Everyone’s a cartoonist nowadays

Regular readers of this blog will be unsurprised to learn that automation has struck once more with Google receiving a patent for the ‘‘self-creation of comic strips in social networks and other communications’’. The advertising giant is following in the footsteps of other digital toolmakers such as Bitstrips. Digital automation of cartoon formats for display is inevitable in […]

The Round-up

The death of Nelson Mandela inspired poignant tributes from UK cartoonists, among them Peter Brookes in The Times (above), Peter Schrank in The Independent and Christian Adams in The Telegraph. Elsewhere, the South African cartoonist Zapiro tells the BBC a personal anecdote that demonstrates Mandela’s appreciation of satire. Congratulations to Len Hawkins, who has been […]

Opinion: Tearing a strip off automated online cartoons

The Procartoonists.org blog notes with interest the rise of Bitstrips, an app that allows anyone to make clip-art style cartoons featuring themselves. Billed as “instant comics and cards starring you and your friends”, they are popular for Facebook e-cards and status updates. We have seen this kind of automation of cartooning skills before. And now, […]