See more: http://www.toonpool.com/tag_gallery_bookstore

Deadline of the competition is November 30th, 2012.

by Kestutis

by Palmas

by Marlene Pohle

by Amal Samir

by cristianst

by NITA

The staff of a bookstore has asked us if it was possible to have the five persons’ portraits drawn by toonpool.com artists – as five single portraits or all persons in one image. So, here’s the deal:

If you would like to participate, post your caricatures until November 30, 2012. Simply upload them to toonpool.com as you would do with your other works but be sure to add the tag “bookstore”. We will post all contributions in our blog.

There are no restrictions to color, style, or technique. Portraits can be realistic, cartoon-y, colorful, black-and-white, vectorized, crudely hand-drawn, etc..

Our clients will buy the three entries (full staff) they like best for 250 Euros, 150 Euros and 100 Euros (all of which will go to the artists). If you have any further questions, please contact us.

Any recourse to courts of law is excluded.

Peace and smiles!

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Photographs: Jürgen Blume

zu der Buchpräsentation:

Artur Schnitzler “Traumnovelle” – eine Graphic Novel von Jakob Hinrichs

laden wir Euch und Eure Freunde herzlich ein!

Donnerstag, 18. Oktober 2012. 20 Uhr
Büchergilde – Buchhandlung am Wittenbergplatz
Kleiststraße 19-21, 10787 Berlin

Wie entsteht aus einer klassischen Novelle eine Graphic Novel?

Der Illustrator Jakob Hinrichs präsentiert seine Ideen und die Umsetzung zur Gestaltung seines Buches und wird gern Fragen zu dem interessanten Thema beantworten.

Jakob Hinrichs ist Zeichner und Grafiker. Seine Illustrationen erscheinen in internationalen Publikationen und Zeitungen wie der New York Times. Er lebt und arbeitet in Berlin.

Traumnovelle: Der Arzt Fridolin wandert nach einem Ehestreit mit seiner Frau Albertine ziellos durch die nächtliche Stadt und erfährt zufällig von einem geheimen Maskenball. Dort angekommen, mahnt ihn schon bald eine mysteriöse Frau, schnell wieder zu verschwinden. Doch Fridolin ist entschlossen zu bleiben, fasziniert von dem wilden und bizarren Treiben auf dieser Orgie. In dieser Nacht gerät Fridolin in einen Strudel aus Sex, Gefahr, Fantasie und Illusion, der ihn – und seine Ehe – auf eine harte Probe stellt.

Arthur Schnitzlers Traumnovelle erschien 1926 und ist heute ein Klassiker der Literatur. Jakob Hinrichs adaptiert die Geschichte erstmals als Graphic Novel und erzählt sie in tiefgreifenden, fantastischen Bildern neu. Fridolin wird durch eine bildgewaltige Traumwelt getrieben, die mit schrägen und bizarren Charakteren bevölkert ist. Mit zahlreichen Querverweisen in die Kunstgeschichte ist die Lektüre der grafischen Traumnovelle ein besonderes visuelles Vergnügen.

Carolyn Hiler

Carolyn Hiler makes A Zillion Dollars Comics, and she has been a toonpool member since June 2011. Carolyn lives at 4400 feet in Mt Baldy, CA, a town of 300 people located in the Angeles National Forest, about an hour east of Los Angeles. When not cartooning, designing goofball products, or hiking with her two adorable mutts, she works in private practice as a psychotherapist and art therapist. A Zillion Dollars products are available at http://www.etsy.com/shop/AZillionDollars.

Which fictional character are you?
From the Wizard of Oz, I am the Wicked Witch of the West. I love monkeys, and the color black, and flying. I am also Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The vampires are the enemies of a creative life. I slay them all the time! When I’m feeling a little more pensive, I’m Kermit the Frog, always wondering about things like rainbows, and trying to write sweet memorable songs.

What’s in your refrigerator right now?
Leftovers from a big launch party I threw last weekend for these new tote bags I made. If you live within a 30 mile radius and are interested in some extra mozzarella, goat cheese, feta, romano cheese, tomatoes, peppers, basil, artichoke hearts, arugula, pizza dough from Trader Joes, tortilla chips, and other fixings for grilled pizzas, you should come on by with some tupperware.

What bores you the most?
The idea that life was better in the good old days. Anyone who has it all figured out. The Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue.

What do you do when you see the glass half empty!
I paint the words “half empty” on a drinking glass.

Today you might feel one way, tomorrow another

Do you like your place or would you like to live somewhere else?
I love my place and I would also like to live somewhere else. Pros of living in Mt Baldy: Pristine mountain air, delicious tap water, creeks running by our house, view of the stars, total silence, and novelty snow. None of those things are available in nearby Los Angeles. Cons of living in Mt Baldy: No good restaurants, art stores, or easy access to my best pals. A significant amount of isolation. Pros of isolation: Extreme productivity. Cons of isolation: Insanity.

What are you able to do that Superman can’t do?
Couples therapy.

If you were sleep walking one night, where would you probably wake up the next day?
At the airport boarding a plane to New York, my city of origin, where I also live at this exact moment in a parallel universe.

What would you wear to be kicked out from a black tie cocktail party?
The Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.

Thinking up cartoons is hard work and takes time

Studio table with trusty pal

Tell me the biggest prank you did on a friend.
I seriously cannot think of any pranks I’ve ever done. I’m way too nice. I prefer to limit my mockery of other people to quiet,private endeavors such as cartooning.

How to ruin your vacation?
Bring along, an uptight, miserly, control freak. Or someone who thinks you are.

10. If I gave you a giraffe, where would you hide it?
First, I would talk to the giraffe and see if it really wanted to hide or if it wanted to be out in the open. We would go over the risks and benefits of hiding vs. exposure. I would talk about how vulnerable one feels when putting one’s giraffeness or one’s artwork out there every day, but how it’s actually worth it, because life is too short to spend too much time hiding or worrying about what other people think or trying to be something that you’re not, like not-a-giraffe. Then we would sing an inspirational song together about the freedom that comes from being oneself, and about how you can make fun of clichés and believe them at the same time. After that, the giraffe would probably prefer to embrace its giraffeness and risk going public. But because I’m such an incredibly accepting and respectful person, in case the giraffe still preferred to be hidden, I would stash it up on my roof, where the only creatures who would see it would be the mountain chickadees and the Search and Rescue workers in the helicopters flying overhead looking for lost hikers.

