Political Cartoonists: are any of them actually any good?

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"On Wednesday 15 September 2004, the Political Cartoon Society created history by opening London’s first ever permanent centre for cartoon art at ‘The Political Cartoon Gallery’ 32 Store Street, London WC1E 7BS. The Political Cartoon Gallery is the world’s only centre dedicated to political caricature and opened with an exhibition on the work of one of the 20th Century’s greatest cartoonists and illustrators, Leslie Gilbert Illingworth (1902-1979). At the Gallery you will find the country’s only ‘Cartoon Café’, where today’s leading cartoonists have produced a unique mural featuring their best-known political creations. The Gallery also sells original artwork by leading cartoonists, both past and present, as well as a range of exciting cartoon ephemera." (email my boss the editor just got)

― mark s (mark s), Wednesday, 20 October 2004 13:20 (twenty-one years ago)

(i know v.fluro has opinions on this topic!)

― mark s (mark s), Wednesday, 20 October 2004 13:21 (twenty-one years ago)

Steve Bell is a genius.

― Wooden (Wooden), Wednesday, 20 October 2004 13:22 (twenty-one years ago)

Aislin, aka Terry Mosher is pretty great.

― Huk-L, Wednesday, 20 October 2004 13:27 (twenty-one years ago)

see i do like bell but i'm not really sure that he is actually a POLITICAL cartoonist (as opposed to a cartoonist who does v.comical and imaginative strips that feature politicians)

(ok i am sort of being provokingly overstrict here)

― mark s (mark s), Wednesday, 20 October 2004 13:27 (twenty-one years ago)

(perhaps we shd also say WHAT IT IS we think is good abt em when they are good)

― mark s (mark s), Wednesday, 20 October 2004 13:28 (twenty-one years ago)

I used to think "yes Steve Bell is a genius" and then suddenly woke up one day after an ILE thread to realise that he isn't.

We used to have a book of cartoons by David Low - this is where Vic's fury at political cartoons comes from I believe. All older members of the family revered Low and thought the book was a masterpiece. Nearly all the cartoons were dreadful, Liberty sitting by the roadside cradling a WOUNDED DOVE do you see? In case you don't Low has helpfully written the words "Treaty Of Versailles" being torn apart in the sky. Maybe there's a laughing Hitler in there too.

The thing is that this is also what I secretly WANT all political cartoons to be now. I long ago realised that there are few newspaper photos that cannot be made funnier by writing the word "EUROPE" on it in some portentious place.

― Tom (Groke), Wednesday, 20 October 2004 13:31 (twenty-one years ago)

strube:

http://www.politicalcartoon.co.uk/images/strube2.gif

i mean yes ok (b-b-but... !!!!)

(this is what i mean by a "political" cartoonist: the question i suppose i am asking is, given this v.strict definition, IS IT POSSIBLE TO BE ANY GOOD? or do you have to pull bell-like swerves out of WonkWorld into the political unconscious?)

― mark s (mark s), Wednesday, 20 October 2004 13:33 (twenty-one years ago)

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/JlowSp.jpg

― Tom (Groke), Wednesday, 20 October 2004 13:35 (twenty-one years ago)

Aislin is nasty, cynical, and mean, but also quite an excellent stylist and craftsman.
http://www.aislin.com/IMAGES/IDIOT.jpg

― Huk-L, Wednesday, 20 October 2004 13:35 (twenty-one years ago)

Ugh, all of the Aislin stuff I can find is from 98-00:
http://ace.acadiau.ca/polisci/aa/digagora/courses/pols1006/canwin/Aislin.1025.jpg

― Huk-L, Wednesday, 20 October 2004 13:38 (twenty-one years ago)

I remain fascinated with Mark Fiore (requires Flash), who is everything that The Day Today was lampooning in Brant: Physical Cartoonist, and more.

― Andrew Farrell (afarrell), Wednesday, 20 October 2004 13:39 (twenty-one years ago)

Er, but isn't actually any good.

― Andrew Farrell (afarrell), Wednesday, 20 October 2004 13:39 (twenty-one years ago)

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/Jlow1.JPG

― Tom (Groke), Wednesday, 20 October 2004 13:41 (twenty-one years ago)

Some of Bell's strips are just silly whimsy, but he can be scathingly political when he wants to be:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/cartoons/stevebell/0,7371,996354,00.html

http://www.guardian.co.uk/cartoons/stevebell/0,7371,1224153,00.html

― Wooden (Wooden), Wednesday, 20 October 2004 13:43 (twenty-one years ago)

I think it is possible to be a good political cartoonist, because such things exist. However, I believe that the faster route to fortune is to be a lazy, hackneyed, cliched spouter of partisan drivel, as then lazy, hackneyed, cliched newspapers and websites that spout partisan drivel will fall over themselves to pick you up.

Interestingly, over in this country the Giles route seems to be the way forward for many i.e. utterly non-topical news 'story' generates terrible sitcom style gag.

― Vic Fluro, Wednesday, 20 October 2004 13:46 (twenty-one years ago)

haha

― mark s (mark s), Wednesday, 20 October 2004 17:20 (twenty-one years ago)

Too bad ethan won't post to this thread.

― Leon Czolgosz (Nicole), Wednesday, 20 October 2004 18:14 (twenty-one years ago)

Does Ethang even know about ILC?

― David R. (popshots75`), Wednesday, 20 October 2004 18:15 (twenty-one years ago)

I don't know, that's a good question.

― Leon Czolgosz (Nicole), Wednesday, 20 October 2004 18:18 (twenty-one years ago)

i am having a brick lane indian w.mr plum drank AND ms mia trill 2moro so will try and remember and remind him

― mark s (mark s), Wednesday, 20 October 2004 19:45 (twenty-one years ago)

tell him hi!

― cinniblount (James Blount), Wednesday, 20 October 2004 20:11 (twenty-one years ago)

Jules Feiffer is my favorite by leagues.

― Dan I. (Dan I.), Thursday, 21 October 2004 07:58 (twenty-one years ago)

I guess he's more of a loose definition political cartoonist too, though.

― Dan I. (Dan I.), Thursday, 21 October 2004 08:02 (twenty-one years ago)

ETHANNNNNNNNNNNNNNNG! I WANT YR BABIEZ! SKINT!

― David R. (popshots75`), Thursday, 21 October 2004 12:48 (twenty-one years ago)

How about a little subtlety from Alex Ross?

― David R. (popshots75`), Friday, 22 October 2004 01:17 (twenty-one years ago)

Alex Ross in finally putting photorealism to good use SHOCKAH

― Vic Fluro, Friday, 22 October 2004 10:04 (twenty-one years ago)

I have to say, I'm rather fond of that AR cover of U.S. where the good ol' boy is flipping off the viewer.

― David R. (popshots75`), Friday, 22 October 2004 12:51 (twenty-one years ago)

ethang is aware of ILC: b-but i think he currently has other fish to fry :(

― mark s (mark s), Friday, 22 October 2004 13:14 (twenty-one years ago)

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