'The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up'

The Private Eye Exhibition-The First 50 Years

2011-03-17T02:26:00.000-07:00

The Private Eye exhibition : The First 50 Years held at the Victoria & Albert museum in South Kensington, London, closed on January 8 2012. Having had my own exhibition exhibiting the work by the Hull cartoonist Ern Shaw in June 2010, I was interested to see this exhibition. It was quite small, and tucked away in the V&A. The cartoons were very entertaining and it was great to have the opportunity to see such a large selection of famous cartoonists in one place.

Ian Hislop editor of the Private Eye magazine chose 50 of the best front covers, one from every year the magazine has been published.

The exhibition explores the wealth of artistic talent that the magazine had showcased since 1961 and features original artwork by some of the funniest Private Eye cartoonists. The cartoons were in themed sections, on politics, royalty and social observation. There were single-panel cartoons, long-running strips and caricatures.

Many cartoonists started their careers at the magazine, including Gerald Scarfe, Ralph Steadman, Willie Rushton, Barry Fantoni, Nick Newman and Michael Heath

Other cartoons included in the exhibition were by members of the Professional Cartoonists' Organisation and the Cartoonists' Club of Great Britain, such as Andrew Birch, Wilbur Dawbarn, Neil Dishington, Pete Dredge, Len Hawkins, Martin Honeysett, Tony Husband, Ed McLachlan, Alexander Matthews, Ken Pyne, Royston Robertson, Mike Turner, and Bill Tidy.

I have to acknowledge that all the cartoons exhibited were drawn by very talented artists but I do feel very strongly that Ern Shaw also had an extraordinary talent but due to him living outside London did not get the recognition he deserved. If you look at the cartoons on my blog I hope you will agree...

Ern Shaw Exhibition Closes

2010-10-10T06:02:00.000-07:00

The Ern Shaw exhibition closed on Sunday 10th October 2010.
The exhibition was visited by approximately 15,000 people.
I would like to thank the Ferens Art Gallery for giving the people of Hull and around the country the opportunity to see this very talented artists work.

This is a quote from Ern Shaw's book which he wrote in 1946, ‘How to become a successful cartoonist’.
The purpose of the book was to act as a guide and an inspiration to aspiring artists.

“Almost every human being has some valuable gift, and is very much nearer than he thinks to the ladder of success if he would only take the first step and keep on until he got to the top.” Ern Shaw

More pictures from the exhibition

2010-08-25T01:52:00.000-07:00

Ern Shaw’s work celebrated

2010-07-03T06:21:00.000-07:00

Cartoon drawn by patrick Blower

The Ern Shaw Exhibition Launch day on Saturday 19th June at the Ferens Art Galley Hull was a great success. Many of Ern Shaw’s family and friends visited the gallery and saw some of his work for the very first time. Approximately a 1000 visitors came to the gallery on the day.
The children’s corner in the Ern Shaw gallery was a real hit with the huge cartoon strips to draw on, games and other activities. In the live Arts Space Guardian cartoonist Patrick Blower demonstrated modern drawing techniques using the Wacom tablet. The tablet allows an artist to create a drawing with a cordless pen which displays the image onto a computer screen. 100 visitors went to his workshop and a selection enjoyed the drawing experience during the day.
Outside in Queen Victoria Square was a marquee with face painting, free caricatures drawn by a professional caricaturist Ray Allen, doodle/chalk pavement drawings, and a cartoon strip workshop.

Do not miss the opportunity to see this very talented cartoonists work. The exhibition celebrates the art of cartooning and is suitable for both children and adults to enjoy.
The exhibition runs until Sunday October 10th.

Ern Shaw Exhibition Livedraw cartoon by Patrick Blower

2010-04-17T02:24:00.000-07:00

Click on arrow to play livedraw cartoon

Patrick Blower is a cartoonist and multimedia artist who conceived Livedraw. Livedraw is a rapid response, animated cartoon and an intriguing new departure for political cartooning.

The Ern Shaw Exhibition Livedraw was played at the KC Stadium, Hull, when Hull Tigers played Liverpool on 9th May 2010 to a crowd of 25,000.

To see more of Patrick Blower's livedraw cartoons click on this link http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/patrick-blower

Ern Shaw Exhibition Ferens Art Gallery Hull Saturday 19th June-Sunday 10th October 2010

2010-01-23T09:28:00.001-08:00

A quote by Ern Shaw from his book ‘How to become a successful Cartoonist’
"A sense of humour is a valuable asset, both in the case of an individual and a nation. Seeing the funny side, helps to develop our sense of proportion, minimise our troubles and may even change apparent causes of irritation into amusing episodes.”