Credits to Nicoleta Ionescu for
talking with Carolyn Hiler

For this new issue of “Letter from” column, we asked toonpool artist Kim Maxine Frost about her life and begged for some photographs of her working place and the place she lives in – Seattle, also known as “the The Emerald City”. Kim (Frostyhut) joined toonpool on July, 2009 and she wishes to double her toonpool gallery by the end of the year. Kim works as a radio announcer at Classical KING FM 98.1 (have you seen her classical music inspired cartoons?).We are also proud that Kim writes for us, so we invite you to read her great review-interviews on toonpool’s blog!

Kim

01. Which movie/tv character you see yourself as
and why?

I am totally Lynn Redgrave in Georgy Girl. She’s awkward and kooky, but it all works out. And she gets to meet James Mason! She dislikes him in the film, but he’s the best thing in it.

02. What are your New Year’s resolutions?

To get 200 drawings posted to toonpool.com. And now (gulp), I guess I really have to!

03. What bores you the most?

In the past, the most boring thing was that my work life and my creative life were split up. That’s changing though. My job just commissioned some drawings, which is nice.  For the first time it’s all starting to blend together.

04. Do you like your place or would you like to live somewhere else?

Yes, I’ve never traveled. I love Seattle, but I fantasize about being somewhere warmer. Or just different. The radio station where I work airs a piece called Nights in the Gardens of Spain by Manuel de Falla. Every time I hear it, I want to go there.

05. What are you able to do that Superman can’t do?

Draw Superman? That reminds me – a couple of years ago I heard German pianist Bernd Glemser when he toured the States. He inspired me to create a character called Bernd von Mimzer, a concert pianist with superpowers. He had nipples that could shoot deadly flames. I drew about sixty pages of the comic, and then I got a full time job. I need to carve out the time to get back to Bernd. I miss him!

06. If you were sleep walking one night, where would you probably wake up the next day?

Well I’m obsessed with accessories, so my unconscious mind would probably take me to some shop filled with shoes and handbags. I’d love to wake up inside a Hermès store!

07. What would you wear to be kicked out from a black tie cocktail party

In Seattle, it’s hard to shock because anything goes. I’ve seen kilts at the symphony, jorts (jean shorts) at the ballet. I’d probably try incongruity in the same outfit – a bikini with combat boots, maybe!

08. Tell me the biggest prank you did on a friend.

I can’t think of a prank I pulled on someone else, but I remember a trick someone played on me. At an office Christmas party that was held at a nice hotel, one of my co-workers grabbed some silverware from a table setting and stuck it in my purse. I walked around all night with this silverware sticking out of my bag, and nobody told me! That’s the part I still can’t believe!

09. How to ruin your vacation?

Hot tubs have never worked out for me on vacations. Either there’s no heat, or the jets aren’t working, or both – and then you find yourself sitting in a big tub of tepid bacteria. The bacteria should at least be, you know, moving around.

10. If I gave you a giraffe, where would you hide it?

That reminds me of a line from one of Donald Barthelme’s surreal short stories: “And the giraffe’s on fire in the kitchen, but you don’t care!” Good question. I’d try to recreate the giraffe’s natural habitat, and paint the entire area to look like a jungle. Maybe do one part of it in a giraffe pattern, so the giraffe could just blend in with the background when it wanted to.

11. What do you do when you see the glass half empty!

When the glass is half empty and I start to feel down, I just buy stuff. I love pens. Right now my favorite is the Dr. Grip gel pen by Pilot. I don’t draw with it, I just make tons of lists (that I instantly lose). But I love those pens. I have them in a bunch of colors – pink, purple, emerald green. I go online and buy refills for my pens, and I feel much better.

Credits to Nicoleta Ionescu for
talking with Kim Maxine Frost

By Kim Frost

The universe of toonpool artist Hermé is a sun-splashed playland of the gods floating high above the sublunary world we know. These curvaceous aristocrats, with their idealized faces and supple bodies, are like classical statues that have been awakened. Transparent and light as air, they frolic in a place where it’s okay to go naked and drink as much wine as you want. Gods just wanna have fun!

Hermé is like a champion golfer who wins every game with the fewest possible strokes. His bold characters arise from a sinuous line that looks as if it had been drawn in one sweeping gesture. The rich colors – gold, red, white, shades of blue – evoke regality and theatricality, humor and splendor, ecstasy and ornament.

A robust figure who looks like Icarus is the subject of Pacwine. In the myth, Icarus was incinerated for trying to make a trip to the sun with a pair of DIY wings. Here, though, the strapping god looks great, and his gigantic wings aren’t even singed. Did he survive the solar trip, or change his itinerary? With the grapes he holds, he could also be Dionysus, the god of wine and madness. Or is he really Hermé himself – Hermes, the winged messenger? Hermes is one of the busiest gods in the pantheon, in charge of agriculture, hospitality, friendship and sex, games and good luck. I love the white calligraphic lines that delineate his dark body, the curlicues of his joints, and the rosebud whirl inside the shoulder. And here’s a surprise: Pac-Man bouncing into the frame, eager to engulf a blood-red stream of wine that tilts out of the pagan altar (that’s a beautifully drawn phallic symbol of course). The layers of enclosure create security – the wings that shelter the god and his sun-warmed grapes, the dark floral scrolls framing the altar and Pac-Man, and the sun’s glow embracing the entire scene. In this conception Hermes is primarily a giver of life, the conduit of the earth’s abundance. He’s like the goat goddess who found the infant Zeus, the future king of the gods, and fed him with her milk.

The Mirror

In The Mirror, Hermé depicts a seated woman who appears to be gazing at herself in a hand-held mirror. The main surprise is that she has no head – the wavy line down her back suggests a swathe of long hair, but it turns into the inverted profile of a man. This vain woman seems to be losing herself, paradoxically, in her obsession with her own beauty. Is this a comment on the emptiness of narcissism? Or does vanity have utility after all? Can it create a negative space in a woman’s psyche and in her body, a point of vulnerability, permitting the man to enter? Another possibility is that the poor girl has literally lost her head over some guy. Everyone knows the feeling of being so much in love that everything looks upside down, including your own face in the mirror. This drawing also reminds me of Hermé’s charming self-portrait [see below] in which the artist uses the power of the drawn line to create his own body on the page. In this view we can take the seated figure in The Mirror to be the artist himself, who raises a mirror to life, and always reveals himself in his own creation.

