Category: News

The US Is In Serious Distress

These are some drawings I did in the last twenty four hours in response to the brutal killing of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis, and the subsequent riots and protests around the country in major cities. This follows many other recent racist acts in our country.

Having lived through the 1960’s and 70’s, I remember how important, yet how frigentening and disturbing these events are. We need the protests to fully recognize and acknowledge how serious racisim is, how deeply engrained in our culture and poltical system it still is. We don’t need violence, we don’t need looting, we don’t need vandalism; but anger is clearly understandable and any violence during the protests I hope will be short lived. Protest is a form of speech for those who feel they are not being heard. Violence during protests only obscures the speech and is counterproductive.

 

A flag upside down is an international symbol of distress.

We have to be better as human beings towards our fellow human beings. I am not sure what it will take; we do not have a leader to help us through this. We have to be better, each and every one of us, on a one-to-one basis.

One thing I know: vote for change in America. Our current president is only inciting the violence.

I drew these live, on Instagram TV and Periscope. Videos to come.

 

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Drawing During The Pandemic

The global corona virus pandemic is altering so many things. It’s changing lives; it’s changing life.  We are all in this together, all over the world, but it is affecting people differently, and in different ways. As a cartoonist, my job is to reflect what is going on in the world, or in my small sphere of the U.S. I have been drawing a lot about how the virus is affecting us.

This cartoon on the left was actually drawn pre-pandemic, but it was run during the pandemic. The one on the right was certainly autobiographical and done during the pandemic. It ran this week in The New Yorker

This was submitted to The New Yorker for a Daily Cartoon, but they didn’t buy it. I drew this at the height of the surge of cases in NYC.

 

 

 

These three cartoons were done in the last few weeks. The New Yorker didn’t buy these either.

Being at home is something that most cartoonists are accustomed to, but it’s starting to get to me. I feel disconnected. It’s true that I draw to connect with people, even at a distance, and I still do that. That’s one reason why I love social media so much. I can just put drawings there for people to enjoy, comment on, share. But being home all the time, I was searching for something else to do to connect, to help. One day, early in the pandemic, I set up my phone over my hand and drew for the camera, lightly talking about what I was feeling and doing. But also letting the pen make it’s lovely pen-sounds for the video. People told me they felt calm after watching me draw, and that is all I needed to hear. I would do it every day if watching me draw helped some people to feel better. And so now I am doing just that. Every day, I draw on Instagram Live and Periscope at around 5pm ET.

Here is one of the early ones.

Beginning soon after this one, I started talking to the camera more, as I drew.

And I began doing animations every day as well.

You can see all my animations and live drawing on my YouTube channel, or Instagram.

We do what we can to cope, and this is what I can do.

Another Approach To The News

News is being tossed at us every second, on every phone, tablet, monitor and paper.

What is news?

It’s weather, traffic, politics, culture, accidents, murders, tragedies, new things, old things that have gone away, celebrities, movie news, technology, things to worry about. News outlets try to get at what they think you need, what they think is the most important, that is useful… what their advertisers will like. They try to think what you will want.

News is a scramble for your attention.

I love the news. I love politics. I love knowing what people are doing, what new things are being discovered, what our politicians are trying to do, or what they are not doing. I love hearing about people who inspire. I want to hear about people in trouble across the globe.

I love to draw the news.

I draw not only the obvious, I draw what isn’t seen. What’s on the side, what’s behind the scene, to the left of center, or right of center.

Who is setting up the coffee, who is operating the cameras, what does the bank of tech experts look like, who is taking out the trash? People on the subway, in a store.

These things are news, but they are also not news in the sense we have come to think. Seeing on the edges of things rounds out an understanding of what is going on. It tells us a story that is deeper than just the main event, a narrative that enriches the loudness of what we are being told to focus on.

Pretend that you’re watching the Impeachment hearings and wonder: who brings the speakers their water? Was there a line to get in to the room? Were there pastries? Those are the things I draw, along with Senators, Congressmen and experts.

