The Herne Bay Cartoon Festival has made a splash these last few weeks as “Rocking the Boat!” attracts people from all over the country to come and see the talented Cartoonists satirical responses and political commentary on the title theme.
'Rocking the Boat!' marks the festival's eleventh year running and comes at a pertinent time for the UK. The yearly festival is the only one of it's kind here in the South East of England.
Artwork by Dave Brown
The opening weekend kicked off with the Previews of 'Golden Years', an exhibition marking the 50th anniversary of the British Cartoon Archive, at the Seaside Museum, followed by the Festival's flagship exhibition 'Rocking The Boat' here at Beach Creative.
On Saturday, attendees enjoyed a free 'What's your superpower?' comic strip workshop from Sally Kindberg, an acclaimed author and illustrator of Bloomsbury’s 'Draw It!' series who has written and drawn for the Independent on Saturday, CBBC and Bank of England- to name but a few!
Crowds were drawn to the Live Cartooning event which took place last Sunday outside Beach Creative as Cartoonists took on large scale canvases whilst a public audience watched their creative processes from start to finish!
Cartoonists in attendance over the weekend were Jeremy Banx, Andrew Birch, Dave Brown, Des Buckley, Chris Burke, Ben Chilton, Clive Goddard, Alex Hughes, Tom Johnston, Kathryn Lamb, Glenn Marshall, James Mellor, Rob Murray, Ed Naylor, Dean Patterson, Royston Robertson, Martin Rowson, Pete Songi, Guy Venables and Chris Williams.
Our objective is to present diverse new work to as wide an audience as possible.
Royston Robertson, freelance cartoonist published in Private Eye, The Spectator, The Critic, Reader’s Digest, Saga, The Oldie, New Statesman and The Phoenix (Ireland), among many others created a 'Miscellany of Dad Jokes' (pictured below).
Royston Robertson's big canvas cartoon from the Live Cartooning Event at Herne Bay Cartoon Festival
Enjoying the moment..Cartoonists doing what they do best!
'Now Wash Your Hands' by Guy Venables taking centre stage, Photo by Karol Steele
The Cartoonists highlighted serious issues with intelligence, humour and skill, displaying the importance of cartoon art and it's commentary. With pollution level warnings in the Kent Coast at an all time high over the past year, 'Now Wash Your Hands' (pictured above) is a stark reminder of the environmental problems we face.
Our aim every year is to demonstrate that in our changing political environment the cartoonist’s art and comment is as important and relevant as it has ever been.
Running alongside the main exhibition, in the Rossetti Room at Beach Creative is a must see display of “The Great British Colouring Book”, 38 Degrees and the Professional Cartoonists’ Organisation (PCO) response to the Home Office's decision to remove child-friendly murals at Manston refugee centre.
The colouring book, created for newly arriving children in the country and sent to migrant centres, includes depictions of British culture from over 50 Cartoonists that took part in the project. More than 4,000 colouring books have made their way into the hands of newly arrived children.
Cartoonist James Mellor at work for the Live Cartooning Event
James Mellor (pictured in action above) is an award-winning freelance cartoonist based in the UK. He is a regular contributor to Private Eye Magazine and has been published in The Sunday Telegraph, The Spectator, The Critic Magazine, Charlie Hebdo and numerous other publications. He has also provided cartoon illustrations for a wide variety of books.
James’s cartoons have been used in charity fundraising and awareness campaigns for Amnesty International, DKMS, and Harlequins Rugby. James also received the Tony Husband award for the Gag Cartoon of the Year 2023 at the UK’s Political Cartoon Awards.
'Complimentary Beach Towel' Live Cartoon piece (left) and Herne Bay 2024 poster by Rob Murray @rmurraycartoons
Rob Murray creator of this years 'Rocking the boat' poster, is a regular cartoonist for The Sunday Times, Private Eye,The Telegraph, The Spectator, and a wide variety of other magazines and newspapers. He also illustrates bestselling books and national advertising campaigns.
Rocking the Boat exhibition cartoons © Chris Burke, Kathryn Lamb, Pete Dredge, Andrew Birch and Royston Robertson
“Rocking the Boat!” and 'The Great British Colouring Book' runs until Thursday 15 August here at Beach Creative, Beach House, Beach Street, Herne Bay CT6 5PT and “Golden Years” until Saturday 14 September at The Seaside Museum is at 12 William Street, Herne Bay CT6 5EJ.
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