House: Caricature

A caricature is either a portrait that exaggerates or distorts the essence of a person or thing to create an easily identifiable visual likeness, or in literature, a description of a person using exaggeration of some characteristics and oversimplification of others. Caricatures can be insulting or complimentary and can serve a political purpose or be drawn solely for entertainment. Caricatures of politicians are commonly used in editorial cartoons, while caricatures of movie stars are often found in entertainment magazines. (Read more about caricatures on Wikipedia)

When you think of caricature, you probably think of those people at the fair or in malls or tourist traps who sit there with an easel and draw funny pictures of people with small bodies and huge heads. But did you know there is actually a National Caricaturist's Network with their own trade magazine and conventions and everything? There's even an online museum of some of the greatest caricaturists of the 19th and early 20th centuries at www.greatcaricatures.com.

If you're REALLY serious about learning to caricature and improving your drawing and especially caricaturing skills, I highly recommend that you take a look at Kirk Bjorndahl's website and he'll walk you through several exercises and steps designed to help.

Before you get started drawing your own caricatures, you might want to take a look at a few of the better caricaturists out there.

• John S. Pritchett - a cartoonist first from New York and now Hawaii
• Al Hirschfeld - was one of the all time greatest caricaturists, he is best known for Broadway and Hollywood stars.
• Julia Suits - boasts a number of nationally prominent newspapers as subscribers, including the Los Angeles Times, the Houston Chronicle

Caricature Assignment #1 (Due Friday 10/26)
Google Image Search a decent portrait of each of the following;
Jay Leno, David Letterman, Conan O'Brien, and Jimmy Kimmel
Then, in your sketch book draw draw a caricature of each of them.

Caricature Assignment #2 (Due Tuesday 11/6)
Google Image Search a decent portrait of each of the following;
Rudy Giuliani, Mitt Romney, Fred Thompson, and John McCain
Then, in your sketch book draw draw a caricature of each of them.

Caricature Assignment #3 (Due Thursday 11/8)
Google Image Search a decent portrait of each of the following;
Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, John Edwards, Bill Richardson
Then, in your sketch book draw draw a caricature of each of them.

Caricature Assignment #4 (Due Monday 11/12)
Google Image Search a decent portrait of each of the following;
George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, Brittney Spears, OJ Simpson
Then, in your sketch book draw draw a caricature of each of them.

Caricature Assignment #5 -Last one, I promise! (Due Wednesday 11/14)
In your sketch book draw draw a caricature of each of the following;
A classmate, a teacher, an administrator, yourself

Whew! That ought to keep you busy for a while. Sometime between now and then I will post another "web-quest" for you on actual editorial cartooning- but the practice you'll be getting from this will make sure you're ready for drawing those.