On Thursday 4 July the British public will go to the polls for the first time since 2019 to select their government. Will it be Starmer or Sunak?
In the lead-up to the election the Museum is hosting a short trail through the history of elections in the UK, highlighting some of our favourite election cartoons over the years and featuring artists such as James Gillray, Trog, Steve Bell, Nicola Jennings and Ella Baron.
Many are treating the 2024 election as something of a foregone conclusion. After 14 years of a Tory government the public are making their feelings audibly clear that time may be up – only last week during the first televised debate, a fairly weak joke about Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s maths ability from Labour leader Sir Kier Starmer brought audible jeers and mocking from the audience as Sunak tried to defend himself (albeit also poorly).
224 years ago, the 1804 Middlesex by-election was also hotly contested. Gillray’s cartoon from the election shows popular radical candidate Sir Francis Burdett en route to the hustings, travelling past a densely packed and cheering mob, who proceeded to shout down his opposition, George Mainwaring (standing in place of his father William, who had initially been elected in the 1802 General election, but seen the result declared void in 1804 due to his bribing of voters). Burdett was the favourite of the mob attending the hustings, and Mainwaring was shouted down, unable to get his points across….yet in the following contest, George Mainwaring was elected. Are we in for another switch-about in July?
Middlesex-election, 1804, James Gillray 1804
Back in 2019, Boris Johnson led the Conservatives to a crushing victory over Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party, basing his platform on the slogan ‘Get Brexit done’ (remember Brexit?). The Conservatives won 365 seats, many captured from Leave-voting former Labour strongholds in the north, condemning Labour to its worst election performance since 1935, winning 202 seats. This was after an election without a public vote, that saw Johnson replace Theresa May in mid-2019, and shortly before another two elections without a public vote, one that saw Conservative Party members elect walking disaster area Liz Truss, who 49 days later was replaced by Rishi Sunak, this time via a vote of the MPs. This time WE get to choose. Has Starmer got it licked or will Sunak prevail?
Which side are YOU on? Red, Blue, Green, Yellow, Purple? Either way, make sure you get out to the polls on 4th July and cast your vote.
We also have a lovely selection of election-themed goodies in our shop to complete the visit. For example, are you sick of Nigel Farage? Now you can feed him to your cat! (for clarity – and on the advice of lawyers – we wouldn’t advise you to feed the real Nigel Farage to a cat…). There are no Keir Starmer ice creams for sale though I’m afraid!
Babatunde’s creation stands apart from the typical Black narrative depicted by White creators in a Western context. Instead, he presents a Black narrative from the perspective of a Black creator – a tale featuring a Black superhero. His narrative isn’t about seeking validation within the Western framework or condemning racism. In Babatunde’s view, the focus is on the myriad struggles people face: socioeconomic disparities, oppression, poverty, and also rich cultural heritage and beautiful traditions. Babatunde’s world is a powerful narrative in its own right. We had a chat with him about how he came up with this new superhero universe and what he’s got in mind for the future.
Oluwasegun Babatunde
Oluwasegun Babatunde is a multifaceted creative force. He is an accomplished author, comic book conceptor, and filmmaker. His artistic vision is rooted in the exploration, progression, and presentation of narratives that illuminate the experiences of black people. This vision extends across various mediums, including published literature, comic books, movies, and animations. Babatunde’s literary repertoire includes thought-provoking titles such as ‘Unethical Or Not’, ‘A Good Human Being’,’ My Book Of Afrobeats Stories’, and ‘Lessons from Hollywood’s Rise’, alongside his recent work on Storibud Comics; ‘Olórò, the Grandson of Fádèyí Olóró’ and ‘AfroGods’.
How did you become interested in creating comics?
Spider-Man was the first comic character that swept me off my feet. Everything about Spider-Man is fascinating, especially the underdog persona. Peter Parker, having so much power, yet choosing to be responsible, helps the real world see the value in not abusing power. So, I could say Spider-Man inspired my comic creative side.
You moved into the creative world after a long career as a clinical embryologist. What sparked that change, and how do you think your previous career and experience have shaped your creativity?
I started out as a clinical embryologist in 2007 and worked in the field until August 2022 when I hung up my scrubs. I had worked in IVF clinics in Nigeria, Belgium, and the United Kingdom. After fifteen years of serving as a medium, a support in ushering couples in their drive to get pregnant, I think my love for art outgrew my love for the sciences and decided to fully delve into a new career in art. It took two years to fully switch.
My scientific background influences my storytelling. Sometimes, my experience plays into my ideas. Having worked as a scientist, I play with the ideas of what scientific breakthrough I could conceive that is able to alleviate the world’s pain. Other times, I play with a terrible/good experience I have had as a Nigerian, Belgian, and UK resident. This, you would observe in Olórò. Also, things I have witnessed happening to other people are flipped into a story. I edit some things to suit a narrative.
You created “Olórò, the Grandson of Fádèyí Olóró” during the Covid pandemic of 2021. How did you go from the idea of a superhero story set in sub-Saharan Africa, to bringing it to life as a comic?
