In these days with a mushrooming number of animated feature films hitting theaters, along with a proliferation of cartoons in television programming, the “cartoon look” also is increasing in magazines and newspapers, as fewer photos are being used, notes Grumpy Editor.
As the trend grows, veteran press photographers --- both freelancers and staffers --- must feel frustrated with their expensive gear sidelined.
A good example of artwork penetration was seen in yesterday’s 10-page The Journal Report section of The Wall Street Journal where seven hand-drawn illustrations were used.
The only true photo in the section, focusing on investing in funds, was of Bill Gross, manager of the Pimco Total Return bond fund. The black-and-white image was credited to Bloomberg News.
A “thumbnail” illustration of Malcolm Makin, president of Professional Planning Group, a Westerly, R.I. financial advisory firm, was art produced from a photo, a long-time Journal procedure.
But illustrators reigned supreme in the section.
Grabbing the most assignments was Wesley Bedrosian. His work, in color, topped the section’s front page with a four-column illustration along with a smaller one below the fold. Another of his color illustrations, spanning three-columns, appeared on page 6.
Other artists with contributions in the section were Robert Neubecker, Jon Krause, Gary Hovland and Rob Shepperson. The latter produced the only art that was not in color. All drawings ran four columns wide.
The sole art that tied in with the subject matter (municipal bonds) was Hovland’s.
Others, best described as “cute,” included a single red flower growing out of a brown pot to illustrate a piece on index funds.
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