September was a month of transition: just moved in from Brussels, apartment hunting, new office, new life. It was also the busiest month at work, I was quick to find out. Looking for a cool distraction amid the frenzy, I somehow happened upon an ad promoting Museum Day Live! hosted by Smithsonian magazine, which offered free entry to a number of participating museums.
One of these was the Society of Illustrators which, at the time, was hosting a major retrospective to celebrate the work of the rather wonderful Mr. Ralph Steadman.
Mr. Steadman’s drawings had taken over almost the entire museum, its galleries, corridors and even part of the charming café on the top floor.
I could not have asked for a better free gift – nor a cooler distraction for that matter!
Hunter S. Thompson, 1937-2005. Rolling Stone, 24 March 2015.
Collage, Conté chalk and ink on board. Illustration by Ralph Steadman.
[It was February 2005 and to Hunter’s great dismay, George W. Bush had just been inaugurated for a second term. Now in his late sixties, Thompson was suffering from many ailments. There were the after-effects of hip replacements and other surgery. He had to have daily physiotherapy and was in significant pain. On 20 February 2005 he took his Magnum .44 and shot himself in the head. A month later Rolling Stone marked the passing of the one of their greatest contributors with s special memorial issue.]
The Society of Illustrators
128 East 63rd Street
September 24th, 2016
The Humble Fabulist 
I’ll miss that. Too bad. The Book of Cats from Ralph Steadman is a reference masterpiece !
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I love his hand too! I can imagine that you, as an illustrator, can appreciate his work even better – I’m merely an admirer. Got a few more posts with his drawings coming up, especially for you!
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Many thanks, The Humble Fabulist. I came to know Steadman because the mechanics engineer I was talking to in UK was one of his neighbours !
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So you actually met the Man? You’re so lucky Gil!
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Unfortunately, I did not !
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But you came close enough! And, more importantly, you got to know his work – still lucky!
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We were there too! It was one of our favorite shows from the summer 🙂
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Was it on the same day? That would have been so funny, crossing paths without knowing it 🙂
We loved the exhibition and the place – planning another visit soon to check out the current one.
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It was! That was exactly my thought, that we may have crossed paths! Ralph Steadman brought us there but the space was completely new to us and we really liked it too!
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There will be a Will Eisner one next month! Let’s keep an eye in case we see each other 🙂
PS: we don’t always wear Batman suits or huge sunglasses!
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Hahaha, how will we recognize you then?? Well, if you do see us, definitely tap us on the shoulder. Maybe we can get coffee together afterwards! 😉
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Watch out for the beard 😀.. But, yes, will do! Coffee would be nice!
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