I have been a fan of superhero comics for about two decades, but the thought to conceive my own never took shape in my head. It would have been preposterous to even consider it! I am merely a fan of the superhero genre. Then, the continuous butchering of the African accent on Black Panther wouldn’t let me be.
All my friends from Africa do not speak like they speak in Wakanda; neither do I. Also, the stories were not directly linked to our realities. There are no African countries as advanced as Wakanda! So there and then, the energy to rewrite our stories in the superhero world became a dream and aspiration.
The moment of discovery for Olórò was a day when I was listening to a song by Olamide, an Afrobeats musician. The song was ‘Inferiority Complex,’ and he mentioned Olórò ‘ (‘Olórò’ is a Yoruba word meaning ‘someone to be feared’) while I was pondering on what the title of my first comic book should be. The name clicked.
The exhibition features a video of you working online with your collaborator, Daniel Egharevba, who is based in Nigeria. What was special about collaborating online during the pandemic, across two different continents?
First of all, collaboration could have been with anyone here in the UK, Europe, or even the Americas, but the cultural elements would not have reached the level I aspired to. So, I had to extend my searches beyond the shores of the UK to back home – Nigeria.
It was very difficult finding someone who understood the nitty-gritty of each character idea and where the vision lies. So, I had to test run more than 5 people. I sunk a few hundred pounds into it, until Daniel came along. He instantly became a perfect fit.
What was special about collaborating online with Daniel was trust. I had to trust that he would get the job done – and so he did.
Oluwasegun Babatunde and Daniel Egharevba Rough storyboarding and finished design, Video (2021)From “Oluwasegun Babatunde: Birth of a Universe”
Unlike Marvel’s Black Panther, DC Universe’s Cyborg, and the lead characters in the new Spider-verse films, which were created by White creators, your comics feature Black characters created by you, a Black creator. What do you see as the main distinctions between the Black characters they created, and the ones you’ve developed?
The black characters in both Marvel and DC comics are mind-blasting. Characters such as Miles Morales, Falcon, DeadShot, BloodSport, Cyborg and Black Manta have mirrored the US or Western realities, taking into account racism and American culture. In my own reality, racism does not exist. We are all black! My characters are all layers of black. Zwarte. Noir! What exists in Storibud Comics are classism, oppressions, penury, deep culture, and aesthetically beautiful traditions. They are what my stories portray.
Your character design, the characters’ hairstyles, accessories, and costumes are very eye-catching, blending modern style with elements reminiscent of traditional African attire. The female characters, in particular, showcase a departure from the typical outfits seen in Western superhero series. Can you share the inspiration behind this distinctive style? Were there specific traditional features you kept in mind while incorporating them?
I have an eye for African cultural features, and I ensured they were well-designed with precision. Some of the early movies of my childhood – Nigerian traditional films – were my major source of influence. Characters such as Abìjà Wàrà Bí Ekùn, Òrìsábùnmi, Fádèyí Olóró, Sòún, and many more were my go-to inspiration.
From “Oluwasegun Babatunde: Birth of a Universe”
How do you envision the creation and increased representation of Black characters by Black creators impacting readers, the creators themselves, and the broader landscape of the comics industry?
I think relatability becomes more easily accessible. People from other cultures, other races, can start appreciating individual races’ niches in the world we live in and in the alternate world of comics.
Also, children born in Africa, living in Africa, or born to African families living in the US, UK, and the rest of Europe and the world can more easily see themselves in the imagery of these comic characters. This will be an avenue to keep black culture alive for many generations and potentially inspire new generations to create their own stories influenced by the works of early black comics adopters. The comics industry can only grow and expand further and larger, adding more variety and reducing comic book fatigue.
We’ve heard that you’re currently working on your first movie. Could you give us some insights into your upcoming projects and share your goals for the future?
My debut movie is based on the wave of efforts to better the socio-economic status of a fictional West African country called the United African Republic. While the movie is not centered on my comic books, I left a couple of Easter eggs about my comic book characters in there. So, yeah, you get a glimpse into my next installment after this debut movie – a live-action Olórò movie.
We are delighted to announce the winners of the second annual Alison Brown Young Comics Maestro award, recognizing the most exciting comic strip talents from the UK under the age of 18 years old.
The 2023 winners are:
Sofia Deen, age 9 (winner)
Eric Caseras-Ros, age 11 (runner-up)
Zack Bennett, age 9 & Asta Haldane, age 8 (runners-up)
Entrants submitted an original comic strip of up to three pages long (or a three-page section of a story). Each of the winners receives prize money and a certificate. The winner and runners-up, along with entries by a selection of artists receiving a Judges’ Commendation, have been collected in a digital e-comic.
Huge congratulations to Sofia, Eric, Zack and Asta! This years entries showcased some incredible talent, and most of the entries had the judges laughing at the absurdist humor and logic on show. We look forward to seeing what they are doing in a few years time as their abilities as artists and storytellers continue to grow.
