.

Drawing by Khalid Albaih

Freedom of speech in the Arab Region can come at a very high price, particularly for cartoonists. Even as far back as 1987 when the Palestinian cartoonist Naji Salim Al-Ali, creator of the iconic cartoon Handala, was shot and killed in London by an unidentified assassin, the dangers of biting socio-political criticism in the region have been clear.And since the so-called Arab Spring of 2011, these risks have only increased.

Satire makes a comeback in Myanmar

From Channel News Asia.

With a flourish of his pencil, cartoonist Maung Maung Aung skewers a pampered politician in a sketch, an image that just a few years ago would have been unthinkable.

The illustrator is among an increasingly brazen band of satirists that has emerged in a nation where recent elections tipped the balance of power from authoritarian military rulers for the first time in generations.

Mix & Remix

From ECC Cartoonbooks Club.

Mix & Remix is the pseudonym of the Swiss cartoonist Philippe Becquelin, born in 1958. Here is a sample of his work:

First Anniversary of the Charlie Hebdo Attack

On C-Span.

Ann Telnaes and Signe Wilkinson talked about the role of political cartoonists and the state of freedom of speech one year after the attacks on satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo's Paris headquarters. 

They showed various cartoons and discussed their editorial intention and what topics and caricatures were acceptable. 

Also discussed was the controversy over Ms.Telnaes' Christmas cartoon of Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) and his children that was pulled by Washington Post.

Grand Prix Polemic at the Angoulême International Comics Festival

From ProCartoonists.

When the Angoulême International Comics Festival announced 30 nominees for The Grand Prix, its lifetime achievement award, not one woman appeared on the list.

After the announcement of the nominees, European advocacy group BD Égalité called for a boycott of the 2016 event and twelve* of the men nominated for the award have subsequently withdrawn their names in support of the boycott.

Charlie Hebdo Anniversary Edition Cover

From The Guardian.

French satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo will mark a year since an attack on its offices with a cover featuring a bearded man representing God with a Kalashnikov slung over his shoulder, accompanied by the text: “One year on: the assassin is still out there.”

Terry Anderson reflects on a tough year for cartoonists

From The Herald.

Cartoon by Dale Cummings, Canada

I was that kid who drew all the time. There’s one in every school, almost every classroom. At some point, around the age of eight, I started saying I wanted to be a cartoonist. 

Unlike my ever-patient and indulgent parents, my teachers were not enthusiastic. I remember being told time and again that there was no worthwhile career in it. 

After some 20 years of work as a cartoonist, much of that spent in the company of a doubly patient and indulgent wife, it’s safe the say their arguments failed to dissuade me.

But no-one ever said it was dangerous.

The scurrilous lies written about Charlie Hebdo

Robert McLiam Wilson in The Guardian.

The anniversary of the 7 January attack on Charlie Hebdo is coming up. Whether you feel that Charlie is a symbol of freedom of expression or a scabrous hate sheet, you are about to be deluged in a giant vat of stuff.

Some will be positive, some negative but an oxen-stunning proportion of it will be written by people who do not speak French. The result will be divination and portent, written by people more likely to read tea leaves than Charlie Hebdo.