What I am doing is like a moment of silence. It gives the viewer/reader a moment to pause. Reflect if they like. Think a little bit more about something – perhaps something not related to what I drew and what they saw.

My digital drawings of my observations of the world are like a breath. Stop and look. Take it in. Take a moment and reflect. Pause. No yoga involved, no meditation, no higher power, no machine to help with endorphins. Just a moment, sparked by a visual. Our eyes tell us so much, but we often only listen to a small bit of what they are saying. We don’t take to time to see, really see.

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Some of these images have been on CBS NewsNBC social, CNNFusionThe New YorkerHindustan Times and others. People tell me they enjoy following events through my lens. I even drew the NYC Marathon as I ran it, and finished! I wrote about it here.

My lens is that of a silent observer, walking quietly around with my tablet, going unnoticed as I draw what I see. It is the eyes of someone with 40 plus years as a professional observer – i.e. cartoonist – of people, culture and news.

News is what is around us. All of it.

Samples of my visual journalism in drawing and videos:

My trip to the White House

collection of videos on website

Women’s March

Thanksgiving videos and drawings

Red Carpet roll out at Oscars

Drawing in Geneva

Radio City

Drawing the 92nd Academy Awards

It’s always an enormous treat to go to Los Angeles and draw the Academy Awards red carpet and show. This year was no different; my fifth time in attendance drawing. I never take my luck for granted.

I arrived two days in advance of the Sunday broadcast so that I could draw behind the scenes and walk around the neighborhood.

After arriving on site, I get my credentials and head down to the red carpet area to see what’s going on. There were the usual suspects: journalists dressed up and practicing on camera, and men in dark suits seeming to be guarding things. The carpet was still covered in plastic.

These two men were rocking their mustaches.

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This woman is one of the many wonderful Press Guides who are assigned areas, to help, and to correct behavior. These Oscar letters and little statue were a favorite for selfies and photos, but it was forbdded from sitting on the red riser.

The next day, I went directly to where all the action usualy is, and the carpet was red in all it’s glory, sans plastic covering. I tried to capture the red that they chose for the carpet (its the same every year), but I never sure I get it right. It’s a bit more crimson than what I could create. But you get the idea.

Saturday you can really feel the buzz. People are arriving and artistis are touching up things and fixing lights. Jourrnalists are sharing what they see with their audiences; I heard many foreign languages.

I loved watching these two set designers below work on different spots of the red carpet over the course of the days leading up to the event day.

Again this year, I was given access to the theater during dress rehearsal, something I love to draw since I am not allowed in the theater during the broadcast on Sunday.

I am escorted to these behind-the-scenes places by a trusty “Press Guide.” The Academy has many wonderful, helpful people working as Press Guides each year, and I have gotten to know many of them. They are great.

Some celebrities showed up to deliver their presenter lines. I was fortunate to see Tom Hanks, Signorney Weaver, Gal Gado, Bri Larson, Mindy Kaling and Spike Lee!

In the balcony, I get full view of the beautiful set.

Also a really fun tradition for me is to visit the kitchen and draw the chefs and cooks, prepping for the weekend’s parties.

Wolfgang Puck

So many chefs, so much detail for a dinner for 600 on Saturday night. Below right is the scene I saw of waiters , dressed in black, waiting to pick up food from the chefs, in white, to take out for the cocktail party. They are reading the menus.

This guy had yet to be uncovered.

On Sunday at noon, with my black dress and red shoes on, I grabbed a tripple shot coffee and went to the carpet for the big day. Media were instructed to be on the carpet, “locked in,” by 1:00pm. Otherwise we would not be allowed in.

Academy Awards Show production directors Matt Spill and Lauren Selman

The expandable cart was brought in!