The 2023 awards were judged by a panel that included Hannah Berry (Livestock, Adamantine, Comics Laureate 2019-21), Martin Rowson (The Guardian, The Daily Mirror), Laura Howell (The Beano), Tom Fickling (Editor/MD of The Phoenix), Steve Marchant (Learning Officer at The Cartoon Museum), Kate Owens (Collections Manager at The Cartoon Museum), Matt Baxter (Monster Fun), Mark Stafford (Salmonella Smorgasboard, The Bad Bad Place)and Joe Sullivan (Director of The Cartoon Museum)
The Comics Maestro Award celebrates Cartoon Museum staff member Alison Brown, who passed away from Covid in 2021 at the age of just 39. Alison was the heart and soul of The Cartoon Museum, staffing the front desk, running events, and stocking the shop, and bringing light into the life of everyone she met. Alison loved comics and championed young comic artists, often selling them in the shop, and after a collection for her funeral was donated to the Museum, we and her family felt the best way to remember her was to use the collection to continue providing a pathway for young people to have their art seen by a larger audience.
In our latest blog, Jadore Nicholas of JK Cartoon Studios tells us how he has been working with the museum as our Young Cartoonist in Residence.
In December 2021 I attended an interview with the Cartoon Museum for work experience, and they were so impressed with my characters – ‘The Jadoodles’ (which come in all shapes and sizes, showing us feelings and emotions, reminding us to make time for them all) and illustrations that they offered me a residency. While the details were sparse at the time, I was excited for the new year! The residency started in February and it has been designed by Amba, Community Engagement Officer, to work around me. I started my residency by customising The Cartoon Museum windows with ‘The Jadoodles’ – this was something I was planning to do on my own garden door, so it was perfect! Additionally, I debuted my 3 new artworks: Westside Jadoodle, Pulling Page Jadoodle and Smiley Face Jadoodle, exclusively stocking the postcards for these artworks in the Cartoon Museum gift shop.
Jadore outside The Cartoon Museum
I spend my time at The Cartoon Museum exploring the galleries to get inspired by the many old cartoons in the collection. Additionally, I am able to learn more about cartoons as I am surrounded by experts like Steve, Learning and Outreach Officer, who is an expert in the history of cartoons, and uses this inspiration to do his own artwork and host workshops. I have also been leading workshops at ‘Relaxed Monday’ events. My first workshop included my JKCS colouring sheet and then for my second Relaxed Monday, I planned a workshop that allowed participants to customise their own small windows to take home, either with their own design or a Jadoodle character – which I helped with by explaining step by step.
Customising the museum window with The Jadoodles
The Relaxed Monday workshops have grown my confidence from strength to strength, as well as developing the workshops I offer. Starting with my own JKCS colouring sheet sessions, I now lead workshops where I tutor participants on how to draw Jadoodles. I was able to adjust my approach depending on the type of group – for families I was able to show them on their table, but when a group of teenagers attended a later session, I used the flip chart at the front of the room to keep everyone engaged (and make sure they all could hear and see) – even running a competition for the best window to win a JKCS postcard. One special moment for me was when I assisted a person in a wheelchair with special needs to a 1-to-1 session on the board.
To celebrate my residency at The Cartoon Museum, I hosted a takeover of the museum on 15 November for a special event showcasing my responses to the collection at the museum – as well as a few other surprises!
Jadore with some of his framed finished pieces that respond to the Museum collection
Auguste Edouart was a French artist known for his silhouette artworks. Extremely prolific in his day, given the niche nature of Edouart’s art he escapes mainstream popularity today. This piece aims to provide an entry into his world of profiles and focuses on several aspects of his portraiture that parallel key features of cartoons.
Born in Dunkirk, France, in 1789 – a period of extreme political turbulence – Edouart was one of sixteen children. At 19 years old, he fought in the Napoleonic wars and in 1814, he married Emilie Laurence Vital and travelled to London where he remained until 1829 when he moved to Scotland. Initially, he specialised in artworks made of hair – a painstaking and lengthy process. It is hardly surprising that his career began to flourish in the far more lucrative market of silhouettes where one profile could take him less than three minutes to make. It was in 1825, on being shown a silhouette made by a machine, that he produced some scissors and card and cut out the likeness of one of his companions. From this point, silhouettes became his bread and butter (Profiles of the Past). Producing thousands of profiles in his lifetime, these were quicker and cheaper to make than painted portraits. His portfolio is a formidable achievement given the control required to produce the likenesses using only scissors!
In 1839, Edouart travelled to the United States remaining there for ten years before returning to France. On his voyage home, thousands of his works were lost in a shipwreck. Thankfully, many were saved – indeed, it is said that he took duplicates of every portrait he completed (Profiles of the Past). Vast in quantity, Edouart also depicted a variety of subjects, including public figures such as the exiled royal, Charles X, William Dyce and Fanny Brawne (National Portrait Gallery). From familial scenarios in the drawing room, to urban scenes of the streets in Bath, he documents not only people but nineteenth-century life itself.
The Magic Lantern by Auguste Edouart
The Magic Lantern (ca,1835) elevates Edouart from being solely a portrait artist given the complexity of the composition. By definition, a silhouette is also inherently basic, created with nothing but black card – the detail can be seen in the form of the figures where the lines have been cut. The likenesses are achieved with skilled prowess but are not caricatures – whilst one dimensional and blank, no feature is disproportionate. Every detail is recognisable and achieved through a speedy medium, one which was possibly considered less ‘highbrow’ – a reputation which has also been held by cartoons at times. If the dictionary defines a cartoon as ‘a simplified or exaggerated version or interpretation of something’ (Oxford languages) or a ‘ludicrously simplistic, unrealistic, or one-dimensional portrayal’ (Merriam-Webster), then Edouart’s silhouettes fit nicely into that category.