Self-Portrait

Here is my interview with Hermé.

Where were you born, and where did you study?

I was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, one of the most beautiful cities in the world. I was inspired by this beauty and light. I have never studied drawing, but I always liked to draw (I have drawings I made at three years of age) and I started drawing professionally at age sixteen.

Who are your main influences?

I have always been greatly influenced by ancient Greek art. I have a fascination with the drawings on Greek vases. I have also been influenced by Picasso, Steinberg, and Roberto Burle Marx, among many others, and by Art Nouveau.

What do you use in your work?

I draw with all kinds of stuff, but I’m currently using a Wacom tablet (Cintiq 21 UX), and the Illustrator programs for Mac. I have a large number of printers for all purposes.

When did you become fascinated with wine?

I’m not exactly “fascinated” with wines. There was a time when I produced many drawings on this subject. I am now illustrating the works of Brazilian author Jorge Amado, and depicting women who are present in the work of this author.

What do you do when you’re not drawing?

I like to be very close to my family – children, wife, my dog, and some cats we had in our lives for five months.

-end-

English version see below.

toonpool.com: Herr Diekmann, kürzlich hat das Bild „Der Schrei“ von Edvard Munch für knapp 120 Millionen Dollar den Besitzer gewechselt. Sie selbst haben Karikaturen-Originale von toonpool.com-Künstlern angekauft. Setzen Sie in Zeiten der Euro-Krise persönlich auf Sachwerte?

Kai Diekmann: Selbstverständlich! Ich investiere schon immer mit Vorliebe in Sachwerte. Im Ernst: Ich war im Zusammenhang mit der Affäre um Christian Wulff überrascht und beeindruckt von den vielen kreativen Ideen der Karikaturisten. Häufig haben die Künstler in ihren Zeichnungen die Situation noch besser und eindrücklicher erfasst als manche politische Journalisten in ihren Texten. Das morgendliche Zeitunglesen hat mich oft zum Lachen gebracht. Und so entstand die Idee, die Karikaturen im Original zu kaufen, die sich mit BILD und Christian Wulff befasst haben, insbesondere auch mit seinem Anruf auf meiner Mailbox. Und inzwischen habe ich eine private Sammlung von über 25 Karikaturen – als Erinnerung an diese aufregenden Wochen.

toonpool.com: Karikaturen können den Karikierten verletzen. Früher wurden Künstler deswegen von den abgebildeten Mächtigen verhaftet oder verklagt (z.B. von Franz-Josef Strauß), was in einigen Ländern auch heute noch vorkommen kann. Müssen Politikerinnen und Politiker demgegenüber heute nicht froh sein, wenn sie Gegenstand von – auch sehr spöttischen – Karikaturen sind, weil sie andernfalls an Präsenz und Wichtigkeit verlieren?

Kai Diekmann: Es ist sicherlich auch ein Zeichen von Bedeutsamkeit, wenn Politiker in Karikaturen dargestellt werden. Die Künstler beschäftigen sich ja in den Zeichnungen mit den Themen, über die die Menschen sprechen, die die Menschen im Land interessieren. Und Themensetzung ist für die Politik wichtig. Sicherlich werden manche Politiker mitunter auch nicht glücklich sein, wenn sie karikiert werden – manchmal kann es auch hart sein, der Wahrheit und Wirklichkeit, wie Karikaturisten sie sehen, zu begegnen. Mich in jedem Fall faszinieren Karikaturen: Als leidenschaftlicher Zeitungsleser erkenne ich häufig den Strich eines Karikaturisten – vor allen Dingen von den Künstlern, die ich schätze und von denen ich eine besondere, kreative Botschaft erwarte. Leider müssen aber in manchen Ländern Karikaturisten nicht nur Probleme fürchten, in einigen Ländern werden Karikaturisten regelrecht bedroht, wenn Sie beispielsweise an die berühmten Mohammed-Karikaturen von Kurt Westergaard denken. Er erlebte nicht nur eine theoretische Drohung, er ist tatsächlich nur knapp einem Mordanschlag entkommen. Daher fand ich es so wichtig, dass Kurt Westergaard vor zwei Jahren im Rahmen der Medienkonferenz M100 in Potsdam von der Bundeskanzlerin und Joachim Gauck, der damals noch nicht Bundespräsident war, mit dem M100 Medien Preis ausgezeichnet wurde. Das war ein sehr richtiges und mutiges Zeichen

toonpool.com: Als gezeichneter Kommentar steht die Karikatur oft plakativ als Eyecatcher und Seitenaufmacher auf einer Meinungsseite. Haben die Zeichnerinnen und Zeichner damit mehr direkten Einfluss auf das Publikum als die schreibenden Kollegen, zugleich aber daher auch eine höhere Verantwortung?

Kai Diekmann: Ich weiß nicht, ob die Verantwortung höher ist oder der Einfluss größer – Karikaturen haben aber auf jeden Fall eine schnellere Wirkung auf den Betrachter. Über ein Bild oder eine Zeichnung ist eine Botschaft einfacher zu übermitteln als das durch einen Text möglich ist. Meine Zeitung heißt ja aus gutem Grund nicht „Text“ oder „Schlagzeile“, sondern „Bild“ – weil sich der Erfinder, der Verleger Axel Springer, etwas dabei gedacht hat. „Bild“ sollte die gedruckte Antwort auf das Fernsehen sein, Informationen einfacher zugänglich machen und mehr Menschen zum Zeitunglesen animieren. Das menschliche Gehirn ist für Buchstaben weniger empfänglich als für Bilder, Fotos oder Zeichnungen. Eine gute Karikatur macht einfach Spaß, zaubert ein Lächeln ins Gesicht und pflanzt einen Gedanken in das Gehirn der Betrachter. Und eine gute Karikatur funktioniert im Zweifelsfall auch ohne Bildunterschrift. Getreu dem Motto „Ein Bild sagt mehr als tausend Worte“ finde ich Karikaturen mitunter auch hintergründiger und noch mehr auf den Punkt als ein Text, weil natürlich auch ein emotionaler Aspekt hinzukommt.

toonpool.com: Bei Karikaturen und Cartoons ist der Übergang vom Journalismus zur unterhaltenden und ernsthaften Kunst fließend, zugleich verändert sich die Medienwelt rasant. Sind Karikaturen ein klassisches Old School-Element des Print-Bereichs, oder haben sie auch in anderen Medien eine fortlaufende Zukunft als wichtige Zeitdokumente?