After researching this very talented artists work for over 3 years I am delighted that the Ferens Art Gallery in Hull will be holding an exhibition of Ern Shaw's work in June this year.
Come and see examples of Ern Shaw’s work drawn from the 1920’s-1980’s. If you are a Hull City Football Club supporter do not miss the opportunity to see a selection of football cartoons drawn by Ern Shaw.

Cartoonist Patrick Blower will be holding workshops from 11.00am-3.00pm during the exhibition launch day on Saturday 19th June so come and see a professional cartoonist at work demonstrating modern day computer drawing equipment. It is also an opportunity for you to have a go too and join in other fun activities.

The exhibition will then continue for another 16 weeks and closes on Sunday 10th October.

I would like to thank everyone who has helped me in my research. I have met and spoken to to a variety of people which has made my research a very enjoyable experience.

For further information concerning the Ern Shaw Exhibition, please click here.

Modern computer drawing equipment today
In the 1980’s, new drawing technology using computers was being developed in Japan. In 1983, the first graphics tablet and cordless pen was launched into the market by the Japanese company Wacom.
Historically, the pen and paintbrush have been the most familiar tools used by man as a means of communication and expression – it is therefore quite natural that in the age of computers, the pen should be rediscovered. Wacom focused on developing and promoting the pen as a means to facilitate creativity in graphics.

What is the Graphics Tablet and Pen?
The Graphics Tablet is a computer device that allows artists, graphic designers, architects, and cartoonists, to hand-draw images and graphics, similar to the way images are drawn with a pencil/pen and paper. It consists of a flat surface upon which the user draws an image using a cordless pen. The image is then displayed on the computer monitor.
Today Wacom has established itself as the leader in the world market for pen tablets and pioneers in the development of the pen as a computer input device. Since the early days in the 1980’s Wacom has continued to develop a wide range of powerful graphics programmes. Today graphics professionals can produce conventional drawings on the computer using the tablets drawing and writing tools – from the paintbrush to the pen and pencil, crayon to charcoal and image editing tools.

Ern Shaw and the Cartoonist Club of Great Britain

2010-01-13T10:48:00.001-08:00

Ern Shaw became a member of the Cartoonists’ Club of Great Britain when he was in his 80’s. Denis Gifford, (film historian, comic-strip artist, script-writer, film-maker, writer and journalist), encouraged him to become a member and suggested that he attend the convention at Butlins, at Pwllheli in 1972.

The Club was formed in 1960 as a purely social organization by Ian Scott (a political cartoonist in the old Daily Sketch ) with the help of Les Lilly (script-writer). Ian’s idea was that although there were numerous cartoonists around, they did not know one another, therefore the first successful society for professional cartoonists was born.

Peter Jacob who is a member of the Cartoonts' Club recalls his first meeting with Ern Shaw:
“Denis Gifford passed on Ern Shaw’s background to my brother Chic Jacob, a cartoonist, illustrator and radio and television comedy scriptwriter, who was chairman of the club at that time and instructed me and other members of the club to make this yearly treat accessible to him.

Ern Shaw was living in Cottingham near Hull at that time and it was arranged for me to collect him from Shrewsbury station, with a friend George Ratcliff, we waited for the train at the station which duly arrived. We expected a typical octogenarian to stagger from the train, instead we saw a large suitcase come off the train followed by another and this gentleman jumped onto the platform. The suitcases were picked up and Ern hurried towards us in a very sprightly fashion, he could have been taken for an active 65 year old.
He told us that one suitcase contained his artwork and he was going to put on an exhibition for the “Kiddies”.

On arriving at Butlins we got him settled in and as soon as that was done he more or less made me his secretary and off we went to set up his exhibition. All the “Kiddies” were notified and during the next two days Ern was in his element.

He attended the conventions up until about 1979. He was solely missed when age caught up with him.

Around that time my brother Chic and Bill Tidy (Cartoonist) appeared on a TV show called “Quick on the Draw”. Denis Gifford who devised the programme, asked Ern to take part. It was hosted by Bob Monkhouse and Ern out talked him. “Some feat”
Denis Gifford who was the founder member of ACE (Association of Comic Enthusiasts founded in 1978) was so impressed with Ern Shaw’s work, he presented Ern Shaw with the Ally Sloper Award for his many years devotion to the strip cartoon medium.
The award was based on the first British comic strip comic hero, Ally Sloper, created over a century ago by Charles H. Ross and Marie Duval on 14th August 1867.

