The Undervalued Work Of The Cartoonist
Cartoonists have been overlooked in the visual art form - no question about that. They have been relegated to the lowest level of the arts scene to such an extent that they are not considered part of it. In reality it is the cartoonist who creates the most critical observations of our times. I’m not talking about the political cartoonist - they are more or less the newspaper capitalist’s lackey. And I am not in favor of many of the animated cartoons that appear on television. The cartoonists I’m talking about predominantly work for some of the smaller and more liberal publications.
Occasionally Rolling Stone and The New Yorker produce great work but even they are too standardized today. There are cartoonists who portray our culture, or lack of it, and make great comment on our everyday life. Too little honor has been given to the gag cartoonist. Some are very clever artists and can say something profound in the simplest manner.
A few of my favorite Cartoonist’s follow. The first artist in my chronological guide would be William Hogarth, the 18th century Engraver and Painter. He was mostly known for engravings such as 'Marriage A la Mode' and the 'Rake’s Progress'. One of his works below, called Gin Lane, could just as easily have been called 'Crack Lane'. It’s the same people taking different poisons.
Of the recent or nearly contemporary cartoonists I highly admire Bernard Kliban (deceased). His cartoons are funny without captions. The small collections he put out are genuine collectors items. Andre Francois (1915-2005) was an artist who produced very lyrical works and numerous 'Punch' and 'New Yorker' covers.
I further suggest checking out Ralph Steadman and the very bizarre French cartoonist Roland Topor, (1938-1970). Abe Books and Amazon.com offer a selection of these books.
|