Kai Diekmann: Ganz bestimmt haben Karikaturen eine Zukunft. Ihr erfolgreiches Portal zeigt ja, dass auch in der digitalen Welt der Bedarf nicht geringer, sondern größer wird. Am Ende interessieren sich die Leser für Inhalte und nicht für den Vertriebsweg. Ich sage meinen Kollegen immer: Wir sind keine Papierhändler, wir sind Journalisten, wir erstellen Inhalte. Auf welchem Weg wir unsere Konsumenten erreichen – ob auf gedrucktem Papier, im Internet oder auf dem Handy – ist letztlich zweitrangig. Bilder sind kompatibel für jedes Medium. Gerade in Zeiten des Informationsüberflusses spielen Bilder eine große Rolle – egal ob Fotos, Comics oder Karikaturen und unabhängig ob in der Zeitung oder Online. Viele Bilder wirken auf einer digitalen Oberfläche anders als auf gedrucktem Papier und darin bieten sich für die Zeichner große neue Chancen. Online oder auf dem Tablet und dem Smart-Phone kann ich die Karikatur, das Bild vergrößern und weitere Details entdecken. Ich liebe allerdings auch Papier. Eine Karikatur mit einem besonderen Strich auf Karton gescribbelt hat etwas Wunderschönes – deshalb habe ich die Originale ja auch erstanden.

toonpool.com: Es gibt Karikaturen, die sind inhaltlich sehr schnell verbrannt, nach wenigen Wochen weiß kaum noch jemand, worum es ging. Es gibt aber auch Zeichnungen, die stehen für den Zeitgeist einer Ära, sie werden zu Zeitdokumenten…

Kai Diekmann: Natürlich! Ich glaube, alle Karikaturen, die Sie hier vor sich sehen, sind Zeitdokumente – unabhängig davon, ob sie digitaler Herkunft oder direkt gezeichnet sind. Karikaturen behandeln ja per Definition ein Sujet, das – zumindest für den Moment – im kollektiven Gedächtnis ist. Und der Rücktritt eines Bundespräsidenten, vor allem mit den Ereignissen und Diskussionen im Vorfeld, bleibt sicherlich vielen Menschen noch lange im Gedächtnis.

toonpool.com: Und das liegt natürlich auch an der Wichtigkeit der Person…

Kai Diekmann: …und an der Wichtigkeit des Ereignisses, bei Karikaturen sind das meist politische Ereignisse. Mich wundert manchmal, dass sich die Karikatur in ihrer Mehrzahl fast ausschließlich mit Politik beschäftigt. Dabei gibt es doch so viele andere Bereiche und Personen, die eine Rolle spielen. Ich könnte mir beispielsweise auch Karikaturen zu Show-Größen wie Thomas Gottschalk oder Dieter Bohlen vorstellen. Aber die findet man – wenn überhaupt – nur ganz, ganz selten.

toonpool.com: Haben Sie selbst schon einmal eine Karikatur gezeichnet oder es versucht?

Kai Diekmann: Ja, als Schüler. Das ist grauenhaft in die Hose gegangen. Ich habe ein großes Faible für Kunst in allen Darstellungsformen: Malerei, Skulpturen, Fotografie – oder eben auch gute Karikaturen. Ich habe früher leidenschaftlich gern selbst fotografiert und als Schüler auch Fotowettbewerbe gewonnen. Und das Entwickeln von Filmen und Abzügen in Schwarzweiß hat mir riesigen Spaß gemacht. Aber was das Zeichnen angeht, bin ich – leider – völlig unbegabt. Wahrscheinlich kommt daher auch meine Bewunderung für die Kunst anderer.

toonpool.com: Von welchen Politikern haben Sie die Einschätzung, dass sie besonders viel Humor (und auch die Fähigkeit zur Selbstironie) haben?

Kai Diekmann: Da gibt es viele, parteiübergreifend: Angela Merkel, Gregor Gysi, Gerhard Schröder, Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg fallen mir ganz spontan ein. Sie können wunderbar über sich selbst lachen. Mit seinem Humor könnte Rainer Brüderle – wenn er mal aufhört, Politik zu machen – eine eigene Talk-Show ins Leben rufen oder als Kabarettist auftreten. Unsere Politiker haben durchaus Humor, das haben sie oft bewiesen. Denken Sie nur an den Orden wider den tierischen Ernst oder den unzähligen Faschings- und Karnevalsveranstaltungen, in denen eben genau die Politiker, die im Publikum applaudieren, durch den Kakao gezogen werden. Ich bin der Meinung: Ein gutes Maß an Selbstironie ist wichtig – nicht nur für Politiker. Das ist das Schöne an Karikaturen: Karikaturen machen Spaß und transportieren dennoch Kritik – auf eine feine, künstlerische Art und Weise.

Bernd Pohlenz (toonpool.com) und Kai Diekmann

Mehr Wulff-Cartoons hier

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Interview with Kai Diekmann, editor in chief of „BILD“,
Germany’s No.1 newspaper in circulation and reach,
who has purchased original cartoons by artists
of toonpool.com…

(Diekmann and his mobile phone played key roles in the affair surrounding Christian Wulff, Federal President of Germany, who finally had to resign in February 2012. As an encroachment on press freedom, Wulff had tried to prevent the coverage concerning charges of nepotism).

toonpool.com: Mr. Diekmann, the painting ‚The Scream’ by Edvard Munch was recently auctioned for almost 120 million dollars. You yourself purchased original cartoons by artists of toonpool.com. Do you personally rely on material assets in times of the Euro crisis?

Kai Diekmann: Of course I do! I have always taken great delight in investing in material assets. No kidding: I was surprised at the cartoonists’ copious amounts of creative ideas regarding the affair surrounding Christian Wulff. Quite often I noticed that some cartoonist conveyed the situation more precisely and better with his drawings than some political journalist with his/her op-ed article. Reading the paper each morning often made me laugh. And that’s when the idea occurred to me to purchase the original cartoons dealing with BILD and Christian Wulff and especially his phone call on my voicemail. And by now, I have acquired a private collection of more than 25 cartoons – in memory of these exciting weeks.

toonpool.com: Cartoons can insult the person that is caricatured. In the past, artists were arrested or sued for this very reason by some of the depicted powerful people. And even today things like that still happen in some countries. However, shouldn’t politicians be glad and flattered when they are chosen as the subject of a cartoon– even if it’s very scornful – because otherwise they would lose presence and significance?