My memories of him are quite dim now but one thing that always stands out. The early morning knock on Chic’s chalet door and as people remarked the suggestion “Can Chic come out to play”, never actually said but certainly inferred “truly a boy who never grew up”. Thank God.

During the first Cartoonists’ Club of Great Britain convention at the Butlins someone had the idea of showing the clubs gratitude to the host by drawing cartoons on a large board, about eight feet by four feet in size and painted in white so that they could draw cartoons on it in memory of that convention. The ritual of presenting these boards to the managers of the camp at which they stayed persisted throughout the twenty seven years history of Butlins Cartoonists’ Club Conventions.”
Below are two boards from the 1974 and 1979 Butlins club conventions and enlargements of Ern Shaw's cartoons that appear on the boards.

The club still continues today and is celebrating its 50th Anniversary this year. The Club's primary objective remains to encourage social contacts between cartoonists whilst promoting the cartoon art form . It continues to organise many local, nationwide and international cartoon events, from exhibitions and competitions to charitable fund raising events and public exhibitions.

I would like to thank two members the club Mike Turner ( Chairman of the club 1997-2002) and Peter Jacob (brother of Chic Jacob) for their help with my research into the Cartoonists’ Club history and Ern Shaw’s involvement in the club.

If you would like to find out more about the Cartoonists' Club of Great Britain's History go to my blog through this link: 'They make us Laugh'

Ern Shaw and the Dalesman Magazine Yorkshire

2009-10-05T03:02:00.000-07:00

In the 50’s and 60’s Ern Shaw drew for the Dalesman magazine and these are examples of his work.

The Cartoon in advertising

2009-10-04T06:47:00.000-07:00

Quote by Ern Shaw’s book ‘ How to become a successful Cartoonist’

“Advertising presents almost unlimited scope for the artist who can emphasize the selling points of an advertisement in humorous pictorial form. Of course, it is not every commodity which lends itself to humorous treatment. In some instances its employment would be in rank bad taste and ‘good taste’ is one of the very first essentials in advertising”

“I did a series of advertisements for a Broadcast Relay Service, which was really ‘Radio on tap’ so to speak. Subscribers merely moved a switch and the programme flowed out of their loud speaker. I was asked to design a series of humorous cartoons which emphasized the fact that a subscriber could be so charmed with the excellence of the reception that he or she might forget an important appointment. In designing this class of advertisement, do not let your sketch occupy a larger proportion of the available space than is absolutely sufficient to catch the eye and convey your message. Room must be allowed for a number of lines of ‘copy’ as well as for the name of the commodity advertised.”

Using cartoon characters in advertising today

Harassed parents out shopping with their offspring may notice a distinct pattern to the products that children drag down from the shelves. The chances are that their choices will have nothing to do with the flavour, say, of a can of soup - or the exact specifications of a toy car. It's more likely that the kids are responding simply because the product is being sold by one of their favourite cartoon characters.

Companies selling breakfast cereals, crisps and sweets are some of the heaviest users of branded cartoon characters. Using cartoons to sell games and toys also remains as popular as ever. Through these characters advertisers can communicate the 'fun' elements of their products to kids. The advertisers know that children will recognise the character and start to pester their parents for the product.

‘Radiosities’

2009-10-04T04:47:00.000-07:00

Ern Shaw’s (sometimes called Uncle Ern) humour and talent even led him to broadcasting a weekly feature on the 6KH Radio Relay Station at Hull between 1924-1931 called, ‘Radiosities’ From the radio studio he gave children grid references similar to ‘Dot to Dot’ to complete a drawing on a printed ruled grid which had been published in the ‘Hull Evening News’.

Examples of the grids

Ern Shaw's Greeting Card Designs

2009-08-29T14:22:00.001-07:00

Ern Shaw's card games

2009-07-22T09:28:00.000-07:00

The humour that Ern Shaw creates in his work can clearly be seen again in his card games.

Ern Shaw’s Books

2009-06-16T12:30:00.000-07:00

An Ern Shaw quote:
“The sweetest of music is the laughter of children.
In recent years, I have had the pleasure of producing dozens of paintings and story books for young people.”