Equally, if cartoons tell a story, in a humorous way at times, then there is certainly both a narrative and comedic component to many of Auguste Edouart’s silhouettes, as seen in The Magic Lantern and other compositions which I shall examine shortly. What Edouart has created is difficult to characterise – it is not only a silhouette; the scene is telling a story with various forms of entertainment moving the narrative along. A man is putting on a show using a magic lantern – these were images painted onto glass which were projected onto a screen through an illuminated lens. The figure with a wooden leg provides a musical accompaniment using a barrel organ (The Metropolitan Museum of Art). Not all the people are in profile. The man to the right and the two children face away from us, and are immersed in the show. One figure lifts her child to get a better view, another opens the door, and an elderly woman sits stationary in the background. The room is a hive of activity and a vignette into one afternoon’s leisure pursuits.
Cartoons tell a story with artists using various techniques to convey movement and emotion. Far from static, Edouart has cut the silhouettes to bring a sense of action. A child is lifted whilst another crouches down to play with a dog who is jumping up. Up and down and to and fro, the motion of the characters brings a vitality to the scene. Excitement, disapproval, concentration – these emotions are all evident in the stances of the characters.
Johnny’s Funny Story to Mary the Cook by Auguste Edouart
Johnny’s Funny Story to Mary the Cook and The Magic Lantern demonstrate how Edouart represented a wide breadth of ages and social types in their daily lives. In the Funny Story, the subjects are starkly different to the middle/upper classes of The Magic Lantern. They are placed in front of a fire – one is a cook, the other is a servant. Whilst apolitical, the title adds a playful dimension to the figures reminiscent of Hogarth – Mary’s smile is visible, and Johnny lifts his coattails in one relatable motion.
Cut Silhouette of Four Full Figures by Auguste Edouart
Cut Silhouette of Four Full Figures contains a similar humorous streak. Two men (possibly tutors) are busy instructing the boys – one of whom playfully pokes the other with a stick, contrasting the solemn manner of the occasion. As we delve into Edouart’s portfolio, we are rewarded with more than just likenesses but stories, and beyond this, social products which serve as records for the period in which they were produced. Here, I have paralleled them loosely with several attributes of cartoons, using this lens as a tool for analysis and offering some information and interpretation. I have not discussed the context of his work in detail or, how the medium was almost completely halted by the invention of photography. There are many more questions to ask and answer and I encourage you to do so!
Further Reading
“Cartoon.” Oxford Languages and Google, Oxford University Press, accessed 7th September 2022.
This blog was originally published in 2016 as part of the Museum’s Comic Creators project. We are reposting it as part of our From the Vaults series to celebrate our exhibition about the history of the series, open until 2 October.
Introduction
The Comic Creators Project at the Cartoon Museum in London has original artwork from The Adventures of Luther Arkwright, a limited series comic written and drawn by Bryan Talbot between 1978 and 1989. It was followed by a sequel called Heart of Empire: The Legacy of Luther Arkwright in 1995, which was published by Dark Horse Comics. In 2014, this publisher released Arkwright Integral, which combined both stories with an introduction by Michael Moorcock, an afterword by Warren Ellis, and plenty of additional material. This graphic novel is featured in the exhibition The Great British Graphic Novel (20th April – 24th July, 2016).
Bryan Talbot, The Papist Affair Brainstorm Comix, 1978.
Luther Arkwright was introduced to the public in a strip published by Brainstorm Comix in 1978. In this strip, titled “The Papist Affair,” the intrepid Luther helps a band of biker nuns to recover the relic of Saint Adolf of Nuremberg, which was being held by “a buncha male chauvinist priests”. Bryan Talbot, in his introduction to the re-printed edition of Brainstorm, mentions that the strip was “an excuse to do a “ground-level” strip in line and water-colour wash and was directly inspired by the Jerry Cornelius stories of Michael Moorcock. After this, Arkwright took on his own personality and I developed his own milieu, but this was his very first appearance.” (Talbot 1999, Introduction).
Luther Arkwright’s adventures continued in 1978 as a serial in Near Myths, a comics magazine published in Edinburgh that only ran for five issues. Afterwards it was picked up by Pssst! Magazine, but its publication was interrupted in 1982 with the story having advanced maybe half way through the plot. Still, it was this same year that the first collected volume of Luther Arkwright was published for the first time by Never Ltd. This book and Raymond Briggs’ When the Wind Blows, published in the same year, are usually considered to be the first British graphic novels, although the serialised form of Arkwright was created four years earlier than When the Wind Blows.
