Steve Brodner
Encyclopedia
Steve Brodner is an American
satirical
illustrator
and caricaturist
working for publications for a quarter century. A regular contributor to The New Yorker
since 1993, Brodner's illustration work and art journalism has appeared in most major magazines and newspapers in the United States
, such as Rolling Stone
, The New York Times
, Esquire
, Time
, Newsweek
, Spy
, Playboy
, Mother Jones
, Harper's, The Los Angeles Times, The Nation
, The Village Voice
and Slate
. His work, first widely seen exposing and attacking Reagan-era scandals, is credited with helping spearhead the 1980s revival of pointed and entertaining graphic commentary in the US.
Brodner attended Cooper Union
, in New York City and graduated in 1976 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts
Degree. Brodner went on to work briefly for the Hudson Dispatch in Hudson County, NJ after leaving college. Between 1979 and 1982 he self-published the New York Illustrated News. which featured his work as well as those of colleagues. In 1977, he began his freelance career with The New York Times Book Review
, working with Steven Heller
, art director. Soon he was working with Lewis Lapham
and Sheila Wolfe at Harper's on a monthly page of commentary entitled Ars Politica.
In the following year he became a regular contributor to magazines across the US, eventually becoming house artist as well as writer and artist of monthly back pages for Esquire
under the editorships of Lee Eisenberg, David Hirshey
and the designer, Rip Georges. During and after Esquire it was on to Spy Magazine
and then to The New Yorker
, under Tina Brown
and then David Remnick
, Chris Curry, Caroline Maihot and Françoise Mouly, art directors. At Rolling Stone, under Jann Wenner
and Amid Capesi, art director, Brodner was the film review artist, working with Peter Travers
, and later a series for National Affairs page with Matt Taibbi
and others.
, The Village Voice
and others. His article, Plowed Under, a series of portraits and interviews with beleaguered farm families in the Midwest ran in The Progressive, which, at that time was a modern mecca for political art, thanks to Patrick J. B. Flynn, crusading art director. Shots From Guns, an art documentary about the Colt Firearms strike in Hartford, Connecticut appeared in Northeast magazine in 1989. For The New Yorker he covered Oliver North
and the 1994 Virginia Senate race, the Patrick Buchanan presidential campaign, the Million Man March
(1995) and an advance story on the Democratic Convention in Chicago, 1996. That same year The Washington Post
asked him to profile the Bob Dole
presidential campaign. In spring of 1997 he wrote and drew an ten-page article on the South by Southwest Music Festival
for Texas Monthly
. That summer Brodner climbed Mount Fuji
with author Susan Orlean
as an art-journalist for Outside Magazine http://outside.away.com/outside/magazine/1097/9710transcend.html and later that year he did a piece on the New York City mayoral campaign for New York Magazine. His eight-page profile of George W. Bush
appeared in Esquire in October 1998, in which Bush said to him, “Maybe I’ll see you in national politics next year, maybe not. Either way, I have a cool life.” In 2000. he dealt with the difficult issue of guns in Pennsylvania for Philadelphia Magazine. Texas Monthly published his 10 page story on Colonias (Mexican Americans along the Texas border) called In America, in May 2005 and in 2007 he traversed the Texas State House
at Austin in a freewheeling story for Texas Monthly.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
satirical
Satire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
illustrator
Illustrator
An Illustrator is a narrative artist who specializes in enhancing writing by providing a visual representation that corresponds to the content of the associated text...
and caricaturist
Caricature
A caricature is a portrait that exaggerates or distorts the essence of a person or thing to create an easily identifiable visual likeness. In literature, a caricature is a description of a person using exaggeration of some characteristics and oversimplification of others.Caricatures can be...
working for publications for a quarter century. A regular contributor to The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
since 1993, Brodner's illustration work and art journalism has appeared in most major magazines and newspapers in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, such as Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
, The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, Esquire
Esquire (magazine)
Esquire is a men's magazine, published in the U.S. by the Hearst Corporation. Founded in 1932, it flourished during the Great Depression under the guidance of founder and editor Arnold Gingrich.-History:...
, Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
, Newsweek
Newsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
, Spy
Spy (magazine)
Spy was a satirical monthly magazine founded in 1986 by Kurt Andersen and E. Graydon Carter, who served as its first editors, and Thomas L. Phillips, Jr., its first publisher. After one folding and a rebirth, it ceased publication in 1998...
, Playboy
Playboy
Playboy is an American men's magazine that features photographs of nude women as well as journalism and fiction. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. The magazine has grown into Playboy Enterprises, Inc., with...
, Mother Jones
Mother Jones (magazine)
Mother Jones is an American independent news organization, featuring investigative and breaking news reporting on politics, the environment, human rights, and culture. Mother Jones has been nominated for 23 National Magazine Awards and has won six times, including for General Excellence in 2001,...
, Harper's, The Los Angeles Times, The Nation
The Nation
The Nation is the oldest continuously published weekly magazine in the United States. The periodical, devoted to politics and culture, is self-described as "the flagship of the left." Founded on July 6, 1865, It is published by The Nation Company, L.P., at 33 Irving Place, New York City.The Nation...