About an hour into the red carpet — while it was still relatively quiet and no nominees had shown up yet— it started to pour. The area is covered by a plastic roof , and pockets of rain began to gather in spots near where I was standing. Getting heavier and fuller by the minute, the Oscar red carpet team quickly began to push up the plastic and allow the water to find its exit off the plastic. It was kind of exciting!

I saw dresses galore. This year, they seemed big and bold and very often red.

And then nominees and stars began to slowly show up.

Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson were among the last minute arrivals.

Then just before the show was to begin, we quickly walked up to the Media Interview room, where all the international media had designated spots to watch the show on monitors. And then when the winners were announced, the came into the room to be asked questions.
No photos are allowed, but I grabbed imagery — drawings — of some of the winners.

Creators of Hair Love, winner of best animated short

Best actor, Joaquin Phoenix, best supporting actor, Brad Pitt, best supporting actess Laura Dern and best actress Renee Zellweger.

The show’s script and choice of presenters was clearly an effort to be open, and acknowlege the gender and diversity issues that have plagued the Academy Awards nominations. What I witnessed was a more diverse and cohesive day. And an historic one at that, with Parasite winning Best Picture, the first non-American film to do so.

I love visually chronicalling the Oscars, and sharing what I see in real time on social media. Through my drawings, I hope to express our shared joy of film. I hope to convey what I believe it’s about: telling others’ stories — which so often are also our own — and realizing our common humanity.

Live Drawing And Running The NYC Marathon: The day I slapped a thousand hands

I never expected to run a marathon, but I did, and in my favorite city in the world, New York City. It was not a decision that came easily; I have been a runner on and off for years, and it was only this year that I began to increase my distance. What motivated me was that I wanted to raise money for cancer research; our daughter just recently successfully battled thyroid cancer and I wanted to help. I discovered a group that assists athletes in both fundraising and training. The coach at Team in Training, a part of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, convinced me that I could do it. I signed on

Soon, I decided that I would draw the marathon as I ran it. In one of my half marathons earlier in the year, I had drawn a few images of runners and scenes on my iPhone with my finger. I thought this would be great to do during the marathon as well. For this, however, I chose to use a mini iPad so that I could draw more complete images?—?the size of my iPhone was limiting and was the use of my finger instead of a stylus. For the run, I bought a protective case and strap, and it ended up being perfect.

Training was tough, but I enjoyed the challenge, and I am grateful to my body for cooperating. Even still, I knew the marathon would be really hard and a big stress on my system. I went into this with eyes wide open: I might not complete it, but that’s okay.

 

 

 

“Anger is there, just below the surface”: an interview in China

Why did the brushstroke become gentle and intense from mild to 40-year-old cartoonist for The New Yorker?

(article by Zhang Yiyi for the Daily Q,  from an interview I gave while in Beijing in 2018. Translated from Chinese by Google. Original–with more cartoons– can be viewed here)

   by  Zhang Yiyi    January 22

She said that I want to express a kind of politics that is more culturally level, because “anger is there, just below the surface”

Liza Donnelly was looking down and painting, and the tourists sneaked past her, stopping to watch her work from time to time; people were talking around her, but she didn’t look up, as if she was blending with the brick wall under her feet.

“There is a feeling of meditation.”

She took her iPad tablet wherever she went. About two years ago, this lightweight electronic product replaced her pen and paint, but the same thing was done, observation, integration and capture.

A few minutes on the Great Wall, she drew an old man wearing a melon hat and bending over the ground; outside the subway station, she saw the hawker carrying the bag selling the small flag. “Interestingly, she (hawker) will I handed the flag directly to the child and tried to get their parents to pay. I also painted this.”

 
The journey of China is sketched. From the artist’s homepage

Donnelly lives in New York. In 1979, she successfully sold her paintings to The New Yorker for the first time and has since become a full-time cartoonist.

Today, she is one of the most well-known political cartoonists in the world, and she has won numerous awards for her collaboration with The New Yorker. Her cartoons also appear in various media such as The New York Times, CBS, FOX News, and Politico. In recent years, she has been known for real-time live painting – a new form of visual reporting, and Donnelly became the first cartoonist to enter the Oscars.