Kai Diekmann: It’s certainly a sign of importance when politicians are depicted in cartoons. In their drawings the artists clearly are working to portray the subjects people are talking about and are interested in nationwide. And determination of subjects is important to politics. Some politicians might dislike it when they become the subject of a cartoon – at times it even can be hard to face the truth and reality interpreted by cartoonists. I for one am truly fascinated by cartoons: as an avid reader of newspapers, I often recognize the drawing technique of a cartoonist – especially if it is an artist I really appreciate, someone I expect a special and creative message from. Unfortunately, cartoonists in some countries are not only faced with problems, but are downright threatened – think about Kurt Westergaard (Danish cartoonist/editor’s note) and his caricatures of Muhammad. What happened to Kurt Westergaard was not just a theoretical threat on his life – in reality, he just narrowly escaped an assassination. That’s why I was positively impressed and deemed it right that, two years ago, German Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel honored Kurt Westergaard with the M100 Media Award at the M100 Media Conference in Potsdam, in attendance of Joachim Gauck (current Federal President of Germany and successor of Christian Wulff). An example had been set – a right and brave one.

toonpool.com: As a visual comment, a cartoon is often placed conspicuously as an eye catcher in the op-ed section of a paper. Does this mean that the artists have more direct impact (and therefore also more responsibility) on the audience compared to their writing colleagues?

Kai Diekmann: I don’t know whether the responsibility is higher or the influence larger – but it is certain that cartoons have a faster impact on the viewers. It’s easier to convey a message by using an image or a drawing than by using a text. My paper is called ‚BILD’ (image) and not ‚Text’ or ‚Headline’ for a very good reason – because its founder, publisher Axel Springer, had a precise idea concerning this. ‚Bild’ was intended to be the printed response to television, making information more accessible and enticing more people to read newspapers. The human brain is less receptive to letters than to pictures, photos or drawings. A good cartoon is simply fun, it leaves a smile on one’s face and plants an idea in the viewer’s mind. And a good cartoon even works without a caption. True to the motto ‚A picture is worth a thousand words’, I think cartoons are at times more profound and to the point than a text and of course joined by an emotional aspect.

toonpool.com: With caricatures and cartoons, the transition from journalism to entertaining and serious art is fluent, at the same time media world changes rapidly. Are cartoons a classic old-school element of print media, or do they also have a future in other media sections as important contemporary documents?

Kai Diekmann: Cartoons will most certainly have a future. Your successful internet portal is indeed demonstrating that even in the digital world demand is not going down but increasing. At the end of the day, readers are interested in contents and not in channels of distribution. I keep telling my staff: we are not paper merchants, we are journalists, we create contents. The way to capture our consumers – might it be on printed paper, in the internet or on mobile phone – is remaining secondary in the end. Images are compatible for every medium. Images are playing a central role, even more so in times of information overload – wether photos, comics or cartoons are concerned and regardless if on paper or online. Many images appear different on a digital display compared to printed paper – a fact which is providing great new opportunities for the artists. Online or on the tablet PC and on smart phone, I can enlarge a cartoon and discover more details. However, I love paper, too. A cartoon scribbled on paper with a unique drawing technique is really wonderful – that’s exactly why I acquired the originals.

toonpool.com: Some cartoons are quickly exhausted contentwise after a few weeks have elapsed, no one seems to remember what they were all about. But yet there are drawings that reflect the spirit of an era – they become contemporary documents…

Kai Diekmann: Positively! I believe all caricatures we see here are contemporary documents – regardless of whether they are of digital origin or directly hand-drawn. According to the definition, cartoons are covering a subject, which is – at least for a moment – remaining in collective memory. And the resignation of a Federal President is certain to be remembered for a long time by many people, especially with regard to the events and discussions leading to this decision.

toonpool.com: And that of course is also owing to the importance of a person…

Kai Diekmann: …and because of the significance of the event – taking into account that cartoons are most often dealing with political events. Sometimes I am surprised that the majority of cartoons almost exclusively deals with political subjects. On the other hand, there are so many other ambits and personalities which play a central role. For instance, I could well imagine caricatures about show legends like Thomas Gottschalk or Dieter Bohlen (German TV entertainers/editor’s note). But these kind of caricatures are very, very scarce.

toonpool.com: Did you ever draw or try to draw a cartoon yourself?

Kai Diekmann: Yes, in my school days but it went awfully bad. I have a huge passion for all kinds of art in all forms of expression: paintings, sculptures, photography – or good cartoons as well. I used to be a passionate photographer myself and even have won photography contests in my school days. And I really enjoyed developing black and white pictures. But speaking of drawing, I am – unfortunately – completely talentless. That’s also probably the reason why I admire the art of others.

toonpool.com: Which politicians do you think have a good sense of humor (and ability of self-irony)?

Kai Diekmann: There are so many, regardless of their parties: Angela Merkel (Federal Chancellor of Germany), Gregor Gysi (politician of left-wing party „Die Linke“), Gerhard Schröder (former German Federal Chancellor), Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg (former German Secretary of Defense) come to my mind spontaneously. They can easily laugh at themselves. Because of his good sense of humor, Rainer Brüderle (parliamentary party leader of party FDP) could create his own talk show or establish himself as a cabaret artist in case he will ever decide to quit his political career. Our politicians do have a sense of humor and have often proved so. For example take the countless carnival festivities where the applauding politicians in the audience are mocked. I am of the opinion: a healthy dose of self-irony is important – not only for politicians. That’s the beautiful thing about cartoons: cartoons are fun and yet, they convey criticism – in a fine and artistic way.

Das Interview führte: Bernd Pohlenz (toonpool.com)
Fotos: ©Christian Spreitz

The 5-star community
By Max Pohlenz / translated to English by mariposa

‚Rating’ is an ugly word. It almost sounds as though it describes the activity of one of the most hated, unloved, pestilential creature on this planet: the rat. Ever since 2008, the year of the financial crisis, the word has been on everyone’s lips and ears.