Some of the most famous names in publishing published his books, such as Mellifont Press who published one series of 100 books which Ern Shaw created and illustrated.
Other publishers who published his books were Hutchinson and Collins.

The following are examples of his work from his books...

Ern Shaw's Dingbats Characters

2009-06-07T01:11:00.000-07:00

Tiny, Mac,Toodles, Mick and Twanky and many more, were names for the funny colourful pixie like characters that Ern Shaw created called the ‘Dingbats’. These characters appeared in annuals, colouring books and games.

His first ‘Dingbats’ annual published in 1950 sold at least 100,000 copies, and inside included stories, puzzles, jokes, games and lots of fun activities compiled and illustrated by Ern Shaw.

Ern Shaw’s comic strip cartoons

2009-05-17T04:13:00.000-07:00

Comic strip cartoons take a variety of formats. The joke strip is a complete story in four or five panels and the serial strip which carries on the story from day to day and may be published over a considerable period of time.

Ern Shaw created the serial strip cartoon Mr.Mrs.Dillwater for the Answers magazine in 1923. He recorded the squabbles and adventures of the little henpecked husband and wife and ran for many years.

Another serial strip cartoon drawn by Ern Shaw was Dr. Gnome of Gnomesland. The adventures of Dr. Gnome and the panda Miss Ming ran in the ‘Woman’s Illustrated’ magazine for over 21 years. The character Miss Ming was based on a real panda called Ming brought over from China to be bred at London Zoo and in 1940 was adopted by the Woman’s Illustrated’ to help pay for her upkeep. Ern Shaw thought that such a lovable animal would be a nice friend for Dr. Gnome so he introduced the character into the strip and they had lots of adventures together.

Ern Shaw and Sport

2009-04-28T10:24:00.001-07:00

The following is a quote from Ern Shaw’s book on how to become a sporting cartoonist:

“Sport offers a wonderful opportunity to the cartoonist, but to be successful, a highly developed sense of observation, ability and imagination are essential. No artist can hope to make a success of sports cartooning until he has learned to draw the human figure in action."

"I began by visiting a billiards hall and watching the players in their various poses. This being a slower game than, say football or boxing; I had the time to register a pose and make quick notes in my sketch book.
Once you have become proficient in drawing the human figure in action and posses, and the ability to make recognizable caricatures of sporting personalities, you will at least have laid the foundation to become a sports cartoonist.

The camera can record incidents, like the shooting of a goal or a brilliant save but the cartoonist can observe such incidents from the press box or stand, and perhaps give them a more humorous “twist” and produce a pictorial version which would prove very entertaining to newspaper readers.”

Ern Shaw and Hull City Football Club (also known as the Tigers)

2009-04-09T13:09:00.001-07:00

The club was founded in Hull 1904 and played for the first three years at the Boulevard Rugby League ground. They eventually moved to the ground of Hull Cricket Club before moving to Boothferry Park.
Ern Shaw would pop into the Press-box among the sports writers for the home games at Boothferry Park and sit unobtrusively at the back of the box, turning out his cartoon masterpieces with consummate ease and the minimum of fuss.
Ern Shaw had a long association with the club and his earliest cartoons of two rather cuddly tigers in bow ties adorned the cover of the club’s match programme from 1913 to 1927.

He produced cartoons for the club’s programme and his cartoons also appeared in the ‘Tiger Mag’, a postwar magazine for the city fans. The ‘Tiger Mag’ was popular because it coincided with one of the most successful times in the club’s history-when they gained promotion as Third Division North Champions under Raich Carter’s management in 1948-49.

The club now plays their games at the 25,000 capacity Kingston Communications Stadium which they moved to in 2002 on the site of the former Cricket Club.
They traditionally play in black and amber, often with a striped shirt design, hence their nickname the ‘Tigers’
After a successful 2007/ 2008 season, they were promoted to the Premier League for the first time in their history via a 1-0 playoff win over Bristol City with a Dean Windass winning volley, under the management of Phil Brown and chairmanship of Paul Duffen.

Ern Shaw's Rugby League Cartoons

2009-03-20T10:08:00.000-07:00

Ern Shaw was inspired by the cartoonist, Tom Webster (1886 -1962), a British cartoonist and caricaturist who specialised in sporting cartoons. Ern Shaw was later to be considered Humberside’s “Tom Webster,” particularly on the soccer and rugby league scenes. He delighted the people of Hull by drawing cartoons of matches played by Hull KR and Hull FC and many of the great players felt they had not ‘arrived' until Ern Shaw had drawn a cartoon of them which was then published in the local paper.

