Ralph Steadman – författare

Ralph Steadman, the creator of his own inimitable visions of Freud, Dante, Orwell, Alice and the Great Gonzo, now offers the (auto)biography of his artistic alter ego, the redoubtable Gavin Twinge. Twinge, last remnant of a nineteenth-century ‘domestic engineering' dynasty, founder of the DOODAAA school, and pioneer of Barcode Art, Shredded Literature and Aerial Abstracts, is the original angry voice of contemporary art. The question Steadman sets out to answer is: Who hurt Gavin into art? Was it his mother, who fought in the Spanish Civil War? Or Gavin's travelling salesman 'father'? Or indeed, his biological father, the little-known Beat poet Howell Northern? Or Silas Gonad, the sinister doctor who attended at his birth? Or the art establishment itself? From the moment Steadman first meets Twinge, it becomes his quest to get to the heart of the mystery. Whether he has to penetrate the deep south of the South of France by London taxi, where Gavin finds inspiration with his fellow Doodaaists or witness the creation of the banned installation 'The Philosophy of French Plumbing', Steadman sticks by his man, matching him drink.

Cartoonist and national treasure Ralph Steadman's unique take on a variety of extinct birds.When Ceri Levy asked Ralph Steadman to produce one piece of art representing an extinct bird for a recent exhibition, Ghosts of Gone Birds, Ralph said 'yes'. Then 'yes' again...and again...and again. An astonishing 100 paintings later, Extinct Boids was born.Ralph got carried away by the birds, taking Ceri with him. This book details the discoveries they made on their travels through the savage seas of extinction. After stumbling on the previously hidden Toadstool Island, where the extinct birds of the world live on in secretive harmony, the duo spent nearly a year in close proximity to a host of fantastical avian creatures. Ralph documents them all in this series of remarkable paintings, featuring unique interpretations of well-known birds such as the Great Auk, Passenger Pigeon and Dodo, along with less familiar members of the feathersome firmament - Snail-eating Coua, for example, or the Red-moustached Fruit Dove - and a variety of bizarre beasts including the Gob Swallow, the Long-legged Shortwing and the Needless Smut. All are captured in a riot of expression and colour, with a slice of trademark Steadman humour.Based on emails, diary entries and phone conversations, Ceri's accompanying text provides a running commentary, detailing the unfolding madness behind the creation of each piece in Ralph's extraordinary work. Things got tough as the pair discovered just how many amazing birds have been lost from our world forever.'But,' as Ralph said 'it did, after all, make a nice change from drawing politicians.'

Ralph Steadman: A Life in Ink is the definitive career retrospective of the revered and provocative UK artist. This new edition features the same content as the original at a smaller size and more economical price.This comprehensive monograph on the life and art of Ralph Steadman collects work from his dozens of books from a career of 60-plus years. Renowned for his collaborations with iconic American writer Hunter S. Thompson, they formed an unlikely duo that created “Gonzo” journalism. This lifelong partnership included the legendary Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, originally published in Rolling Stone magazine, which has since become a cult classic and synonymous with the counterculture of the 1970s.Along with his signature ink-splattered style, Steadman is known for his diverse body of work, including satirical political cartoons and book illustrations for classics such as George Orwell’s Animal Farm and his award-winning version of Alice in Wonderland.This mini edition of A Life in Ink is the perfect complement to any collection of Steadman's books. Add it to the shelf alongside Ralph Steadman: Proud Too Be Weirrd and Gonzo: The Art by Ralph Steadman and The Curse of Lono by Hunter S. Thompson.