The keyword analysis site ‚Google Trends’ rates the search term ‚rating’ as following: the Search Volume Index decreased rapidly since 2004 from almost 1.50 to approximately 0.80, whereas the News Reference Volume continuously increased since the beginning of 2007, only to reach its short-lived climax on August 8 last year, when rumor had it that the USA was having difficulties in regaining the AAA rating level. To put it in a nutshell: the term ‚rating’ was less and less searched by google users, it turned out to be one of the most hated and unpopular words; and yet it had become irreversibly established in the news.

The rating system of toonpool.com was also hated, but indispensable for an online community like this. And while other portals equipped their users with new possibilities to participate in community life or adapted their rating system, time seemed to hang suspended in this department on toonpool.com – and time flies by dangerously fast on the internet. YouTube simplified its rating options by replacing the five star scale with ‚like’ and ‚dislike’ buttons, the nerdy artist community deviant-art seem to be free of any form of rating because of the invisible brotherhood band around its users, and many facebook users have started a cult in their blue and white cyber world by using the world-famous four-letter word: ‚Like’. Thumbs-up stickers posted all over the walls and doors of metropolitan IN-districts.

What is remarkable is that many facebook users have expressed their longing for a ‚dislike’ button. The most simple rating system is still too unperfect for some users. The biggest dislike group on facebook already has more than three million members, a number coming close to the population of Berlin. No matter what you call it – dislike, diss, bully, downgrade – giving negative ratings can release happiness hormones just like bitching and gossiping does. Since the beginning of my web existence in 1996, I witnessed the Seven Sins going online. All the evil comments and downgrades on the internet are revelations of Ira, the wrath and Invidia, the envy – all of this happening under the cloak of anonymity and by creating multiple identities or accounts, as though the internet and toonpool.com were teeming with schizophrenic stalkers diagnosed with bipolar disorder, who nowadays don’t seek attention by hooting and tailgating during evening rush hour, but arm themselves with mouse and keyboard. Web anonymity and rating agency – never before were these two subjects more present than in the last three years until today.

toonpool.com’s users have (as befits a community of artists) a much more creative approach to this topic. The toonpool forum lists eight threads about rating. As early as March 2008 – toonpool.com wasn’t even 6 months old – a (former) user suggested changes and another one vented his displeasure. Suggestions ranked from mathematic to sociological concerns and even included an expression of outrage, an ‚international scandal in the world of cartoons’, which was aimed at a cartoon competition in cooperation with stern.de. On stern.de, visitors were asked to vote for cartoons of Angela Merkel and Frank-Walter Steinmeier and owing to technical difficulties, the rating system seemed to have a manipulative property/character/touch.

In general, the cartoonist is a special type of the main category of artists: often sensitive, vulnerable, susceptible to criticism, and yet, unlike other creative beings, the cartoonist has the most powerful and dangerous instrument to fight back: the cartoon. The collection ‚the mysterious one-star-rater’ consists of a treasure of beautiful artworks about the mysterious legendary character peculiar to toonpool – the universally hated ‚one-star-rater’. At times he/it sits, as depicted by Dirk Berrens, in his quiet chamber like the phantom of the Opera in front of his gigantic screen, performing his evil doings

By Dirk Berrens

at times he kicks one and receives many stars due to the pain

By Oguz Gurel

or he kneels in front of a star-pooping donkey which is laughing at him (as pictured by Pascal Kirchmair).

By Pascal Kirchmair

These works express the general spirit of toonpool.com: it’s a wonderful and creative community, at times stubborn, at times odd and strange, but always artistic and genuine.  One subject will suffice, whether it be annoying or pleasant, local, global, analog or dialog: and voilá, there will be a response in the form of a cartoon.

Now the rating system is a relic of the past, instead we introduce a plain and simple heart. The new icon/symbol is an ancient/old message to the world. Make Love, not Stars. Or something along these lines. The Internet has become the most important rating instrument, you can give everything and everyone a grade: my house, my car, my wife. The victory of the Internet is also a victory of statistics, charts and databases. A little less of it will do us good, let’s hand out hearts instead.

Maybe the painting ‚The Scream’ by Edvard Munch is worth 120.000.000 $. The German translation for rating (‚Bewertung’) contains the word ‚value’ (‚wert’), so rating must involve a number – whether it be US dollars or toon-stars. Maybe the Norwegian masterpiece would have received one single star on toonpool.com. What is certain though is, that there won’t appear any cloaked people at an exhibition who stick yellow and white stars below the artist’s artworks. On the other hand there’s always plenty of applause at gallery openings – hence the applause button.

Epilog
During my communication design studies, I received a rating for one of my magazine layouts that initially shocked me, yet I learned to appreciate the view of the teacher: ‚That sucks.’ But communication design is no art either.

—————————————————————————————————————————————

Deutsche Version (German version)

Die 5-Sterne-Community
Von Max Pohlenz

“Rating” ist ein häßliches Wort. Fast klingt es, als beschreibe es die Tätigkeit eines der verhaßtesten, ungeliebtesten, pestbringenden Wesen auf dieser Erde: der Ratte. Spätestens seit 2008, dem Jahr der Finanzkrise, ist das Wort in aller Munde und Ohren.

Die Keyword-Analyseseite “Google Trends” bewertet, also “rated” den Suchbegriff “rating” wie folgt: der Search Volume Index sank seit 2004 rapide von fast 1,50 auf ungefähr 0,80, während die News Reference Volume seit Anfang 2007 stetig anstieg und einen kurzen Gipfel am 8. August letzten Jahres erfuhr, als bekannt wurde, daß die USA Schwierigkeiten damit haben, ihr Rating AAA wiederzuerlangen. Bedeutet: der Begriff “rating” wurde seltener von google-Usern gesucht, er wurde immer verhaßter und unbeliebter; gleichzeitig war er jedoch nicht mehr aus den Nachrichten wegzudenken.

Auch das Rating-System von toonpool.com war verhaßt, aber bei einer Online-Community nicht wegzudenken. Doch während andere Portale ihren Benutzern neue Möglichkeiten zur Beteiligung am Community-Leben zur Verfügung stellten oder ihr Rating-System anpaßten, blieb die Zeit bei toonpool.com in dieser Hinsicht ein bißchen stehen – und die Zeit im Internet dreht sich gefährlich schnell. YouTube vereinfachte die Bewertung von fünf Sternen auf ein großes “Mag ich” und ein kleines “Mag ich nicht”, in der nerdigen Künstlergemeinde deviant-art untersagt eine Art unsichtbares Bruderschaftsband die böse Abwertung, und viele facebook-User haben die vier weltberühmten Buchstaben zur Bewertung innerhalb ihrer blau-weißen Online-Welt zum Kult erklärt: “Like”. Längst kleben in allen Szenevierteln der Metropolen an Wänden und Türen selbsterstellte erhobene Daumen aus Papier.

