Tuesday, October 30, 2012

The Enigmatic Edward Sorel

R.O. Blechman in The Comics Journal.



The special quality of Edward Sorel is that he captures our zeitgeist as few artists have, and fells his victims with the rapier of irony rather than the blunderbuss of satire. 

In his first cover for The New Yorker, which happened to be Tina Brown’s inaugural issue, Sorel pictures a barechested, pink “Mohawked rocker arrogantly draping himself on the seat of a horse” drawn carriage. 

Sorel even gets the rocker’s shoes right. They are pointed like daggers at the back of the hapless driver. Traveling through the gorgeous autumn scenery of Central Park, our passenger might as well be Yeats’s rough beast “slouching towards Bethlehem.” 

Monday, October 29, 2012

Jacob Zuma drops Sunday Times 'rape' cartoon case

From BBC News Africa.


South African President Jacob Zuma has given up a legal case against a local newspaper over a cartoon depicting him about to rape a female figure representing justice.

Friday, October 26, 2012

"Comics Sketchbooks"

James Thorne in Cool Hunting.


"Looking through artists' sketchbooks is like viewing those artists naked through a picture window. With 20-20 eyesight or high-powered binoculars you'll see everything: warts, blemishes and all." So begins the introduction for Steven Heller's latest book, "Comics Sketchbooks." 

Culling 700 private sketches from 80 artists, the collection is billed as a glimpse into the mind of an artist. Without knowing anything about the final story or the characters, the conversation involves nothing but lines and doodles and sparks of inspiration.

Thursday, October 25, 2012

"The Lost Art of Heinrich Kley"

From Lost Art Books


The Lost Art of Heinrich Kley Volumes One & Two collect over 450 drawings and paintings from a wide array of sources. Neither volume overlaps with past books on Kley, as nearly none of these drawings have been collected and reprinted since their original publication a century or more ago. Both volumes also provide groundbreaking scholarship on Kley’s life and work by German art historian Alexander Kunkel—whose recent research is presented in these volumes for the first time in English—along with incisive appreciations by contemporary artists Michael Wm. Kalutaand Jesse Hamm.

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Where did the party animals come from?

From Philip Jackman's "Collected Wisdom" Column in the Globe and Mail.


The question: Robert Findlay of Toronto asks, “How did the Republicans choose an elephant as their party symbol and the Democrats a donkey?”

The answer:

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Monday, October 22, 2012

"The Best of Punch Cartoons in Colour"

From the Procartoonists blog.


Cartoonist and Procartoonists member Noel Ford takes a look at The Best of Punch Cartooons in Colour.

Saturday, October 20, 2012

South African Political Cartoonist Fired for Being Political

From PRI's The World.



JERM (Jeremy Nell), a South African cartoonist was let go from his job from The New Age, a national newspaper that was founded just two years ago. His editor said his contract was terminated because his cartoons weren’t “aligned” with the goals and mission of newspaper.
But some observers think JERM was sacked because his cartoons sometimes take aim at the ruling African National Congress and South African President Jacob Zuma, who has close ties to the owners of The New Age.

Marco Werman talks with The World’s Cartoon Editor Carol Hills about the case:

Friday, October 19, 2012

Newsweek to go all digital

From the Daily Beast website.


We are announcing this morning an important development at Newsweek and The Daily Beast. Newsweek will transition to an all-digital format in early 2013. As part of this transition, the last print edition in the United States will be our Dec. 31 issue.

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Faking It: Manipulated Photography Before Photoshop

New York City’s Metropolitan Museum of Art will hold its first major exhibition devoted to the history of doctored photographs, from hand-painted daguerreotypes and altered salt prints of the 1840s to the pre-digital dreamscapes of the late twentieth century. Featuring some 200 photographs, the exhibition includes major artists such as Gustave Le Gray, Henry Peach Robinson, Edward Steichen, and John Baldessari. 

‘Man on Rooftop with Eleven Men in Formation on His Shoulders’. ca. 1930 Unknown Artist

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Cartoonists Rights Network's letter to Pacific Newspaper Group

Cartoonists Rights Network International Issues Public Letter of Protest to Kevin Bent, President and Publisher of Pacific Newspaper Group, Executive Vice President Western Canada

10/14/2012
In June of this year, the Canadian newspaper the Vancouver Province took down an animated editorial cartoon that lampoons the Enbridge Corporation. As we reported in a previous article, the animated cartoon was reportedly removed from the paper’s website "because that energy company had issued an ultimatum to Postmedia Network Inc., the parent company of the Province and nineteen other newspapers and magazines. On June 22nd apparently both the Province and Postmedia blinked when Enbridge Inc. threatened to "pull 1 million CAD in ads."  That animated cartoon has not been reposted. CRNI has been monitoring the situation at the Vancouver Province since this disturbing incident of corporate interference into a newspaper’s editorial decision making. Earlier this week CRNI sent Kevin Bent, the President and Publisher of the Pacific Newspaper Group, Executive Vice President  Western Canada, the following letter of protest.

Monday, October 15, 2012

"Far Out Isn't Far Enough: The Tomi Ungerer Story" (the app)


I posted an article last month about "Far Out Isn't Far Enough",  the documentary on Tomi Ungerer.
An free app that takes us through the making of the documentary is now available on iTunes or via the film website.

Friday, October 12, 2012

Cummings and goings at the Winnipeg Free Press


After 31 years at the paper, Dale Cummings and the Winnipeg Free Press have parted ways.
Here are some of my favourite Cummings cartoons:

Thursday, October 11, 2012

American Editorial Cartoonists discuss the profession

From Matt Wuerker in Politico.




I know, hearing this from a cartoonist is like having Ben or Jerry tell you that there’s nothing sweeter than ice cream — but it’s true! There is nothing like ice cream, and there’s nothing like a well-drawn and sharply honed political caricature.

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Monday, October 8, 2012

Complaint against nude Stephen Harper painting dismissed

Linda Nguyen for the Canadian Press.



TORONTO - A complaint filed over a painting of Prime Minister Stephen Harper in the buff has been dismissed.

Sunday, October 7, 2012

Cartoon of the week (18)

Viewed 100 times on Twitpic.

Omar Khadr was brought back from Guantanamo Bay to serve the remainder of his sentence in Canada.
( Public Safety Minister Vic Toews is shown holding in his hands the "Convention on the Rights of Children in Armed Conflicts")

Saturday, October 6, 2012

Thursday, October 4, 2012

Ann Telnaes releases editorial cartoon app for election

From The Daily Cartoonist.



Pulitzer Prize winning editorial cartoonist Ann Telnaes has released a new interactive editorial cartoon app for the iPad and iPhone called “POTUS Pick.”

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Frank Cammuso laid off from The Post-Standard

Alan Gardner in The Daily Cartoonist.


Syracuse Post-Standard editorial cartoonist Frank Cammuso was one of the 115 employees told they will no longer have a job with the paper after January 31 when the paper drops to a three-time a week printing schedule on February 1.
Frank has been with the paper for 23 years. He was gracious enough to answer a few questions regarding this announcement.