“I tried to capture the little things that other people couldn’t see.” She would paint a gorgeous host and a star on the red carpet; she would also drill behind the curtain to sketch a worker who was finally retouching the Oscars. .

She was also invited to participate in the Grammy Awards Ceremony, the 2016 Democratic National Convention and the White House press conference, which gave live coverage of the 2017 US presidential election.

 
 
Oscar awards ceremony. From the artist’s homepage

To this day, on the stage of creating laughter, women’s voices are disproportionately lacking, talk shows, satirical cartoons, comedy movies… A stereotype is that women themselves are not so funny, and funny is a man’s job.

When Donnelly joined the New Yorker’s team of cartoonists, only three female cartoonists worked there, but she ” never thought she was a female cartoonist; I was just a cartoonist who happened to be a woman.” Ten years ago, she was inspired to write a book called “Funny Lady” to celebrate the work of female cartoonists in a male-dominated profession. Later, she wrote a lot of books.

But beyond all this, contributing to The New Yorker is still her regular daily routine. Turn newspapers, read news, pick up buzzwords and trends, do some daydreams and graffiti, splicing together different character scenes, and finally send 6 to 7 paintings to comic editors, waiting for the review day’s choice – A daily sacred for all comic authors.

Her work is usually a small single painting, the picture and lines are not complicated, and with a few narration or dialogue, it gives a illusion that seems to be effortless. This is a typical New Yorker commentator. Comic style.

Faced with Donnelly, it is difficult for people to immediately correspond to the name of her political cartoonist. From the speed of speech to the way of behavior, she exudes a peace. Especially when evaluating peers, she repeatedly reiterated that “I am not willing to judge people” and “should allow different ways and styles to exist”.

But as Bob Mankoff , a former comic book editor for The New Yorker, said , “Humor is a sober.” For Donnelly, comics are her resistance to many of the world’s rules, in a way that is her own.

“This is your first day – how about giving him another 12 years?” From the artist’s homepage
 

Donnelly spent his childhood in Washington. In the late 1960s, the United States was moving with intense and active air. The Kennedy assassination was in turmoil. As the United States deepened and deepened in the Vietnam War, the anti-mainstream hippie culture rushed to the top, Woodstock’s love and peace. Quickly twisted into a radical anti-war force.

The civil rights movement and the feminist movement flourished, and in the context of many old orders being broken, the younger generation was forced to think about their place in the times.

“I think I was scared at the time, because the whole world is full of uncertainty… Like all other young people, I feel extremely distrustful of the government.”

She knew from the outset that she was not the type of person who would stand up and shout slogans. The comics became an outlet for her current situation and political complex emotions. “Although I didn’t end up being an activist, in the subconscious, these experiences made me question many things.”

However, this was not fully reflected in her early work on The New Yorker. She painted some gentle and everyday little cartoons, with occasional sporadic comments about elections, or gun rights. At that time, Donnelly felt that he was not enough to understand politics to the point where he could judge him.

Until the “9.11” incident occurred.

“I was really shocked… I felt that I couldn’t even continue to draw comics anymore, and nothing seemed to be funny.”

A few months later, The New Yorker bought one of her comics. In the picture is a living room, the news anchor on the TV is talking about something, the little girl looked up and sat on the sofa, the father holding the newspaper asked: “Dad, can I stop worrying now?”

“Dad, can I stop worrying now?” From the artist’s homepage
 

This work is of great significance to Donnelly. Not only does she mean that she has come out of a weak creative dilemma, but she also realizes another possibility of political cartoons.

In the same period, there was a cartoon from other authors that impressed her: a pair of men and women stood next to the bar counter, the men in them wore a very funny jacket, and the lady said: “I thought I could never laugh again. It is.”

