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Ken Sprague was a well known and much-loved figure on the North Devon
arts scene. The fund was set up after his death, to celebrate and build
on his multi-faceted artistic creativity and humanitarianism. Among his
many talents, Ken was a great cartoonist. ‘Cartoonists’, Sprague once
said, ‘are often, but unfairly, not considered to be artists at all. The
question, ”But can you draw properly too?” is a familiar one to most
cartoonists.’
History of the Ken Sprague International Cartoon Competition
In recognition of Ken’s work, the Fund organises an international
political cartoon competition which is held on a biennial basis. In
2006, its first year, cartoonists submitted work on issues concerning
peace, social justice and human progress. The response was extraordinary
– over 500 cartoons by almost 200 cartoonists from 40 countries were
submitted -. After such a successful start, the Fund ran a second
competition ‘Earthworks 2008’. Cartoonists submitted work on climate
change and threats to the environment, the number of entries surpassed
those in 2006. The competition has achieved significant national
coverage in the Guardian, Independent, New Internationalist and other
publications in the UK and abroad. Exhibitions of the winners were held
around the country.
The competition has shown how cartoonists work in different countries,
what their chief concerns are, how they deal with the challenging issues
of our time in visual and humorous ways. What is most striking is that
through the medium of cartoons, language or translation becomes
unnecessary. Despite cultural and language barriers, the cartoonists use
a visual imagery that can be understood internationally, across all
cultural, religious or political barriers and boundaries.
2010 International Cartoon Competition
The Ken Sprague International Political Cartoon Competition is a
keenly-awaited fixture in the calendar of cartoonists worldwide. One of
Ken’s main concerns was the issue of social and economic justice, the
recent and ongoing financial meltdown has brought such concern once
again to the forefront. With a theme of ‘Money Makes the World Go Round’
- globalisation, financial meltdown, fair-trade and economic justice –
the 2010 competition will explored this concern.
Appledore Arts was the competition’s co-sponsor and an exhibition of the
winners will be exhibited at the Festival. As co-sponsor, Appledore Arts
will be awarding our own prize for ‘best emerging artist’ (16 - 22
years).
The jury included cartoonists Martin Rowson, Jacky Fleming and Viv
Quillin. Cartoons were judged in terms of
their aestheti, professional and artistic qualities. The jury looked
for clarity of message, cartooning skill and satirical humour.
2010 Competition Details
The competition was open to cartoonists from all nations. Cash prizes were awarded to the
three best cartoons. For further details and images from the cartoon gallery
visit www.kenspraguefund.org
examples of entries
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