, The Village Voice
The Village Voice
The Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
and Slate
Slate (magazine)
Slate is a US-based English language online current affairs and culture magazine created in 1996 by former New Republic editor Michael Kinsley, initially under the ownership of Microsoft as part of MSN. On 21 December 2004 it was purchased by the Washington Post Company...
. His work, first widely seen exposing and attacking Reagan-era scandals, is credited with helping spearhead the 1980s revival of pointed and entertaining graphic commentary in the US.
Brodner attended Cooper Union
Cooper Union
The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, commonly referred to simply as Cooper Union, is a privately funded college in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, United States, located at Cooper Square and Astor Place...
, in New York City and graduated in 1976 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts
Bachelor of Fine Arts
In the United States and Canada, the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, usually abbreviated BFA, is the standard undergraduate degree for students seeking a professional education in the visual or performing arts. In some countries such a degree is called a Bachelor of Creative Arts or BCA...
Degree. Brodner went on to work briefly for the Hudson Dispatch in Hudson County, NJ after leaving college. Between 1979 and 1982 he self-published the New York Illustrated News. which featured his work as well as those of colleagues. In 1977, he began his freelance career with The New York Times Book Review
The New York Times Book Review
The New York Times Book Review is a weekly paper-magazine supplement to The New York Times in which current non-fiction and fiction books are reviewed. It is one of the most influential and widely read book review publications in the industry. The offices are located near Times Square in New York...
, working with Steven Heller
Steven Heller (graphic design)
Steven Heller is an American art director, journalist, critic, author, and editor who specializes on topics related to graphic design....
, art director. Soon he was working with Lewis Lapham
Lewis H. Lapham
Lewis H. Lapham is an American writer. He was the editor of the American monthly Harper's Magazine from 1976 until 1981, and from 1983 until 2006. He also is the founder of the eponymous publication about history and literature entitled Lapham's Quarterly. He has written numerous books on...
and Sheila Wolfe at Harper's on a monthly page of commentary entitled Ars Politica.
In the following year he became a regular contributor to magazines across the US, eventually becoming house artist as well as writer and artist of monthly back pages for Esquire
Esquire (magazine)
Esquire is a men's magazine, published in the U.S. by the Hearst Corporation. Founded in 1932, it flourished during the Great Depression under the guidance of founder and editor Arnold Gingrich.-History:...
under the editorships of Lee Eisenberg, David Hirshey
David Hirshey
David Hirshey is a book editor and sportswriter. He has been an editor at The New Yorker and Esquire where from 1985 to 1997, he was in charge of the magazine's Dubious Achievement Awards...
and the designer, Rip Georges. During and after Esquire it was on to Spy Magazine
Spy (magazine)
Spy was a satirical monthly magazine founded in 1986 by Kurt Andersen and E. Graydon Carter, who served as its first editors, and Thomas L. Phillips, Jr., its first publisher. After one folding and a rebirth, it ceased publication in 1998...
and then to The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
, under Tina Brown
Tina Brown
Tina Brown, Lady Evans, CBE , is a journalist, magazine editor, columnist, talk-show host and author of The Diana Chronicles, a biography of Diana, Princess of Wales. Born a British citizen, she took United States citizenship in 2005 after emigrating in 1984 to edit Vanity Fair...
and then David Remnick
David Remnick
David Remnick is an American journalist, writer, and magazine editor. He won a Pulitzer Prize in 1994 for his book Lenin's Tomb: The Last Days of the Soviet Empire. Remnick has been editor of The New Yorker magazine since 1998. He was named "Editor of the Year" by Advertising Age in 2000...
, Chris Curry, Caroline Maihot and Françoise Mouly, art directors. At Rolling Stone, under Jann Wenner
Jann Wenner
Jann Simon Wenner is the co-founder and publisher of the music and politics biweekly Rolling Stone, as well as the owner of Men's Journal and Us Weekly magazines.-Childhood:...
and Amid Capesi, art director, Brodner was the film review artist, working with Peter Travers
Peter Travers
Peter Travers is an American film critic, who has written for, in turn, People and Rolling Stone. Travers also hosts a celebrity interview show called Popcorn on ABC News Now and ABCNews.com.-Career:...
, and later a series for National Affairs page with Matt Taibbi
Matt Taibbi
Matthew C. "Matt" Taibbi is an American author and journalist reporting on politics, media, finance, and sports for Rolling Stone and Men's Journal, often in a polemical style. He has also edited and written for The eXile, the New York Press, and The Beast.- Early years :Taibbi grew up in the...
and others.
Art journalism
In visual essays Steve Brodner has covered eight national political conventions for Esquire, The ProgressiveThe Progressive
The Progressive is an American monthly magazine of politics, culture and progressivism with a pronounced liberal perspective on some issues. Known for its pacifism, it has strongly opposed military interventions, such as the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003. The magazine also devotes much coverage...
