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Ralph Steadman | |
|---|---|
 Steadman in 2006 | |
| Born | (1936-05-15)15 May 1936 (age 89) |
| Known for | Painting, drawing, caricatures, cartoons |
| Website | www |
Ralph Idris Steadman[1] (born 15 May 1936) is a Welsh[2] illustrator and collaborator with the American writerHunter S. Thompson.[3] Steadman drawssatiricalpolitical cartoons, social caricatures, and picture books.
Steadman was born inWallasey, Cheshire to an English father, Lionel Raphael Steadman, and a Welsh mother, Gwendoline; the family moved toWales towards the end of theSecond World War. Steadman attended the grammar school inAbergele in north Wales but hated the draconian,sadistic new headmaster and left aged 16. "I couldn't wait to get out," he said. He came from alower middle class background; his father was a commercial traveller and his mother was a shop assistant atT. J. Hughes inLiverpool.[4][5]
Steadman took his first job at 16 as a radar operator at theDe Havilland aircraft factory in the border town ofBroughton nearChester but only remained for nine months, finding factory life repetitive and dull, and becoming fed up with fellow employees, citing persistent cruel practical jokes ("They were always putting stuff in your tea"); however, whilst there he became skilled in technical drawing, thus sowing the seeds of his future career.
Steadman returned to England afterNational Service in 1954 and found work in London as acartoonist. Wishing to accelerate his progress he enrolled in 1959 atEast Ham Technical College and theLondon College of Printing during the 1960s, doing freelance work forPunch,Private Eye,The Daily Telegraph,The New York Times andRolling Stone during this time.
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Steadman had a long partnership with the American journalist and writerHunter S. Thompson, drawing pictures for many of his articles and books.[6][7] He accompanied Thompson to theKentucky Derby foran article for the magazineScanlan's, to theHonolulu Marathonfor the magazineRunning, and illustrated bothFear and Loathing in Las Vegas andFear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72.
Steadman has expressed regret at selling the original illustrations forFear and Loathing in Las Vegas at the advice of his agent toRolling Stone founderJann Wenner for the sum of $75, a fraction of their later value. As a result of that transaction, Steadman has largely refused to sell any of his original artwork and has been quoted as saying "If anyone owns a Steadman original, it's stolen." While there are original pieces held outside of his archive, they are exceedingly rare. The artist has kept possession of the vast bulk of his original artwork.
Steadman appears on the second disc ofThe Criterion CollectionFear and Loathing in Las Vegas DVD set, in a documentary calledFear and Loathing in Gonzovision, which was made by theBBC in 1978, of Thompson planning the tower and cannon that his ashes were later blasted out of. The cannon was atop a 153-ft. tower of Thompson's fist gripping apeyote button; Thompson demanding that Steadman gives the fist two thumbs, "Right now."
As well as writing and illustrating his own books and Thompson's, Steadman has worked with writers includingTed Hughes,Adrian Mitchell andBrian Patten, and also illustrated editions ofAlice in Wonderland,Treasure Island,Animal Farm, the English translation of Flann O'Brien's Gaelic-language classicThe Poor Mouth, and most recently,Fahrenheit 451.
Steadman has drawn album covers for numerous music artists, includingthe Who,Exodus,Frank Zappa,Nils Lofgren andAmbrosia, as well as the lead banner for thegonzo journalism website GonzoToday.com.[8]
Among the British public, Steadman is well known for his illustrations for the catalogues of theoff-licence chainOddbins.
In 1985, Steadman designed a set of four British postage stamps to commemorate the appearance that year ofHalley's Comet.
Steadman has illustratedWill Self's column inThe Independent newspaper.
Steadman has contributed toBirdLife International's Preventing Extinctions programme with an image ofcritically endangerednorthern bald ibis.[9]
In 2014, Steadman created the artwork for a series of limited editionBreaking BadSteelBook DVDs.[10] These works were the subject of an exhibition at 71a Gallery inHackney, London in February 2015.[11]
In 2016, Steadman did the cover art forAnthony Bourdain's cookbookAppetites.
In 2017, Steadman penned the artwork forTravis Scott andQuavo's joint projectHuncho Jack, Jack Huncho.[12]
In 2019, Steadman created the artwork forTaylor Mac'sBroadway showGary: A Sequel to Titus Andronicus.[13]
In 2020, Steadman created the artwork for the documentary filmFreak Power: The Ballot or the Bomb which follows journalist Hunter S. Thompson and his 1970 campaign for sheriff ofPitkin County, Colorado.
