Eric Jolliffe | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1907-01-31)31 January 1907 Portsmouth, England |
| Died | 16 November 2001(2001-11-16) (aged 94) Central Coast,New South Wales, Australia |
| Occupation | Cartoonist,illustrator, artist (painter) |
| Nationality | Australian |
Eric Ernest JolliffeOAM (31 January 1907 – 16 November 2001)[1] was an Australian cartoonist and illustrator.
Born inPortsmouth, England, he was the youngest boy in a family of twelve children. The family migrated toPerth,Western Australia, in 1911 before moving toSydney after six months, where they settled inBalmain. Joliffe left school at the age of fifteen and spent the next six years in countryNew South Wales andQueensland, working as aboundary rider,rabbittrapper and inshearing sheds.
A visit toAngus & Robertson bookstore, while visiting his family in Sydney, led to the discovery of a book on drawing. He afterwards reflected: "I learned to my surprise that art wasn't necessarily a gift divine but a craft that could be studied and worked at".[1]
Jolliffe enrolled in an introductory course atEast Sydney Technical College (now theNational Art School), where his teachers commented on his lack of talent. During theGreat Depression he worked as a window cleaner, during which time he inundatedThe Bulletin with cartoons, which they initially rejected. Eventually they began to buy his cartoons and by the beginning ofWorld War II he became a regular contributor, taking overAndy fromArthur Horner. During the war, he served as a camouflage officer with theRAAF and spent time inArnhem Land.[1]
After the war, he joinedSmith's Weekly but resigned and began freelancing by selling his cartoon stripsSaltbush Bill andWitchetty's Tribe toPix magazine.[2] He was particularly fond of "bush" subjects. Another cartoon strip,Sandy Blight, appeared in Sydney'sSun-Herald. In 1973, Jolliffe began publishing his own magazine,Jolliffe's Outback.
George Blaikie recalled in 1979 that Jolliffe "had humped the bluey and toiled at all kinds of farm and station jobs. Wherever he went he sketched the minutiae most people failed to see – shacks and sheds, funny old gates and tree stumps they hinged on, bark roofs, billabongs and cows in bogs. Such authentic reference was poured into his gags and he became our most brilliant interpreter of the countryside."[3]
Australian Aborigines figured largely in Jolliffe's work, including in his numerous pen and pencil portraits inWitchetty's Tribe. Jim Hodge observed that "sensitivity without sentiment describes his approach"[3] and Tony Stephens noted that "Joliffe made Aboriginal men hunters with a sense of humour" and "the women as beautiful as ... models".[1]
Jolliffe's cartoons enjoyed great success with the Australian reading public.Saltbush Bill ran "inPix magazine for almost 50 years from 1945" and his other series experienced similar success.[1]
From 1932, Jolliffe was married to the Scottish-born May H. Clark. She died in Chatswood in 1993.[4] Their daughter Margaret ("Meg") had died in 1989.[1][5]
He died on 16 November 2001 at the age of 94. His funeral service was held atOurimbah on theCentral Coast of New South Wales.[1]
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