Bryan finished the story between 1987 and 1989 and it was subsequently published as a series of nine standard comic books by Valkyrie Press. A tenth issue titled “ARKeology” was created due to the requests of obsessive fans who rightfully wanted to learn more about the history, production, and background of the characters. This was followed by the three volume trade paperback reprint edition in Britain from Proutt and the American edition of the comic book from Dark Horse Comics in 1990-1991 and 1997. As previously mentioned, Dark Horse Comics would eventually publish the sequel, Heart of Empire, in 1999. The whole story was reprinted in a single volume called Arkwright Integral by Dark Horse Comics in 2014.
The popularity of this graphic novel extends beyond the traditional medium of comics. In 1992 The Adventures of Luther Arkwright was made into a role-playing game (RPG) by 23rd Parallel Games. Interesting enough, and as a sign of how much people loved Bryan’s universe, a brand new Arkwright RPG is currently in production by Hogshead Games. In 2001 there was a three-hour audio drama adaptation of the Adventures of Luther Arkwright by Big Finish Productions starring David Tennant as Arkwright and Paul Darrow as Cromwell. There was also talk about the possibility of taking Luther Arkwright to the big screen in 2006 by Benderspink. It was going to be produced by Andrew Prowse and Sophie Patrick, but according to Talbot, the rights for the project lapsed in June 2010. (Etherington 2010, 34).
Bryan Talbot holding Arkwright Integral
Luther Arkwright was digitally remastered by Comics Centrun in 2005 for a Czech edition titled Dobrodružství Luther Arkwrighta. This new artwork was also used in the French edition by Kymera Comics and was the basis for the 2006 webcomic release in the official fan page.
Bryan Talbot and the Valkyrie Press edition of Arkwright were nominated for eight Eagle Awards in 1988, winning four: Favourite Artist, Best New Comic, Favourite Character for Arkwright himself and Best Comic Cover. In 1989 Arkwright won the Mekon Award given by The Society of Strip Illustration for ‘Best British Work’.
Bryan Talbot, The Adventures of Luther Arkwright, 1978, page 1
The Adventures of Luther Arkwright can be best described as an epic Steampunk Science-Fiction tale set in a multiverse that the eponymous hero can access by jumping from one parallel world to another. Luther is aided in his missions by Rose Wylde, a telepath that is capable of communicating with the different versions of herself in the multiverse. Both of them work for a parallel called Zero-Zero, whose stable position in the multiverse has made it into a world at peace. It has developed a highly advanced technology that allows it to monitor other parallel worlds for signs of the evil influence of the Disruptors. It is during one of these swipes that Zero-Zero discovers that the Disruptors have gotten ahold of a mystical doomsday device called Firefrost, which is capable of destabilizing and ultimately destroying the multiverse.
Luther and Rose are sent to the parallel world where the Disruptors are hiding the doomsday device. In this parallel, the English Civil War has been indefinitely prolonged due to the actions of these agents. In this world, the monarchy was never restored and Oliver Cromwell’s line continued to rule England with an iron fist-though in this case the puritan religious fervour that characterized it has a distinct darkness to it. Moreover, this political climate has given rise to a royalist uprising that threatens to trigger a second civil war.
Bryan Talbot, The Adventures of Luther Arkwright, Near Myths, 1978. Detail of original artwork donated by the artist to the Cartoon Museum, London.
Arkwright’s mission then is to destabilize the Cromwellian regime and he intervenes on the Royalist side in order to draw out the Disruptors. At one point, he infiltrates their base, locates Firefrost and destroys it saving the multiverse in the process. Nevertheless, his unit is ambushed, and Luther is killed. Yet his story does not end here. He returns to life in an apotheosic rebirth with his powers enhanced, becoming a new superhuman species in the process.
Mainly done in black and white, the early episodes of the story are rather complex. They present multiple story lines with flashbacks to Luther Arkwright’s upbringing by the Disruptors, his daring escape to his own parallel world, and his early missions for Zero-Zero. All these stories are intertwined with the events taking place during his mission in neo-Cromwellian England. Bryan changes his artistic style and story-telling techniques to match these shifts of place and time. Of particular interest are the scenes of Arkwright’s death and rebirth which are full of religious and mythological symbolism encased in a particularly abstract style. What is fascinating is to see this moment taking place, since from the start the readers and the main character know that he is going to die but details of how this will come to pass are not disclosed.
The last part of the story is more straightforward and linear, showing the evolution of the artist himself in the process (it did take him ten years to complete the story). In the end, Luther Arkwright completes his mission and renounces violence.
On Luther Arkwright by Bryan Talbot
Bryan Talbot has given many interviews along the years which reflect his visionary attitude towards the creation of comics and graphic novels. In The Arkwright Interview conducted by Stephen R. Bissette in 2012, Bryan discusses at length the motivations that led him to create The Adventures of Luther Arkwright. (Bissette 2012)
Bryan Talbot, Luther flying, The Adventures of Luther Arkwright.
According to Bryan, The Adventures of Luther Arkwright was a serious attempt to do an intelligent adventure story for adults. As such, he tried to create something as rich as a text novel and drawn in a manner following illustration-quality artwork. In this way he rejected the “short-hand” style that usually characterized the superhero genre. His work was also a reaction against the bland state of mainstream superhero comics of the time. Luther Arkwright contained sex, drugs, his characters swore and vomited, things that would have never happened in a superhero comic of the time…it was the 70s after all.