, The Village Voice
The Village Voice
The Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
and others. His article, Plowed Under, a series of portraits and interviews with beleaguered farm families in the Midwest ran in The Progressive, which, at that time was a modern mecca for political art, thanks to Patrick J. B. Flynn, crusading art director. Shots From Guns, an art documentary about the Colt Firearms strike in Hartford, Connecticut appeared in Northeast magazine in 1989. For The New Yorker he covered Oliver North
Oliver North
Oliver Laurence North is a retired U.S. Marine Corps officer, political commentator, host of War Stories with Oliver North on Fox News Channel, a military historian, and a New York Times best-selling author....
and the 1994 Virginia Senate race, the Patrick Buchanan presidential campaign, the Million Man March
Million Man March
The Million Man March was a gathering of social activists, en masse, held on and around the National Mall in Washington, D.C. on October 16, 1995...
(1995) and an advance story on the Democratic Convention in Chicago, 1996. That same year The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
asked him to profile the Bob Dole
Bob Dole
Robert Joseph "Bob" Dole is an American attorney and politician. Dole represented Kansas in the United States Senate from 1969 to 1996, was Gerald Ford's Vice Presidential running mate in the 1976 presidential election, and was Senate Majority Leader from 1985 to 1987 and in 1995 and 1996...
presidential campaign. In spring of 1997 he wrote and drew an ten-page article on the South by Southwest Music Festival
South by Southwest
South by Southwest is an Austin, Texas based company dedicated to planning conferences, trade shows, festivals and other events. Their current roster of annual events include: SXSW Music, SXSW Film, SXSW Interactive, SXSWedu, and SXSWeco and take place every spring in Austin, Texas, United States...
for Texas Monthly
Texas Monthly
Texas Monthly is a monthly American magazine headquartered in Austin, Texas. Texas Monthly is published by Emmis Publishing, L.P. and was founded in 1973 by Michael R. Levy, Texas Monthly chronicles life in contemporary Texas, writing on politics, the environment, industry, and education...
. That summer Brodner climbed Mount Fuji
Mount Fuji
is the highest mountain in Japan at . An active stratovolcano that last erupted in 1707–08, Mount Fuji lies about south-west of Tokyo, and can be seen from there on a clear day. Mount Fuji's exceptionally symmetrical cone is a well-known symbol of Japan and it is frequently depicted in art and...
with author Susan Orlean
Susan Orlean
Susan Orlean is an American journalist. She has been a staff writer for The New Yorker since 1992, and has contributed articles to Vogue, Rolling Stone, Esquire, and Outside....
as an art-journalist for Outside Magazine http://outside.away.com/outside/magazine/1097/9710transcend.html and later that year he did a piece on the New York City mayoral campaign for New York Magazine. His eight-page profile of George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
appeared in Esquire in October 1998, in which Bush said to him, “Maybe I’ll see you in national politics next year, maybe not. Either way, I have a cool life.” In 2000. he dealt with the difficult issue of guns in Pennsylvania for Philadelphia Magazine. Texas Monthly published his 10 page story on Colonias (Mexican Americans along the Texas border) called In America, in May 2005 and in 2007 he traversed the Texas State House
Texas State Capitol
The Texas State Capitol is located in Austin, Texas, and is the fourth building to be the house of Texas government in Austin. It houses the chambers of the Texas Legislature and the office of the governor of Texas. It was designed originally during 1881 by architect Elijah E. Myers, and was...
at Austin in a freewheeling story for Texas Monthly.
Television and video
In the fall of 1996, Brodner was featured in PBS Fronline's The Choice, as artist and commentator on the Clinton/Dole race. In December 2007, Brodner began a series of online videos, The Naked Campaign, at The New Yorker website, offering his take on the 2008 Presidential campaign. From 2010 to the present he has been producing videos for PBS' Need to Know, with "An Editorial by Steve Brodner", a semi-regular commentary feature. In the spring of 2010, his series of short political videos, "Smashing Crayons" ran on Slate.com. All the above are available for viewing at his his personal website.Awards
- Aronson Award for Social Justice Journalism (2000)
- Society of IllustratorsSociety of IllustratorsThe Society of Illustrators is a professional society based in New York City. Founded in 1901, the mission of the Society is to promote the art and appreciation of illustration, as well as its history...
, Hamilton King Award (2005) - Society of IllustratorsSociety of IllustratorsThe Society of Illustrators is a professional society based in New York City. Founded in 1901, the mission of the Society is to promote the art and appreciation of illustration, as well as its history...
, Gold Medal in the sequential category (2006) - Society of Publication Designers, merit award (1995)
- Reuben Award / Magazine Illustration, National Cartoonists Society, 2007
- Art Director's Club, 1994
- Reuben Award / Magazine Illustration, National Cartoonists Society, 2007
- Reuben Award, Advertising category, National Cartoonists Society, 2010
- St. Gaudens Medal, Distinguished Achievement by an alumnus, The Cooper Union, 2010
- Gold Medal, The Society of Illustrators, Editorial category 2011
- Work honored in juried annuals of American Illustration, Society of Illustrators Communication Arts, continuously for over 20 years.