Political cartooning today is challenged by two trends:
- The disintegration of intelligence and substance in politics
- The disintegration of taste and skill in drawing.
David Apatoff, at Illustration Art, discusses The Art of The Editorial Cartoon.
… But achieving a reliable likeness is not the goal of the best political cartoons. The real artistry lies in the caricature of that likeness, the expressive distortions, the exaggerations and visual liberties. These artist’s tools can help re-energize discussions that have become costive due to too many words. For example, consider these two marvelous statements by Matt Davies and Tom Fluharty.
© Newsday/Matt Davies; Tom Fluharty
Keep checking in with David because:
… over the next several days I’m going to share examples that I think are excellent and deserve renewed appreciation.
His comments are spot on and I couldn’t agree more. I’m looking forward to more of his commentary.
The decline in drawing skills has long been a concern of mine over the 40+ years I have been an editorial cartoonist. I would agree that the best drawing in the world can’t carry a poor idea, but a lack of drawing skills in cartooning can get in the way of a great idea. Kinda like trying to tell a joke with a mouthful of crackers.
I followed the link to the website…Is Mr. Apatoff suggesting that Michael deAdder uses photo copied heads in his work? If so, I think he is greatly mistaken.