Political cartoons as we know them have been around for more than 300 years, from Hogarth’s images of London life to the golden age of Punch magazine, to the busy caricaturists of today. There are examples dating back to ancient Greece and Egypt, and satirical art has been found in places of worship from the Middle Ages. The drawing and publishing of cartoons is an activity that not all cultures enjoy or permit. Yet this visual commentary vividly documents the political and social world we live in, and holds those in power to account.
The events of 2020-21 provided remarkable fodder for the cartoonists who so cleverly satirised them. Brexit havoc, Tory sleaze and the brutal reality of Covid restrictions become colourful and witty works of art in the hands of those who translate them for the country’s national newspapers.
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