Hull KR
Hull Kingston Rovers were formed in 1882 by a group of boilermakers and started life as Kingston Amateurs playing in Albert Street to the west of the city in the autumn of 1883.
They played on several grounds on the west of the river including a spell at the Boulevard, which later became the home of their rivals Hull FC. Rovers then moved to the East of Hull, Craven Park, which is there ground today.

A postcard drawn by Ern Shaw of the clubs new home, Craven Park, 1922

For a brief period they were known as Kingston Rovers before becoming Hull Kingston Rovers by 1885. The traditional colours of the club are white shirts with a red band. Hull KR's nickname is 'The Robins' which comes from their playing colours.

Hull Kingston Rovers Rugby League Team were delighted when Ern Shaw produced a cartoon, showing each member of the team entitled “Hull KR’s Record Season,” acknowledging their record season in 1966/67.

Hull FC
Hull FC is one of the oldest clubs in the League and was formed by a group of ex-public schoolboys from York in 1865. They joined the breakaway from the English Rugby Union in 1896, which led to the new game of Rugby League. The club's first ground was at Woodgates Hall, North Ferriby. In 1895, the club moved to the Hull Athletic Club's ground at the Boulevard, Airlie Street, which gave rise to their nickname "The Airlie Birds". The club now plays at the new Kingston Communications Stadium, (KC Stadium) on the site of the former cricket club which it shares with Hull City Football Club (Tigers). The traditional colours of the club shirts are black and white and they are often called the ‘Black and Whites’

A Hull FC cartoon, 1964 by Ern Shaw

Newspaper cartoons

2009-03-20T09:54:00.000-07:00

Ern Shaw in the 1920's produced political cartoons for the 'Hull Evening News'

Ern Shaw's first exhibition

2009-03-13T10:16:00.000-07:00

Ern Shaw’s first exhibition was held with Harry H. Rodmell the marine artist from Hull in 1929 at the City Hall Art Gallery in Hull. Rodmell was a friend of Ern Shaw's and he mainly concentrated on marine subjects such as: posters for shipping companies, booklets, etchings, and line drawings of ships.

The title of the exhibition was 'Exhibition of Ships and Humour'.
The exhibition included a selection of Ern Shaw's cartoons and illustrations and Harry Rodmell's posters and sketches. The black and white brochure produced for the exhibition consisted of caricatures of Ern Shaw and Harry Rodmell.

Ern Shaw's early work

2009-03-10T15:33:00.000-07:00

Ern Shaw did not have the advantages of modern drawing technology but his drawings were produced using various grades of pens and brushes and his drawings were works of art in their own right. His style varied depending on the subject of his work but his use of bold clear strokes of his pen and use of bright colours was his hall mark.His first successful drawing published at the age of 12, was a result of him winning a competition organised by the Hull Times. His sketch of a building known as “Plum Pudding Hall” brought him five shillings and set Ern Shaw off on his amazingly productive career which spanned over 70 years.

At the end of the first world war Ern Shaw illustrated the book 'Good bye-ee' by Arthur Seymour depicting the humorous side of demobilisation.

Percy Bradshaw's comments about Ern Shaw

2009-03-10T15:01:00.000-07:00

Percy V. Bradshaw thought very highly of Ern Shaw and in 1946 wrote the foreword in Ern Shaw's book, 'How to become a successful Cartoonist'. He said of the cartoonist that, 'I'm delighted to have the opportunity of introducing Ern Shaw to you, and of giving my blessing to this little book. For Ern Shaw was one of my first pupils and I have watched with growing amazement the inexhaustible range of work and the irrepressible enthusiasm of this Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up. I am always staggered at the variety and quality of work which he displays. The first thing you will notice about Ern Shaw's drawings is the straight forward simplicity of his style. I wish that the pages in this book could have been reproduced in colour, for his fresh, bold colour is certainly one of Ern Shaw's very strong points'.'His comic people and animals can be seen in Children's books, card games, strip cartoons, sports cartoons and many more publications. The plump figures engaged in such cheerful adventures are very characteristic of Ern Shaw himself. I shall always be comforted to remember that I was privileged to help him when he was younger'.

Ern Shaw 1891-1986

2009-03-09T14:35:00.000-07:00

British cartoonist, writer, illustrator, caricaturist and game creator Ernest Shaw, or Ern Shaw as he was known was born in Bean Street Hull in 1891.