Regarding the story level, Bryan wanted to move away from formulaic plots usually found in superhero comics. Instead he wanted to create a story that was complex and multi-layered. He wanted for Luther Arkwright to have real depth with subjects like politics, religion, sex, or philosophy being taken into consideration at the same time that he presented an exciting adventure.
According to Bryan “The story itself was directly influenced by French comics. In the late seventies I discovered Metal Hurlant, which blew me away. […] As well as [drawing inspiration from] Moorcock, Luther Arkwright was influenced by the books of Robert Anton Wilson, Alfred Bester, Colin Wilson, and Norman Spinrad. On the visual side, it was very much influenced by the films of Sergio Leone, Alfred Hitchcock, Sam Peckinpah, and, especially, those of Nic Roeg. I tried to translate their techniques of framing, composition and editing-basically, their visual storytelling-into comic form. This led to the comic storytelling techniques in Arkwright that then were experimental but are now pretty much mainstream. I was still learning then (and I still am now) and trying to push the boundaries, so, along with the innovations, there were things that didn’t work. Or drawings that look crap. I made all my mistakes in print. The eighteenth-century British artist and storyteller William Hogarth had a big influence on the illustration style.” (Bissette 2012)
Bryan agrees that from the beginning, Arkwright was self-consciously experimental. He did not use sound effects, thought balloons, wobble lines, and whoosh marks-actually nothing that could be considered cliched, childish or old fashioned by non-comic readers. In the end, he was aiming his work at an adult readership that he hoped would include people who were not used to reading comics. The experimentation included “the twenty-odd-page death/rebirth metamorphosis section, where I employed big blocks of text alongside collaged images, and the assassination sequence where I spread six seconds over seventy-two panels. Today these don’t seem very unusual. When I began The Adventures of Luther Arkwright in 1978, I don’t think that I’d ever seen a slow-motion sequence in an adventure comic before. I put one into the first five pages.”
These are some of the reasons why The Adventures of Luther Arkwright has been acclaimed as a seminal work, i.e. for its combination of historical, science fiction, espionage, and supernatural genres, its experimental narrative techniques and the avoidance of sound effects, speed lines, and thought balloons. Famous comic book creators like Garth Ennis, Grant Morrison, Warren Ellis, Steve Bissette, Michael Zulli, Rick Veitch and Neil Gaiman among others have acknowledged the influence that this graphic novel has had in their work. Currently, Luther Arkwright has a strong cult following and it has inspired many fanzines devoted to the Arkwright mythos as well as short stories written by various authors. The Adventures of Luther Arkwright has been translated and published in eight different countries and his stories continue to sell.
Our new blog is with award winning cartoonist Tony Husband, who has been using his artistic skills and personal experience of dementia to connect to carers and those living with this life changing disease.
by Claire Madge
Tony Husband
To begin our conversation I asked Tony how he got started drawing cartoons. “I wanted to go to art college but my Dad wouldn’t let me, he told me I had to get a ‘proper job’. I’d been in advertising, a window dresser and a jeweller but my ambition was to be a cartoonist. At night I was always drawing cartoons sending them out to various newspapers and magazines trying to build up a reputation and earn enough money to have a career at it. I took voluntary redundancy at the jewellers and that gave me the chance to give it a go. It was a time when there were lots of magazines, the Daily Star started taking my work, I was prolific with my work and things started to progress and then greeting cards came along.
With a couple of guys in Manchester we created Oink magazine, it was a magic time when Manchester was ‘Madchester’! We were in the same building as the Happy Mondays it was a bit crazy. Mark Riley from the Fall joined us – it was like being in a rock band. When Ian Hislop took over at Private Eye around 1986 I started to work for them, they took some of my skinhead drawings and Hislop asked if I would do a strip for them called ‘Yobs’ and 37 years later I am still doing it!”
As Tony sketched away over our Zoom call I asked how he ended up publishing a book of cartoons on dementia. “‘Take Care, Son: The Story of My Dad and Dementia” was published 2014, my Dad had vascular dementia and he had passed away. It was about three months afterwards I was in my studio I had finished my day’s work and opened a bottle of wine, I was sat there playing music. As I sat there I asked my Dad out loud – ‘What was it like Dad to have dementia, can you remember?” and his voice came back to me…’I had dementia and you’re asking me to remember?!” then I just had this conversation with him in my head, then I just thought I would draw that conversation.
I got these 3 A4 pieces of paper, the first page was how it started, then it was things that I remember happening, then the last page was him asking – ‘Can you imagine what it is like to lose the memory of everyone and everything you have ever loved?’ I shared them with Stephen Fry, who is a friend and he tweeted them. They went viral and a publisher emailed me and that is how it started.”
I asked Tony how he used humour and his experience with his father to help those facing similar situations. “My cartoons have this ability with the slightest line or movement create a feeling of loss or sorrow and happiness. Sir Malcolm Walker who runs Iceland food stores, his wife had dementia he bought 5,000 copies to help people deal with dementia. I sent him a cartoon of a woman at a check-out, she is struggling to find her card, and everyone behind is tutting and looking at their watches, looking angry and the caption is “Please be patient, I might be living with dementia.” Walker loved this and it put over every till in all his stores. After publishing the book I got involved with the Alzheimer’s Society and I have travelled the country doing talks, telling the stories behind the pictures in the book. It is very hard talking about my Dad, but I think the bonus is people go away thinking they are not the only ones, someone understands.”
