Not Your Usual Caricature Artist
Volume 7, No. 9
Regardless of your political party affiliation, it’s been a virtual field day for political cartoonists. 

Whether they’ve sharpened their pens to skewer the current White House resident or the 20 candidates looking to unseat him, there’s been no shortage of pictorial plundering to be played out.
 
But, of course, there’s nothing really new under the sun. And that goes for political cartoonists and their significant, influential place throughout the 243-year history of our nation.

Take one, in particular…
 
Welcome to the
September edition of
Not Your Usual
Caricature Artist.

According to various online sites ,  "Thomas Nast  (September 27, 1840 – December 7, 1902) was a German-born American caricaturist and editorial cartoonist who was the 'Father of the American Cartoon.' 

" Among his notable works were the creation of the modern version of  Santa Claus  and even the symbol of the elephant for the Republican party. Nast was associated with the magazine  Harper's Weekly  from 1859 to 1860 and from 1862 until 1886.


" As a political cartoonist , Thomas Nast wielded more influence than any other artist of the 19th century. He not only enthralled a vast audience with boldness and wit, but swayed it time and again to his personal position on the strength of his visual imagination. 

" Both Lincoln and Grant acknowledged his effectiveness in their behalf, and as a crusading civil reformer he helped destroy the corrupt 'Boss Tweed' Ring that swindled New York City of millions of dollars. Indeed, his impact on American public life was formidable enough to profoundly affect the outcome of every presidential election during the period 1864 to 1884.   
 
" Tweed ran the Democratic Party in New York. In September 1871, Nast famously depicted Tweed, New York mayor Oakey Hall and several others as a group of vultures surrounding a corpse labeled 'New York.'

"The cartoon supposedly upset Tweed so much that he offered Nast a bribe of $500,000 (100 times Nast's annual salary at the time) to leave town. Nast refused and continued to draw attention to Tweed's misdeeds. Eventually, it was Tweed who fled the country, to avoid prosecution."












I'm sometimes asked why don't I enter the political cartooning ring?
 
Probably because I tend to the more apolitical side of the ledger. And, it's pretty daunting work to come up with something clever, timely and, of course, thought or action-provoking on a daily basis. 
No wonder some of these guys have won the Pulitzer Prize!
 
Here are a few of my own flicks of the wrist, though I wouldn't presume to call them political cartoons.
 
Just caricatures, through the years , of selected noteworthy politicos.

Such as - - below -- Charlotte, NC, Councilwoman Claire Fallon; former Prez Barack Obama; current POTUS Donald Trump; the late sky diving enthusiast President George H.W. Bush, and FDR's successor, Harry Truman. (Both Fallon and Trump are pictured as they appear on the walls of the Palm restaurant in Charlotte; Truman resides on the wall at Harry's Tavern & Grille, Charlotte.)
See you again the first Tuesday of next month for another hand-shaking, baby-kissing edition of
Not Your Usual Caricature Artist.
 
Joel Kweskin
704.575.8850
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