Edward Sorel (born Edward Schwartz, March 26, 1929) is an American illustrator, caricaturist, cartoonist, graphic designer and author. His work is known for its storytelling, its left-liberal social commentary, and its criticism of right-wing politics and organized religion. Formerly a regular contributor to The Nation, New York Magazine and The Atlantic, his work is today seen more frequently in Vanity Fair. He has been hailed by The New York Times as "one of America's foremost political satirists". As a lifelong New Yorker, a large portion of his work interprets the life, culture and political events of New York City. There is also a large body of work which is nostalgic for the stars of 1930s and 1940s Hollywood when Sorel was a youth. Sorel is noted for his wavy pen-and-ink style, which he describes as "spontaneous direct drawing".

Early life

Sorel was born and grew up in The Bronx, the son of Jewish immigrants.

Career

Sorel was a co-founder of Push Pin Studios with Milton Glaser, Seymour Chwast, and Reynold Ruffins in 1953. in 1961. He then sold the magazine a cartoon satirizing the glamor of the Kennedy family, an early example of his parody movie posters. Victor Navasky appointed him art director for the satirical magazine Monocle in 1963. In the later 1960s he produced full-color satirical bestiaries for the left-wing journal Ramparts, and a series called "Sorel's Unfamiliar Quotations" for The Atlantic. A profile of Sorel in Time 15 October 1968 was instrumental in selling "Sorel's News Service" by King Features to 44 syndicated newspapers

In 2016, Sorel published "Mary Astor's Purple Diary," which was received with praise. In late December 2016, Sorel received a rave book review by Woody Allen.

Personal life

Sorel has been married twice. He met his second wife, Nancy Caldwell, in 1963 at a Quakers Morningside Friends Meeting, and married her in 1965. Sorel and Caldwell have collaborated on two books, with Caldwell writing the text and Sorel doing the illustrations. He received the National Cartoonist Society Advertising and Illustration Award for 1993. In 2001, Sorel was given the Hunter College James Aronson Award for Social Justice Journalism Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2001 the Art Directors Club of New York elected him to their Hall of Fame,

In 2011, the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan honored Sorel as part of their Masters Series, an award and exhibition that honors great visual communicators.

Bibliography

Adults' books

  • How to be President: Some Hard and Fast Rules (Grove Press, 1960)
  • Moon Missing (Simon & Schuster, 1962)
  • Sorel's World's Fair (McGraw-Hill, 1964)
  • Making the World Safe for Hypocrisy (Swallow Press, 1972)
  • Superpen: the Cartoons and Caricatures of Edward Sorel (Random House, 1978)
  • Unauthorized Portraits (Alfred A. Knopf, 1997)
  • Literary Lives (Bloomsbury, 2006)
  • Just When You Thought Things Couldn't Get Worse: The Cartoons and Comic Strips of Edward Sorel (W.W. Norton, 2007)
  • The Mural at the Waverly Inn: A Portrait of Greenwich Village Bohemians (Pantheon, 2008)
  • Mary Astor's Purple Diary: The Great American Sex Scandal of 1936 (Liveright Publishing, 2016)

Children's books

  • The Zillionaire's Daughter (Warner Juvenile Books, 1989)
  • Johnny-on-the-Spot (M.K. McElderry Books, 1998)
  • The Saturday Kid, with Cheryl Carlesimo (M.K. McElderry Books, 2000)

Collaborations

  • Word People, by Nancy Caldwell Sorel (American Heritage Press, 1970)
  • First Encounters: a Book of Memorable Meetings, by Nancy Caldwell Sorel (Knopf, 1994)

As Illustrator

  • King Carlo of Capri, by Warren Miller (Harcourt, Brace & Comp., 1958)
  • Pablo Paints a Picture, by Warren Miller (Little, Brown, 1959)
  • The Goings-on at Little Wishful, by Warren Miller (Little, Brown, 1959)
  • Gwendolyn the Miracle Hen, by Nancy Sherman (Golden Press, 1961)
  • Gwendolyn and the Weathercock by Nancy Sherman (Golden Press, 1963)
  • What's Good For A Five-Year-Old, by William Cole (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1969)
  • The Duck in the Gun, by Joy Cowley (Doubleday, 1969)
  • Jay Williams' Magical Storybook (American Heritage Press, 1972)
  • The Pirates of Penzance, by Ward Botsford (Random House, 1981)
  • Jack and the Beanstalk, by Eric Metaxas (Rabbit Ears Books, 2006)
  • The Complete Fables of la Fontaine: A New Translation in Verse, by Jean de la Fontaine and Craig Hill (Arcade Pub., 2008)
  • Certitude: A Profusely Illustrated Guide to Blockheads and Bullheads, Past and Present, by Adam Begley (Harmony Books, 2009)

References

  • Official website
  • Lambiek Comiclopedia biography.
  • "Unauthorized Portraits: The Drawings of Edward Sorel", an exhibition July 2, 1999 to January 2, 2000 at the National Portrait Gallery.
  • Art Directors Club 2002 biography and tribute by R.O. Blechman, and images of work
  • slideshow of work for Vanity Fair
  • contributions to The Atlantic

Interviews

  • Discussion between Edward Sorel, Jules Feiffer, and David Levine about left-wing politics and cartoons
  • 1997 interview with The Atlantic
  • 2006 interview with The Guardian
  • 2006 interview about Literary Lives
  • 2008 Interview
  • Interview about Waverly Inn mural
  • Interview about Monkey Bar mural

Reviews by Sorel

  • Review of The Undressed Art: Why We Draw
  • Review of 18th century caricature
  • Review of 19th century caricature
  • Review of caricaturist Miguel Covarrubias
  • Review of caricaturist William Auerbach-Levy
  • Review of Krazy Kat cartoons
  • Review of cartoonist Gluyas Williams
  • Review of cartoonist Charles Saxon
  • Review of cartoonist James Thurber
  • Review of Charles Addams
  • Review of cartoonist Herblock
  • Review of Dr. Seuss
  • Review of William Steig
  • Review of Ludwig Bemelmans
  • Review of Julius Knipl, Real Estate Photographer by Ben Katchor
  • Article about the film Casablanca