Tony has also used his work in other ways… “I did some work with Portsmouth University and Heathrow Airport, through a guy called Ian Sherriff we produced two books – one about visiting a dentist if you have dementia and the other one is for the those travelling through an airport, it explains what is going to happen. It also helps the staff understand why someone might behave differently.”
United book cover by Gina Awad, illustrated by Tony Husband
I asked Tony how he has been building on that first dementia book. “I have also been working with Gina Awad, founder of Exeter Dementia Action Alliance, illustrating her book – ‘United: Caring for our loved ones living with dementia’, it was published in June. There are seven stories in the book Gina talked to the carers and I drew them in the zoom calls, it was very moving.
“When I could remember…” I can just about remember When I could remember everything Of the thoughts in my head And the pleasure they could bring. But I know the darkness now And it’s getting darker still. My mind it seems is closing down And not of my free will. Please sit with me and hold my hand To let me know you understand. Although my mind is not so clear I’m still me and I’m still here Tony Husband
“I didn’t expect the response that has happened and the goodwill towards the book. The wonderful things people say to me about how the book has helped them. The comic form is just so simple, in a cartoon by a great cartoonist you can see the story, you can see what that person is going through in just one look and a few lines. It strips it down for people, without thousands of words. Just two people, saying something with one caption and it expresses everything.
As a family we got through it with humour, you have to otherwise you would crack up. Finally I asked Tony if he had any advice for those supporting someone with dementia. “Just talk and for your own sake get the memories before the memories go. Don’t talk over them, include people with dementia in your conversation. Make them feel as though they’ve not gone, that they are important, that what they say matters.”
We are delighted to announce the winners of the inaugural Alison Brown Young Comics Maestro Award 2022!
We received 60 wonderful 3-page comic strips from budding comic creators under 18 years old. A winner and two runners-up was chosen by a panel of expert judges including Laura Howell and Mike Stirling from The Beano, Tom Fickling from The Phoenix, cartoonists Hannah Berry, Martin Rowson and Mark Stafford, and Steve Marchant, Kate Owens and Joe Sullivan from The Cartoon Museum.
Your 2022 winner is Damian Arriola, aged 10!
Damian’s comic about a bear protecting a group of bears from hunters was extraordinary, with wonderful art complimented by a fantastic storytelling ability. The panel loved the different abilities Damian showcased, including a lack of dialogue, varied panel shapes, and an impressive understanding of visual space. Mike Stirling, the Head of Beano Studios, is convinced that Beano readers would ‘lap it up’!
Bear, by Damian Arriola
Your 2022 Runners-Up are Lila Shaw-Mitchell, aged 14, and Gene Hobday, aged 8!
Lila’s comic strip, ‘Did you sleep well?’ was about annoying siblings and a sleepless night. The story was well told with excellent pacing and was very relatable to people of all ages, with a simple art style and subtle, effective colouring.
Gene’s strip ‘The Glowing Frog’, was very funny, charming and full of character. It was very cinematic, with different views and angles of the characters, and showed really impressive technical skills with lots of visual tricks crammed in.
The Glowing Frog by Gene Hobday
You can read the three winning stories in this downloadable comic, along with entries that were highly commended by the judges.
The Comics Maestro Award celebrates Cartoon Museum staff member Alison Brown, who passed away from Covid in 2021 at the age of just 39. Alison loved comics and championed young comic artists, including selling their work in the museum shop.
Did You Sleep Well? by Lila Shaw-Mitchell
The full list of winners, runners-up, and judge’s commendations is below. Congratulations to all – and keep your eye on these names in future!
Winner: Damian Arriola (10)
Runner Up: Gene Hobday (8) and Lila Shaw-Mitchell (14)
On 30 May we celebrated the winners and runners-up of the Young Cartoonist of the Year 2020 and 2021 competitions. Over 150 entries were received from all over the UK, with winners decided by a panel of judges comprised of luminaries of British newspaper and comic cartooning, including Martin Rowson (BCA Chairman and The Guardian cartoonist), Christian Adams (The Evening Standard), Banx (The Financial Times), Ella Barron (The Sunday Times), Steve Bell (The Guardian), Grizelda (The Spectator), Matt (The Daily Telegraph), Nick Newman (Private Eye), and Oliver Preston (Chairman of The Cartoon Museum).
The winners and runners-up, and their families, joined the judges and guests from the world of cartooning for drinks and to see the artworks displayed in the Clore room, and received their certificates from Chair of Judges Martin Rowson.
