The savage satirist and internationally renowned 85-year old British illustrator who captured the zeitgeist over decades with his political and social caricatures, cartoons, album covers and art books with his signature ink-splatter style – and forged an indelible collaboration and friendship with the late Gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson – plumbs his own psychological depths in his recently released career-retrospective tome, Ralph Steadman: A Life in Ink, and also takes ArtNowLA’s Da Vinci Questionnaire to discover what makes him love work and life.
What historical art figure would you like to have lunch with and why? Marcel Duchamp because his way of thinking was so uncommon and curious. His output was quite extraordinary in the way he treated his artwork as though it were another person.
Hunter on a Whiskey Drip, 1987
What did you purchase with the proceeds from your first sale? A beer in the local pub.
Walter White, Breaking Bad Collector’s Edition DVD, Sony, 2014
What words or phrases do you overuse? As a matter of fact and Stop it, you daft thing, you are bending my membership card.
Tom Wolfe Portrait, 1980
How do you know when a work is finished? It just feels like I cannot add anything else of any interest.
Self-portrait
When and where were you happiest? 1980 when we moved in our current home.
What is your most treasured possession? My bird warbler.
Where is your ideal escape destination? Avatrana in Southern Italy.
Police Brutality, ca. 1972
What TV series from your youth best describes your approach to life? Hancock’s Half Hour.
“Hunter would drive his Red Shark, steering with one hand, gripping a bottle of Chivas Regal with the other.” Hunter at the Wheel, 1991
If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? My age.
“Cow gum was the glue I used back in the 1970s. It has coloured the paper yellow over the years.” Frank Zappa, Born Under a Bad Sign, ca. 1969
What is your most treasured memory? The children.
The Statue of Liberty Takers, 2016; Donald Trump, Porky Pie!!, 2015
What makes you smile? The grandchildren.
What makes you cry? Losing my Mum and Dad who were really nice people.
What is your go-to drink when you toast to a sale? Viognier, white wine.
After an all-nighter, what’s your breakfast of champions? I don’t really do all-nighters. I like a boiled egg in the morning.
“I only realised it recently, but I drew Hunter driving a British car, on the right.” Savage Journey, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, ca. 1974
Who inspires you? Picasso, Marcel Duchamp.
What’s your best quality? I can still stand and walk.
What’s your biggest flaw? I used to shout a bit.
Bjork, created for Sonos for a store exhibition of original artworks, 2018
What is your current state of mind? Uncertain and apprehensive because of the wretched virus.
Cover, A Life in Ink
What do you consider your greatest achievement? The making of my books on Sigmund Freud, Leonardo da Vinci and The Big I Am about God.
If you were to die and come back as a person or thing, what would it be? A lavatory. It would be useful!
Cover image: Ralph in his London Studio; all images are from Ralph Steadman: A Life in Ink, published by Chronicle Chroma 2020