“I think this perfectly describes the situation at the time,” Donnelly said. In the face of huge trauma or major political issues, in addition to collective grief or anger, a sense of humor can also have a place. “It’s not just taking this situation to have fun, but really trying to pass on something.”

Since then, she has been increasingly involved in the field of political comics and has focused on the topic of women’s rights.

“I realized that you can draw cartoons about culture and politics without having to be angry.” Political cartoons are a long-standing existence in American history. But in the early days, even until the growth of Liza, the style of this type of work was mainly directed at straightforward, “noisy” and intense emotions.

 
 

“American Wall”, 1916. From the Library of Congress

The picture is often filled with red-faced people, ugly and exaggerated politicians, and a large number of symbolic images, which are still widespread today. In contrast, it is Donnelly’s “quiet comics.”

“Anger is there, just below the surface. I want to talk about some problems with comics, but I don’t want to push people away, comics should create a dialogue; and anger sometimes pushes readers away, not pulling them Into the conversation.”

Some cartoonists can lead readers through time and space, from the medieval battlefield with helmets and armor to the suspended outer space. For example, in the story of Liza’s husband, Michael Maslin, a New Yorker cartoonist, the protagonist may be an ancient cave family.

Donnelly’s story is more everyday. Her comic scene is nothing more than a shuttle between the living room, the office, and the roadside. The frequency of dental clinics is particularly high.

As you can see from the earliest works, Donnelly never wants to build a fantasy world view. These everyday scenes are tools that can be pinched in her head for every new conversation or idea.

The advantage of this style is that the reader can quickly enter the character and empathize with the characters in the picture. Over time, people will have a feeling that the temperament of the city permeates the most ordinary day-to-day; politics does not only occur in the congress halls and political programs.

“The politics I want to express and explore is a kind of politics that is more culturally oriented,” Donnelly said.

 
 
 
“I agree – the high heels are awful.” From the artist’s homepage

“For example, I have a lot of comics related to women’s rights, but I often pay attention to how people communicate with each other and how to treat each other. This can be very quiet, but at the same time it can expose some potential problems. This is the way I prefer. Comments on different trends, comments on changes in gender relations, changes in family relationships, etc. These things are just like other things, and they are also a political discussion.”

 
 

#METOO ??. From artist Medium

Compared with novels or movies, comics have a very special aspect. It is always commentative and has an attitude; compared to commentators, comics are more approachable.

Donnelly said, “If you can make a person laugh, they may see some different perspectives… And who doesn’t like to watch cartoons?”

But this is not all, comics can also create barriers and become a destructive force.

Beginning in September 2005 , 12 cartoons of the satirical Islam Prophet Muhammad were published in the largest daily newspaper in the Netherlands, the Jutland Post, which caused great dissatisfaction in the Islamic world and brought the horrors of some extremists. Threats, and subsequent series of news and political events.

Ten years later , the French political satire magazine Charlie Hebdo was attacked by terrorists, killing 12 people, including several senior editors and cartoonists.

These two events have greatly shaken the political comic world around the world. Many people believe that comics are not a problem in themselves, but only intensify tensions and dynamics in some eras. In a global predicament, comics seem to act as a mirror to magnify a small editorial editorial decision into an internationally influential, multi-level political and diplomatic conflict.

But in any case, these things force cartoonists to rethink their profession and their role in society.

At the time of the Danish comics event, Donnelly spoke at the United Nations as a representative of the Peace Comic Organization; after the Charlie Hebdo incident, she was invited to participate in the 5th International Conference of News Cartoonists held in Caen, France. “Charlie Weekly” and freedom of speech begin. She also wrote a commentary on the matter for the New York Times . “Although we must be strong, seditious images or words are not always the answer… Although these decisions are very personal, I fully defend my rights to do so.”

“In many comics that appeared immediately after the Paris attack, the pen was expressed as a sword or a gun. I may be naive, but I don’t think my pen is a gun, but I think of it as an olive branch.”

