Caricature of John Ruskin by Adriano Cecioni for Vanity Fair, February 17, 1872.
Todays caricature artists are known for illustrating comical, exaggerated portraits of their subjects.
Did you know thatLeonardo Da Vincidrew caricatures?
Caricature of John Ruskin by Adriano Cecioni for Vanity Fair, February 17, 1872. (Photo:Wikimedia Commons, Public domain)
Da Vinci was fascinated by the human form and the oddities of human faces.
What is aCaricature?
Five grotesque heads, and three heads of men in profile, by Leonardo da Vinci, c.151020.
“Five grotesque heads, and three heads of men in profile,” by Leonardo da Vinci, c.1510–20. (Photo:Wikimedia Commons, Public domain)
The artists goal is to emphasize specific features that make a person unique.
The History of Caricature Art
Caricatures by Annibale Carracci, circa 1595.
This was offensive to the royal, since it was intended as a French sexual pun.
Caricatures by Annibale Carracci, circa 1595. (Photo:WikimediaCommons, public domain)
Caricatures of King Louis-Philippe by Charles Philipon, 1831.
With his caricatures, he helped to bring down the Boss Tweed ring and New Yorks corrupt Tammany Hall.
The artist is also responsible for the jolly image of Santa Claus we know today.
Caricatures of King Louis-Philippe by Charles Philipon, 1831. (Photo:Wikimedia Commons, Public domain)
His caricatures were usually rendered in pen or pencil with subtle watercolor tinting.
Hundreds of illustrations were published in popular magazines at the time, includingVanity FairandStrand Magazine.
He was recognized byThe Timesin 1913 as the greatest of English comic artists.
Caricature of the controversy between Winston Churchill and H. G. Wells, by Sir Max Beerbohm, 1920.Dialogue reads:Churchill: “You were only 14 days in Russia!”Wells: “Your mother’s an American!”(Photo:Wikimedia Commons, Public domain)
His drawings were published inTimemagazine,Playboymagazine, andThe New York Times.
Additionally, he drew more than 3,800 pen-and-ink caricatures forThe New York Review of Books.
Levine loved exploring human flaws through his art.
He once said, I love my species.
He also contributed covers and editorial illustrations toTimemagazine and won a number of awards from the National Cartoonist Society.
What makes that so is the space between them.
Each illustration brilliantly highlights each persons heroic (or villainous) attributes.
Using a crow quill, he rendered his drawings in black ink.
His swift, sure lines inspired countless artists, illustrators, and cartoonists that came after him.
