As you'll see here, I've got a new avatar for my blog and social networking. Well, it's quite an old one, but with a caricature who's to know?
It was done in 1995 by Sheba Cassini, professional caricaturist, who - 16 years on - still makes a good and steady living doing them for events and parties.
(See her website, www.bitterandtwisted.org, shared with her husband and fellow-caricaturist Simon)
I stumbled across it the other day when sorting out a box of stuff I'd brought on to the boat from my attic. I had a beard then, and owlish granny-glasses.
She drew me at an official opening of a new branch of the (then) Midland Bank. They had recently been taken over by the Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC), and they wanted an excuse to invite in their humble customers to be awed by their marbled halls and golden counters.
Sheba was hired for the day to draw anyone vain enough to pose. Which I was.
We ugly people are understandably sensitive about having our photo taken. I always say, if you hate your appearance, the solution is to have your picture taken MORE OFTEN. That way, you'll be more likely to end up with a photo you like. It's why celebs look so good.
I contacted Sheba today to ask about her approach to drawing uglies, and she said "Ha-ha, I'll make the warts BIGGER!"
And that's fine. In caricature we see our flaws exaggerated and know we are better-looking than that.
Famously, Dorian Gray had a magical picture hidden in his attic - one that absorbed all his increasing character flaws, getting yearly uglier and more monstrous while he himself stayed unchanged and beautiful. I'm relieved to see that the picture in my attic has been moderately kind to me.
I remember Sheba herself as a remarkably beautiful young woman, and the photos on her website shows that sixteen years have been most kind to her.
Perhaps that's what she and Simon mean by 'Bitter & Twisted' - get your bitter and twisted inner Dorian Gray out of yourself and onto paper, and stay young and beautiful in your own mind. Although their own publicity cartoons (right) are quite flattering - perhaps because nobody wants to invite Quasimodo to draw them.
Every Grannypost is supposed to have a waterways link, so I was pleased to see that the Cassinis are based on the beautiful Eel Pie Island on the River Thames, in the charmingly named The Love Shack. That's my waterways link for the day.
I'd hate to see the pictures in their attic!
Mick, you spotted it, well done! Back in 1989, when the Satanic Verses hit the fan, I was told I resembled Salman Rushdie, to the extent that people warned me not to wander too liberally around muslim immigrant areas.
Posted by: Andrew Denny | Friday, 12 August 2011 at 12:49 AM
Why are you posting a picture of Salman Rushdie on your site?
Posted by: Mick | Thursday, 11 August 2011 at 09:14 PM
You're cuter without the bloody har! :)
Posted by: Patsy | Tuesday, 09 August 2011 at 08:28 PM
har bloody har :-)
Posted by: Andrew Denny | Monday, 08 August 2011 at 10:51 AM
Why are you posting a picture of Sir Clive Sinclair on your site Andrew :)
Posted by: Ian Smith | Monday, 08 August 2011 at 10:27 AM