Dabei werden immer wieder Stimmen aus den facebook-Untiefen laut, die nach dem “Dislike”-Knopf rufen. Das simpelste Bewertungssystem ist noch zu unperfekt für den einen oder anderen Benutzer. Die größte Dislike-Gruppe auf facebook zählt immerhin über drei Millionen Mitglieder. Wie man es auch nennt – disliken, dissen, mobben, downraten – das negative Bewerten kann wie das Lästern Glückshormone freisetzen. Seit dem Beginn meines Online-Seins 1996 sah ich neben allen großen Veränderungen auch dem Online-Gehen der Sieben Todsünden zu. In allen bösen Kommentaren und Downratings im Web zeigen uns Ira, der Zorn, und Invidia, der Neid, ihre Gesichter – dies alles unter dem Deckmantel der Namenlosigkeit und unter Zuhilfenahme von multiplen Identitäten und Accounts, als ob das Internet und auch toonpool.com nur so wimmle von schizophrenen Stalkern mit bipolaren Störungen, die sich heutzutage nicht mehr hupend und dicht auffahrend im Feierabendverkehr aufmerksam machen, sondern sich mit Mouse und Tastatur bewaffnen. Auf der anderen Seite kämpft die sehr erfolgreiche, erst sechs Jahre alte Piratenpartei in Deutschland um die Anonymität im Web – zurecht, denn trotz der Shitstorms auf etablierte Politiker, trotz Stalkern und Mobbing-Angriffen brauchen die Minderheiten ein Sprachrohr, eine Plattform, in der sie sich namenlos austauschen können, so wie es seit Beginn des modernen Internets möglich ist. Netz-Anonymität und Rating-Agentur – noch nie waren diese zwei Themen aktueller als in den letzten drei Jahren bis jetzt.

Die toonpool.com-Benutzer gehen, wie es sich für eine Künstler-Community gehört, oftmals deutlich kreativer mit dem Sachverhalt um. Im toonpool-Forum dreht sich in acht Threads alles um das Rating, schon im März 2008 – toonpool.com war nicht einmal ein halbes Jahr alt – schlug ein ehemaliger User Änderungen vor und ein anderer drückte seinen Unmut aus. Die Vorschläge waren manchmal mathematischer, manchmal soziologischer Natur und reichten bis zum Ausruf eines “Internationalen Skandals in der Cartoonwelt“, wobei letzeres sich auf einen Cartoonwettbewerb auf stern.de in Kooperation mit toonpool.com bezog. Besucher konnten dort für Cartoons über Angela Merkel und Frank-Walter Steinmeier stimmen, aufgrund technischer Pannen erhielt das Bewertungssystem einen manipulativen Charakter.

Der Cartoonist im gemeinen ist eine besondere Gattung der Oberkategorie Künstler: oftmals sensibel, verletzlich, leicht durch Kritik beeinflussbar, kann er jedoch im Gegensatz zu den übrigen schaffenden Kreaturen mit seiner gefährlichsten Waffe zurückschlagen: dem Cartoon. Die Collection “the mysterious one-star-rater“ birgt ein Dutzend wunderbarer Kunstwerke, die sich mit der mysteriösen, toonpool-eigenen Sagenfigur befassen, dem allseits verhaßten “One-Star-Rater”. Mal sitzt er, wie von Dirk Berrens dargestellt, dem Phantom der Oper gleich im stillen Kämmerlein vor dem Riesen-Screen und führt sein schmutziges Werk aus, mal tritt er gegen den einen und erhält vor Schmerzen viele Sterne oder kniet wie bei Pascal Kirchmair vor einem sternekackenden Esel, der ihn auslacht.

tl;dr

Nun ist das Rating-System Vergangenheit, an seiner Stelle prangt ein schlichtes Herz. Das neue Symbol ist eine alte Nachricht an die Welt. Make Love, not Stars. Oder so ähnlich.
Das Web selbst ist das größte Bewertungsinstrument geworden, man kann für alles und jeden eine Note erteilen: mein Haus, mein Auto, meine Frau. Der Sieg des Internets ist auch ein Sieg der Statistik, der Tabellen und Datenbanken. Ein bißchen weniger davon tut gut, verteilen wir stattdessen Herzen.

Vielleicht ist das Gemälde “Der Schrei” von Edvard Munch 120.000.000 $ wert. Die deutsche Entsprechung für Rating, “Bewertung”, enthält das Wort “wert”, Bewertung muß also zwangsläufig über eine Ziffer erfolgen – egal, ob die Einheit US-Dollar oder toon-Sterne heißt. Auf toonpool.com hätte das norwegische Meisterwerk vielleicht einen Stern erhalten. Mit Gewißheit kann man jedoch sagen, daß auf der Vernissage eines Künstlers keine vermummten Gestalten auftauchen, die gelbe und weiße Sterne unter seine Arbeiten kleben. Applaus gibt es allerdings oft auf Galerieeröffnungen – daher der Applause Button.

Epilog
Während meiner Ausbildung zum Kommunikationsdesigner erfuhr ich für einen meiner Magazin-Entwürfe eine Bewertung von meinem Dozenten, die mich zunächst schockierte, für die ich später aber dankbar war: “Das ist Scheiße”. Aber Kommunikationsdesign ist auch keine Kunst.

Image used for the preview by Medi Belortaja

"Supeeheroes" by Tim Leatherbarrow

"Excreta" by r8r

What I find astonishing is that pretty much all of the toilet cartoons show men only. There is just this one work featuring a female. How come? I am pretty sure women drop a deuce once in a while as well.

Check here for more cartoons.

Toonpool artist Munguίa combines a painter’s command of color with the bold, curvaceous line work and playful humor of a master cartoonist. This is a beautiful, shimmery, decorative style with echoes of Picasso and Klimt, folk art, even ancient mosaics. It’s interesting in itself, but that’s just the beginning. There is always a parody, a joke, a surprising connection or a deeper meaning. His dreamlike scenarios carry you back to childhood, when two unlikely words strung together could call up an instant picture in your head. Or the expression on a dog’s face could put you in a dream. Munguίa encourages the fantasy – and unleashes a gorgeous world of zany, serendipitous delight.