Steadman has designed label art forFlying Dog beer and designed the V logo used on Flying Dog's packaging since 1995. The logo includes an original motto by Steadman: "Good Beer No Shit". Because of this, and because of Steadman's controversial label art for the craft brewery's Road Dog ale and Doggie Style ale, a complaint of obscenity was filed against Flying Dog. The Colorado State Liquor Board then had Flying Dog beers pulled from store shelves. Flying Dog and theAmerican Civil Liberties Union sued the state of Colorado while the displayed motto was changed to "Good Beer No Censorship." In 2001, the Colorado Supreme Court entered final judgment in favor of Flying Dog, based on theFirst Amendment to the United States Constitution, (freedom of speech).[14][15]
In 2009, theMichigan Liquor Control Commission banned Flying Dog's "Raging Bitch Belgian-Style IPA" beer, partly for the name and partly for Steadman's label art. In 2015, theCourt of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit struck down the ban on first amendment grounds and recommended civil damages against the state of Michigan.[16][17]
In an article since deleted from its website, Flying Dog stated that its Cardinal "Spiced" Zin' wine was banned in Ohio for Steadman's "disturbing" interpretation of a Catholic cardinal on its label.[18][19]
In 2018, Flying Dog received a complaint in the United Kingdom about the packaging of its "Easy IPA" reduced-alcohol beer. The complaint partially involved Steadman's label art, depicting a tipsy cartoon character. ThePortman Group, a third-party organization which evaluates alcohol-related marketing in the UK, has accepted the complaint's allegation that the artwork "could be seen as encouraging drunkenness", particularly among minors, and has issued an advisory.[20]
In 2021, Flying Dog sued theNorth Carolina Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission for violation of free speech provisions after the NC ABC rejected the label for the brewery's "Freezin' Season" beer as "inappropriate".[21]
In 1980, Steadman wrote a 57-second song, "Sweetest Love (Lament after a Broken Sashcord on a Theme byJohn Donne)", for an album he was illustrating,Miniatures: A Sequence of Fifty-One Tiny Masterpieces (edited byMorgan Fisher), on Pipe Records. Steadman sang the song to Fisher's harmonium accompaniment.[22]
In 1999, Steadman wrote the lyrics forRichard Harvey'schoral albumPlague and the Moonflower, on Altus Records.[23]
Also in 1999, Steadman released an anthology album of his "favourite music", on EMI Records, entitledI Like It. Two pieces of his own music are included, "Weird & Twisted Nights" (listed as a collaboration withHunter S. Thompson and someone named Mc Dean) and "Sweetest Love I Do Not Go" (the same 57-second piece he released in 1980). The album comes with a "songbook", which has text by Steadman.[24]
Hal Willner andJohnny Depp's 2006 anthology of songs,Rogue's Gallery: Pirate Ballads, Sea Songs, and Chanteys[25] contains two contributions from Steadman. He sings lead on "Little Boy Billee" and sings backing vocals forEliza Carthy on "Rolling Sea".[26]
In 2011, Steadman began running prose and poetry inKotori Magazine.[27]
In 2015, Steadman released a 7-inch vinylsingle on Philthy Phonograph Records, "The Man Who Woke Up in the Dark" B/w "Striped Paint".[28]
In 2020, Chronicle Chroma published the definitive book on Steadman's work and career,A Life in Ink by Ralph Steadman.[29]
Awards that he has won for his work include the Francis Williams Book Illustration Award forAlice in Wonderland, the American Society of Illustrators' Certificate of Merit, theW H Smith Illustration Award forI Leonardo, the Dutch Silver Paintbrush Award forInspector Mouse, the Italian Critica in Erba Prize forThat's My Dad, the BBC Design Award for postage stamps, the Black Humour Award in France, and several Designers and Art Directors Association Awards. He was voted Illustrator of the Year by theAmerican Institute of Graphic Arts in 1979.
A major documentary about Steadman's career,For No Good Reason, directed by Charlie Paul, played at the2013 Toronto International Film Festival in the "Mavericks" programme.[30] The film, reportedly 15 years in the making, played in New York City and Los Angeles in December 2013, and was given US domestic release in spring 2014.[31] The film was in competition for the Grierson Award for Best Documentary at the2012 BFI London Film Festival.[32]
Steadman is a member of theChelsea Arts Club.[33]
He is a patron of theAssociation of Illustrators.[34]
Steadman lives inKent.[35] His second wife, Anna, died in February 2022. He has five children.[36]
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Review of Steadman's catalogues for Oddbins
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