Gerald Scarfe facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Gerald Scarfe
CBE RDI
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Illustration of Scarfe
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| Born |
Gerald Anthony Scarfe
1 June 1936 London, England
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| Known for | |
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Notable work
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Pink Floyd – The Wall (1982) Yes Minister and Yes, Prime Minister titles (1980–1987) Hercules (1997) |
| Spouse(s) |
Jane Asher
(m. 1981) |
Gerald Anthony Scarfe (born 1 June 1936) is a famous English satirical cartoonist and illustrator. He is well-known for his sharp and often funny drawings. He has worked for big newspapers and magazines like The Sunday Times and The New Yorker.
Scarfe also created amazing artwork for the rock band Pink Floyd. This included their 1979 album The Wall, the movie based on it (1982), and their concert tours. He also made the animated opening titles for the popular TV shows Yes Minister and Yes, Prime Minister. Later, Scarfe was the main designer for the Disney animated movie Hercules (1997).
Contents
Early Life and Art Beginnings
Gerald Scarfe was born in St John's Wood, London. When he was a child, he had severe asthma. This meant he spent a lot of time in bed. Drawing became his way to have fun and express himself.
Scarfe believes that his lonely childhood and illness led to the unique, sometimes dark, style in his art. He also felt that some doctors were not very good. This made him want to challenge things through his drawings.
Learning to Draw
A cartoonist named Ronald Searle was a big inspiration for Scarfe. When Scarfe was 14, he lived in Hampstead, North London. He would cycle to Bayswater to visit Searle's home, but he never actually knocked on the door. They finally met many years later in 2005.
Scarfe studied art at several colleges in London. These included Saint Martin's School of Art and the London College of Printing.
Scarfe's Amazing Career
After a short time working in advertising, which he didn't enjoy, Scarfe started drawing caricatures. These are drawings that exaggerate people's features for a funny or critical effect. His early drawings of famous people appeared in the magazine Private Eye.
He also drew for other well-known publications. These included Punch, The Evening Standard, and The Daily Sketch. In 1964, The Sunday Times magazine sent him to cover the US presidential election. He also created several cover illustrations for Time magazine, including a famous one of The Beatles in 1967.
Scarfe worked for the Daily Mail for one year. During this time, he was sent to draw scenes from the Vietnam War.
Working with Pink Floyd
Scarfe began working with the band Pink Floyd after they saw his animated film. This film was called A Long Drawn Out Trip. In 1974, he drew a large caricature of the band for their tour program.
He later created animated clips for their 1977 tour. These included a full music video for the song Welcome to the Machine.
The Wall Album and Film
Scarfe drew all the illustrations for Pink Floyd's 1979 album The Wall. He also designed the animations and huge inflatable characters for the 1980–1981 concert tour.
In 1982, he worked on the movie version of The Wall. Scarfe created about 15 minutes of detailed animation for the film. This included a scene showing the German bombing of England during World War II. Some of these animations were also used in the 1979 music video for "Another Brick in the Wall: Part 2".
Continuing with Roger Waters
Scarfe kept working with Roger Waters after Waters left Pink Floyd. He made the artwork and animations for Waters' solo album The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking (1984) and its tour.
His animations were also shown on a huge scale for later The Wall concerts. This included The Wall Concert in Berlin (1990) and Waters' worldwide The Wall Live (2010-2013) tour. In 2010, Scarfe published a book called The Making of Pink Floyd: The Wall. It shared details about his work with the band.
TV Show Designs
Scarfe designed the 'Grot' logo for the BBC TV series The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin.
He also drew the caricatures for the opening and closing scenes of Yes Minister and Yes, Prime Minister. These drawings showed the main characters.
Designing for Disney's Hercules
Ron Clements and John Musker, who directed The Little Mermaid, asked Scarfe to work on the 1997 Disney film Hercules. They were big fans of his work.
Scarfe was the conceptual character artist for Hercules. He designed almost all the characters. Then, he oversaw 900 Disney artists who brought his designs to life for the movie.
Postage Stamps
The Royal Mail used Scarfe's artwork for a set of five commemorative postage stamps. These stamps were released on 23 April 1998. They honored famous English comedians. The stamps featured Scarfe's caricatures of Tommy Cooper, Eric Morecambe, and others.
Millennium Dome Sculpture
Scarfe was asked to create a sculpture for the Millennium Dome in London. He called his sculpture "Self Portrait". The Dome's chief executive said it showed both the good and bad parts of the nation.
Theatre and Stage Design
Scarfe has designed sets for many opera productions. He worked with Peter Hall on a version of Mozart's The Magic Flute. He also designed the sets and costumes for the English National Opera's 1988 show Orpheus in the Underworld.
In 2002, he created all the costume and scenery designs for The Nutcracker ballet. This was for the English National Ballet.
Heroes and Villains Exhibition
In 2003, Scarfe worked with the National Portrait Gallery and BBC Four. He made caricatures of many famous Britons. These drawings showed their heroic and villainous qualities.
He drew over 30 portraits. These included Henry VIII, Winston Churchill, Queen Elizabeth I, and The Beatles. In 2009, he even made a caricature of James May out of Lego for a TV show.
Radio Show
Since June 2013, Scarfe has hosted a show on BBC Radio 4 called Recycled Radio. The show takes old radio programs and reuses parts of them to explore different topics.
Charity Auction
In October 2013, Scarfe helped a charity in Bristol. He decorated one of the large Wallace & Gromit statues for an auction. His statue was sold to someone in Miami, Florida. It raised a lot of money for the Bristol hospital charity.
Scarfe's Bar
In 2014, a place called Scarfe's Bar opened in London. It is located in the Rosewood London hotel. His unique caricatures decorate the walls and even inspire the drinks menu.
Personal Life
Gerald Scarfe is married to the actress Jane Asher. They met in 1971 and got married in 1981. They have three children together.
Awards and Honors
- In 2005, the Press Gazette named Scarfe as one of the 40 most influential journalists in the UK.
- He won 'Cartoonist of the Year' at the British Press Awards 2006.
- Scarfe was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 2008. This is a special honor in the UK.
- In 2011, a fossil pterosaur (a flying reptile) was named Cuspicephalus scarfi in his honor. It was found in Kimmeridge Bay, England.
See also
In Spanish: Gerald Scarfe para niños