 
 
“Freedom of the press.” From the artist’s homepage

Humor can create empathy and bring people together, but at the same time can be used as a weapon to strengthen prejudice and stereotypes, attack and alienate those different people. Donnelly believes in freedom of the press, but she also believes that when she sits down to write an editorial, she needs to draw a personal bottom line.

The 2016 US election is an important moment for many cartoonists. Even the artists who used to be less involved in political topics felt the need to speak. For a time, social media began to be active in a variety of voices, and Donnelly was one of them.

The New Yorker is not her only platform for her work. A few years ago, she posted her work on social media, some essay-like content creations, and some New Yorkers might not choose to publish. These quickly made her a well-respected commentator.

During the campaign, she published a variety of comics. In her pen, Trump is a small man in big shorts, with an exaggerated airplane head and a slingshot aimed at his opponent. “Because for other candidates, he is like a campus bully.”

That series of works became one of the most intense and straightforward creations of all her paintings.

 
 

Immigrant children. From artist Medium

After Trump was elected, Donnelly didn’t know what to do for a while; when she picked up the brush again, she made a decision, she abandoned Trump’s big shorts – one in many people’s eyes Itching design. “This country is already full of divisions, so go and laugh at him… Of course, I am not criticizing my other peers, but I am really a different type of cartoonist.”

“I don’t want my comics to make this crack bigger and bigger.”

That’s why Donnelly hasn’t joined the AAEC (American Political Comics Association) for a long time. “I don’t paint ‘those’ comics, they don’t want me.” But things have changed, AAEC is starting to be different. The form is open. Today, Liza has become the vice chairman of the association.

 
 
 
Liza Donnelly. From the artist’s homepage

For 40 years, Donnelly is both a commentator and a record of change in the times.

She continues to draw comics for different media and tries different forms on her personal Medium blog site . At the same time, she wrote illustrations for The New York Times and CNN. Recently, CBS invited her to make a short video about Air Force One and Trump how to transform it.

In the process, she has been thinking about the role and significance of comics.

To this day, although she has been invited to speak and participate in activities around the world, she still feels that cross-cultural communication is a very difficult thing. She represents the voice of the white American New York Upper East Side and does not represent the will of everyone.

In a TED talk , she talked about “I lived the privileged life of the Americans, but I tried to figure out who I am and why I felt very difficult when I was here… Comics has always been my savior. And I believe The ability of art to open people’s horizons is unique – not just for those who use it.”

In her comics, she tries to expose some stupid and absurd behaviors of Americans. Put pressure on yourself and others in your daily life, trying to explore political issues by portraying how people react and absorb these pressures.

 
 
 
“As long as the water?” – Dessert waiter. From the artist’s homepage

Donnelly started painting at a very young age, “because I realized that I can make my mom laugh. It’s very important.” Growing up in a middle-class family, her childhood is not as calm and warm as some people think. . Parents are always arguing, and there is a problem girl’s sister.

Comics became a tool she tried to heal the cracks in the family. Although it did not seem to work, she laughed at herself, and eventually her parents divorced her sister to go to jail. But the comics have been with her to the present, helping her to try to repair the cracks in society.

“Sometimes people ask me if I think comics can change the world. In reality, it’s hard to rely on comics to change anyone’s thoughts, even though it’s been done in history… but we hope to bring change, many The cartoonists are like this, optimists who are pessimistic about the world.” She told Curiosity Daily.

Donnelly recorded his trip to China on the blog, along with all the essays on the trip. The picture captures a lot of novel moments for her: the pancake fruit stalls are hot; the three rounds of cardboard recycling are overloaded; the uncles play chess on the benches before the newsstand…

“At the beginning of my journey, the plane was about to land in Beijing, and I noticed the moon outside the window,” she wrote at the end. “I suddenly realized that this moon is the same as the moon I saw in my hometown. We all live under the same moon.”

 
 
 
The journey of China is sketched. From the artist’s homepage

The title picture “You are fired.” From the artist’s homepage