When he left school, Ern Shaw worked for a draper for seven years and during this period he took a correspondence course in drawing, organized by the Press Art School, London, run by the founder and principal Percy V. Bradshaw. Percy V. Bradshaw was a well known artist, author and artists agent. In many cases, he spoke for the world of commercial art.

The course helped artists to develop their drawing skills by sending their work through the post to the school. Famous artists assessed their work and gave them advice on how to improve their drawing technique.The school also turned out famous artists like Joseph Booth Lee, who drew political cartoons for ‘The London’s Evening News’ and Barry Appleby who created The Gambols’ for the Daily Mail and many others.This course was the only artistic training Ern Shaw ever received.

New drawing technology - What would Ern Shaw have thought of this?

2009-02-28T07:26:00.000-08:00

Late in Ern Shaw’s career in the 1980’s, new drawing technology using computers was being developed in Japan. In 1983, the first graphics tablet and cordless pen was launched into the market by the Japanese company Wacom. (The name Wacom is a loose translation of Japanese; Wa for Harmony, and Com for Computer).

Historically, the pen and paintbrush have been the most familiar tools used by man as a means of communication and expression – it is therefore quite natural that in the age of computers, the pen should be rediscovered. Wacom focused on developing and promoting the pen as a means to facilitate creativity in graphics.

What is the Graphics Tablet and Pen?

The Graphics Tablet is a computer device that allows artists, graphic designers, architects, and cartoonists, to hand-draw images and graphics, similar to the way images are drawn with a pencil/pen and paper. It consists of a flat surface upon which the user draws an image using a cordless pen. The image is then displayed on the computer monitor.

Today Wacom has established itself as the leader in the world market for pen tablets and pioneers in the development of the pen as a computer input device. Since the early days in the 1980’s Wacom has continued to develop a wide range of powerful graphics programmes. Today graphics professionals can produce conventional drawings on the computer using the tablets drawing and writing tools – from the paintbrush to the pen and pencil, crayon to charcoal and image editing tools.

I think Ern Shaw would have been amazed by this technology and embraced it.

Brief Cartooning History

2009-02-19T12:04:00.000-08:00

Cartooning has a long, noble history. Although really becoming popular in the 20th Century along with the flourish of the film and newspaper industries, this important art form has been around for many thousands of years.
Our human ancestors all over the world drew on caves and rocks. Using paint and charcoal, cave artists drew what was important to them. They produced pictures of animals, hunting scenes, people dancing, and performing rituals. Ranging from simple to extremely intricate, cave painting was a way for early people to leave a record of their daily lives.
In later centuries, other societies, such as the Mayans (ancient civilisation of Mexico and central America) and the Egyptians, carved intricate cartoons into solid rock. In fact, the languages of these two peoples were represented by figures of animals and people carved into their tombs and temples.
As technology improved, so did the medium that was used. In the middle ages, monks painted very bright, intricate pictures to illustrate early books, such as the Bible. Cartoons were also used by painters of frescos and sculptors during the 15th and 16th centuries. The artists would sketch their ideas and designs on paper first; sometimes these drawings would be the same size as the finished project, and could therefore be very large.
Through the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, this art form became an important part of the printed world, being used to illustrate stories in books, magazines, and newspapers.
Today, cartoons are everywhere. In addition to books and newspapers, cartoons can be found on bill boards, posters, television and movies. You’ll have a hard time spending a single day without seeing a cartoon somewhere.

Cartoons-What are they?

2009-02-17T13:48:00.000-08:00

The dictionary describes a cartoon as a “sketch or drawing, usually humorous” which symbolizes or satirizes some action. However, cartooning is so much more than just drawing.

Cartooning is a way of describing the world in a simple form with few words. A cartoon can be simple or complex, and can be drawn in almost any style; but it’s not an exact duplication of reality. It’s a representation of the artist’s perceptions of the world, and every person sees the same thing differently.
Through cartoons, a cartoonist can tell a joke, a story or make a particular point, and it can be done much more quickly and interesting than through words alone.

Cartoonists are solitary performers. They invent jokes in solitude and then their cartoons are seen by millions of readers. When a comedian tells a joke he hears the response from the audience but a cartoonist will never hear it.

Cartoonists get messages across quickly and simply. They illustrate, educate, advise and sell but above all they make people laugh.