The Chicago Reader profiles freelance editorial cartoonist Joe Fournier who has been been sharing the editorial page with staff cartoonist Scott Stantis. According to The Reader, he’s been providing about three cartoons a week.
Fournier had to reinvent himself. If he could no longer survive by illustrating other people’s content, then he would originate the content. He tried some fairly elaborate ideas out on the Tribune, including caricatures of political figures that readers could cut out and assemble. But what worked best was simpler. And now that he’s hit his groove at the Tribune, he’s up to three cartoons a week.
Op-Art, which is what his space is called, is drawn as a series of panels, and it registers in a minor key. Fournier doesn’t kick ass, and he doesn’t mind confounding readers who can?t figure out how to respond. A lot of readers, he believes, don’t even try to understand what a cartoon says as long as they can tell whether it leans left or leans right. All they need to know is whether to applaud or dismiss it.
Here’s a sample cartoon by Joe:
I found/saw a post by Fournier on facebook that included a whole gallery of his daily cartoons for the Trib, as well as other works, some inspired by Matisse, some small sculptures…all if it SENSATIONAL! I was able to post/email single cartoons (some of the Santa cartoons got me goin’…) to some of my friends, but not the whole collection: is it possible for me to email myself the whole “collection” of his work? I love his stuff: the only cartoonist/illustrator I can compare his work to is the great Tom Bachtell: both are much more than cartoonists: they are satirists, and are unique. I can be emailed at murphy.thomas8@gmail.com. Thank you.
Thomas Murphy
Seattle