Family looking at Live Gwinner’s entry (U18 runner-up)Guests looking at the display of the winning cartoons
The Young Cartoonist of the Year competition was originally set up as the ‘Mel Calman Young Cartoonist Competition’, in memory of the great Times cartoonist and Cartoon Arts Trust founder. In 2001 the competition morphed into its current form, led by Martin Rowson who recruited judges from each national newspaper, leading to wide publicity for the competition. The competition, now in its 26th year, has produced winners including Nick Edwards (2009) who went on to win an Emmy for his work on Uncle Grandpa in the US, New Yorker cartoonist Will McPhail, and political cartoonist Matt Buck.
Winners and guests mingling in the museum
Chair of the British Cartoonists Association, Martin Rowson said:
“For the last 21 years I’ve always joked that the real purpose of the annual Young Cartoonist Competition, awarded by the British Cartoonists’ Association, is to remind everyone that ours is a crowded and frequently beleaguered profession and that the last thing we need is competition from the whippersnappers. So this way we can identify the best ones and break their fingers. And if it’s the kind of gag which causes offence to the winners, that sort of suggests they’ve chosen the wrong path in life. But to be serious for a fleeting second, the wealth of talent which we see coming up each and every year shows Cartooning is alive, kicking and screaming, just like it should be.”
2020 U18s winner Daniel Meikle receiving his award2021 Woodcock Prize winner Bianca Hsu receiving her award
2021
The full list of winners and runners-up is below, and the top six entries for 2021 (the three winners, and the second place U18 runner up, and the second and third place U30 runners-up) will be on display at The Cartoon Museum in the Clore room during 2022. Congratulations to all – and keep your eye on these names in future!
Winners: Cara Grainger (U30 category), Rohan Rooney (U18 category), Bianca Hsu (Woodcock prize for the most surreal cartoon)
Runner Up (Under 30s): Lara Evans (2nd place, U30 category), Jo Sarginson (3rd place, U30 category), Zoom Rockman, Hannah Rohin
Runner Up (Under 18s): Emily Young (2nd place, U18 category), Reyansh Avihash, Holly Chadwick, Jack Cherry, Liv Gwinner, Hayden Hewathantri, Trix Latimer,
2020
Winners: Fergus Boylan (U30 category), Daniel Meikle (U18 category)
Our third ‘Inspired by’ blog is with cartoonist Nick Newman and features an artist whose work is currently up on the walls in the Cartoon Museum’s latest exhibition ‘Laughter Lab’.
Nick’s career began in 1976 and he has worked regularly for Private Eye, Punch and The Spectator as well as being pocket cartoonist at the Sunday Times since 1989.
In this blog, Nick shares his earliest cartoon memories, gives a shout out to the genius of Tintin and also gives budding cartoonists a little bit of advice about getting started in cartooning.
When did you discover cartoons and comics? My earliest memory is my brother introducing me to Tintin, but I was also a big Batman fan. The arrival in the UK of Asterix was another important moment – and I collected Peanuts books and War Picture Library comics when I should have been reading ‘The Famous Five’.
Who were your favourite artists, characters or strips? Hergé and Goscinny & Uderzo were my heroes, for creating Tintin and Asterix respectively. Hergé transported you to other worlds – and the verisimilitude of the bande dessiné style made it all the more believable. Goscinny & Uderzo, on the other hand, were more overtly cartoony – while being discreetly subversive and satirical in a historical context. As I got older I came to appreciate stand-alone gags more, gleaned from the pages of Private Eye and Punch. I admired (and still do) all the greats – Pont, Fougasse, Searle, Heath, Larry, Rushton, Honeysett, Mclachlan, Pyne, Posy Simmonds, Austin, Robert Thompson, Dredge, Kipper Williams… the list is endless!
What do cartoons and comics mean to you? Refuge from the real world…children’s comics were always an escape to another reality, whether it was the Numskulls or Dan Dare. Stand-alone gags can transport you to a surreal mental landscape of desert islands, lemmings jumping over cliffs and alien invasions…the possibilities are endless. The best cartoons can give you a warm glow every time you think of them. Few art forms do that.
Nick Newman, 2000. Ink on paper
How have you managed to take your love of cartoons and comics and turn that into a career? There is only one way – to draw stuff and send it in to magazines! It takes a lot of nerve and resilience – even early success can be followed by years of rejection. I’ve also been lucky to use my skills as a parodist to use my love of cartoon strips professionally – I’ve drawn and written satires based on War Comics and Dan Dare for Private Eye, as well as parodies of the Beano, Dennis The Menace and the Numskulls. I knew I wanted to be a cartoonist when I sold my first nautically-themed gag to Yachting Monthly in 1976 – for £10…a fortune to a student back then! It took me another 7 years to fulfil my ambition and go freelance.
What cartoons and comics are you currently reading? Who are your favourite artists that the reader should check out? The comics I read these days are called newspapers. For the more frivolous, Private Eye publishes more cartoons of all kinds – stand-alones, strips and topicals – than any other publication, so it is obligatory reading for any would-be cartoonist. The Spectator and the Oldie also publish great work by all the top gagsters. I have recently started a Twitter feed celebrating the work of the great Punch cartoonist Pont – who died in 1940 aged just 32. It’s called World Of Pont @PontWorld and is gaining some traction in cyberspace – and there are many other cartoon Twitter feeds out there, promoting the work of my great colleagues in ink.
The Cartoon Museum Blog 