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“My Sole Aim Is To Make People Laugh”: 35 Sarcasm-Filled Comics And Illustrations By Cartoonist Steve Nelson
Interview With ArtistFunny comics are a sure way to brighten someone’s day, and that's exactly what comedy writer and illustrator Steve Nelson does! Steve’s comics might look rather simple at first glance, but they uncover much more than that at a closer look. In fact, Nelson's work is known for sarcasm and deadpan humor, and perhaps that’s why he has gained recognition all over social media so rapidly.
Comics such as “The Roofs of Egypt”, “Careful with voodoo maps”, and others have accumulated millions of likes on social media platforms such as Instagram. With that being said, Nelson’s work has been previously featured on Bored Panda, and you can find some of the artist’s own posts by clicking here, here, here, here, and here!
More info: Instagram | snelse.co.uk | twitter.com | Facebook
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Bored Panda also reached out to Steve with some questions! First, we asked the artist if there were any series of works we should be looking forward to, and here's what Nelson revealed to us, "Right now I am currently in the middle of doing cartoons for the Confused.com ads which are appearing weekly on the front of various newspapers across the UK (Metro, Evening Standard and Sunday Times). You can see them on my website here. I also have greeting cards coming out in shops across the UK, made by the lovely people at Woodmansterne. Other projects are TBA!"
We also asked Steve, if perhaps he had a favorite comic of his, and he was quick to share his thoughts! "My favorite comic would have to be the pyramids one, where the Egyptian has confused the building instructions. It’s probably also my most popular one!"
Artists are always looking for ways to improve or perhaps even try something new, we asked Nelson if he had a specific art genre he'd love to try.
"I always toy with doing animation, but it’s very time-consuming and admittedly quite boring! I’ve done a couple of very simple ones and it’s really cool to see it all moving at the end, but man... it takes so long! Otherwise, for now, I’m just very happy with doing illustrations and cartoons."
Speaking of art, we were wondering if Steve had any tips to share with those of you who might be just starting out in the field.
"Oh God… From my zero education in art/comics/cartoons I can only speak from my experience. And it might be super unhelpful! I came into it from a comedy writing background so I’ve been writing jokes for over 10 years. That helped massively, I think, because being a good writer outweighs drawing ability when it comes to funny comics. Actually, being bad at drawing can often make the comics funnier. I used to draw more crudely but the neat-freak part of my brain wouldn’t allow it to carry on so I had to balance that out. I still wrestle with it! So, anyway, learn to write jokes and that’s 90% of it. While doing that, just draw a lot - that’s how you'll develop your unique style. It can take years and years and, if you’re like me, you’ll never be quite happy with it! But it’s really important to have a unique style so you stand out. Ideally, you want people to know it’s your work at one glance."
When we look at a piece of art, what happens is that we usually perceive some sort of emotion, whether it's positive or negative is entirely up to us, but in the end, the artist still has achieved a certain goal - a reaction. We asked Nelson to share with us what he'd like for people to take away when looking at his comics.
"My sole aim is to make people laugh. Preferably out loud while they’re in a public setting. Or in an inappropriate setting, that would be even better."
For some people, art is not only a hobby, but something way more, and it seems that Steve certainly has his own goals he wants (or hopes) to accomplish when it comes to his comics.
"Someone laughing at my cartoon during a funeral is what I’m learning from my answer above."
Most creators tend to receive some type of comments about their work pretty much every day, but sometimes some of them stand out more so than others.
"My brother-in-law commented on one of my posts pretending to be offended by it. He was making fun of trolls who have made similar outlandish comments in the past on my other cartoons. The cartoon he commented on then went viral and I pinned his comment to the top. Nearly everyone took his comment seriously and he got torrential abuse thrown his way - some were even DMing it to him! Ha ha. I should point out that he found this all hilarious. I offered to unpin it and wind everyone in, but he said no and had fun with it all. Nutter."
Lastly, we were curious to find out if Steve had any other hobbies besides making art.
"Not a lot, to be honest! I spend most of my time writing and drawing. Otherwise, I’m reading, watching TV, or going out to watch live music. Love indie music. While I’m here everyone should be listening to my favorite indie band Nature TV. I do the designs for all their merch and a lot of their posters and social media stuff. They’re unsigned so you should go throw them your support!"
I like all the people with the deer-in-the-headlights look.
Load More Replies...I hate the controversy on this one. People are happy about the representation. The different races and same sex couples. But then there's the people who are hating on it saying same sex doesn't need to represented in 'everything'. Are you kidding??? We're not. For centuries we've fought for our place and to be treated equally we used to be *murdered* for loving the same gender?? WE STILL ARE IN SOME COUNTRIES! and we've finally got some recognition and you're complaining. Grow up. Is it really that hard to accept someone for who they love??? you're hating on something that is literally about love. REALLY????
Should have had one couple laughing at the others who got mixed up. You know it'd happen
Interesting how everyone is seated on their blanket in the same position. All the people who think they are being proposed to on the left. All the panicked (apart from the man actually proposing) would-be proposers on the right. I would not want to overhear those 5 conversations when they find out their partner was not proposing (at least in that moment).
I like the couple in the front middle. They just met and are on their first date. Looks like they work for uhaul!
Maybe it's just that one couple with the ring getting engaged and the rest are just gossips
Yay!! People hanging out together, having fun with someone they love enough to think that question was meant for them!!❤
*Even* queer ones?
Load More Replies...Can everyone stop to look at what they’ve all painted, I mean banana and apple have gone basic but the other two?! 😳
They usually name diseases after the doctor that discovers them though.
For anyone who can’t figure it out, that bird is giant and bird is rooster another name for a rooster is??? (For anyone who doesn’t know another name for a rooster is a c**k)
Time for the Care Bear Healthcare Stare! (In the US will only cost $184,000.)
Omg there's a movie where they baked the cake with a girl in it.. I wanna say it was one of the Addams family movies 🤔
Well, at least it wasn't someone trying to make deep statements on humanity which mostly just amount to "we spend too much time on our phones" or something.
I hate all those over time top statement comics. Statements are not funny.
Load More Replies...These are brilliant, wicked sense of humour, well worth reading :)
I giggled. I guffawed. I snorted (with laughter). I appreciate Nelson's humor, warped though it may be. I guess I'm warped, too!
Well, at least it wasn't someone trying to make deep statements on humanity which mostly just amount to "we spend too much time on our phones" or something.
I hate all those over time top statement comics. Statements are not funny.
Load More Replies...These are brilliant, wicked sense of humour, well worth reading :)
I giggled. I guffawed. I snorted (with laughter). I appreciate Nelson's humor, warped though it may be. I guess I'm warped, too!