Hawaiian Pizza

A surprised-looking pizza chef catches a wave at sunset on a huge slice of ham-and-pineapple pizza, in Hawaiian Pizza 2. His teal-blue color makes him pop against the red-orange sea of tomato sauce. The waves are foamy with sliced tomatoes, and after a moment it becomes clear what those clouds are – Midas-touched dollops of mozzarella. Like the surfer, we’re carried along by the wave’s red curve and the edge of the pizza slice, to a surprise at lower left – the setting sun frames a tiny bikini-clad girl on a sailboat, with a slice of pizza for the sail. There’s a hum of movement and contrast – flat space gives way to sudden depth, intricate patterns break up smoother areas of color, all in support of the carefree figure at the center with the enviable lifestyle. I would love to be this guy!

What if valet parking were really Ballet Parking, with the lot attendants pirouetting en pointe! In a play on cama, the Spanish word for bed, two beds are entwined in ecstasy in Kamasutra. And I love the sheer outrageousness of Barbies, with the bearded tranny Barbie dolls still encased in their boxes.

Munguίa’s masterwork parodies are always affectionate. A favorite of mine: Monalisa Giving the Finger! At first blush, the cartoonist seems to be putting the most famous painting of all time in its place. But the artist is actually in collusion with his timeless subject. He’d like to give her a break. The lady has been dying to do something rude for a few hundred years, and Munguίa finally gives her the chance!

Monalisa giving the finger

My recent interview with Munguίa.

Francisco Munguia

Where were you born, where did you study, and where do you live now?

I was born and raised in San Jose, Costa Rica. I’m currently living in Guadalupe, a canton of San José, the capital.

Which artists inspire you the most?

As a child I was a fan of Garbage Pail Kids and Topps sticker collections. The style of John Pound influenced me as much as Matt Groening and Quino. My country recognizes the influence of my colleagues Nano, Arcadio and Ferrom in my work.

You use a beautiful painterly technique in your cartoons – do you also put cartoons in your paintings?

I just do cartoons – the techniques are what I change. Sometimes I do acrylic paintings, ceramics, sculptures, animations and video games – all related in the unity of my own style into humoristic art.

How do you work?

When working digitally I start with an original drawing with ink on paper, then scan it and color it on the computer. I usually use Photoshop, but now I’m using a Bamboo Tablet and Animator to put color to my drawings on paper. In addition to publishing my drawings on toonpool, I produce the Calcamunguías, a series of stickers printed on vinyl. The collection started ten years ago, and so far there are 1,226 images and counting. Some are printed on tee shirts, and others are printed on ceramic tiles and then shown in galleries.

What do you do when you’re not doing art?

I’m a husband and father of two children. I live with Deborah, Fausto (two and a half) and Fidel (a year and eight months), along with twenty-two dogs recovered by my wife from the street. In our shelter we had five dogs with three legs, two one-eyed dogs, a scarface one, ex-fighters, and mental illness. All good behavior, quiet and clean, thanks to my wife who has an extra-special ability to change the sad and sick into the happy and healthy.

I do art all the time. I paint and program video games for my kids, I help my wife in her work with illustrations and videos, and I also help many animal welfare groups and associations. I love to cook, I move furniture around the house, and I do installations.

More of Munguίa´s work you find here.

„50 YIL 50 KARİKATÜR: ALMAN KARİKATÜRİSTLERİN
GÖZÜYLE TÜRKLER“

Ausstellungseröffnung und Vorstellung des Ausstellungsprojektes:
Sergi Açılışı ve Sergi Projesinin Tanıtımı:
Bernd Pohlenz, Karikatür Sanatçısı ve „Gesellschaft für Karikaturen toonpool.com“ Bașkanı
Cartoon-Künstler und Präsident der „Gesellschaft für Karikaturen toonpool.com“

12.4.2012 18.30
Yer / Ort: Goethe-Institut Ankara

Die Ausstellung ist bis einschl. 28.4.2012 (außer sonntags und 23.4.2012)
täglich 13.00-18.00 geöffnet
Sergi 28.4.2012 tarihine kadar (Pazar günleri ve 23.4.2012 hariç)
hergün saat 13.00-18.00 arası gezilebilir.

Poster for the Exhibition in Ankara

Die Ausstellung „50 Jahre – 50 Karikaturen: Türken in Deutschland aus der Sicht deutscher Karikaturisten“ reflektiert die verschiedenen Phasen türkischer Lebenswelten in Deutschland. Insbesondere die letzte Phase der türkisch-europäischen Beziehungen, die Ausländerfeindlichkeit, die sich insbesondere nach dem 11. September intensivierte, die Leitkultur sowie der Einbürgerungstest haben in den letzten Debatten über Migranten zu einem Anstieg der Karikaturen geführt. Aber abgesehen davon hat auch der Transfer von Denkweisen der türkischen Migranten in diese Eingang Anklang gefunden. Daher ist zu sagen, dass die türkischen Migranten in den deutschen Medien einen besonderen Stellenwert einnehmen und in keiner Weise mit anderen Migrantengruppen in Deutschland verglichen werden können. Dies zeigt sich auch in den Karikaturen der Ausstellung.
„50 Yıl – 50 Karikatür: Karikatüristlerin Gözüyle Türkler” sergisi, Almanya’da yaşayan Türklerin değişik dönemlerdeki yaşam biçimlerini anlatmaktadır. Özellikle son dönemdeki Türkiye-AB ilişkileri, 11 Eylül sonrası gelişmelere bağlı olarak yoğunlaşan yabancı düşmanlığı, öz kültür, vatandaşlık testi gibi ayımcılık politikaları, çifte vatandaşlık, göçmenler üzerinden yapılan siyasi tartışmalar bu karikatürlerde geniş yer buldu. Ancak en az onlar kadar Türk göçmenlerin yaşadıkları topluma yönelik zihniyet transferleri de bu karikatürlere yansıdı. Sergilenen bu karikatürlerde de görüldüğü gibi, Türklerin Alman medyasında başka hiç bir göçmen grupla karşılaştırılmayacak

See all participating cartoons here<<