The Face of Corruption

Valdemar Andersen, full page cartoon in the satire magazine Klods-Hans,
November 18, 1906.

Detail of Valdemar Andersen above,
1906.

Type signifies a general form and is as such a center of attention for the Encyclopedia Cartooniensa. Type should not to be mistaken for its subgenus "stereotype", and in fact it is through type we discover the subtlety of cartooning at its best.

Such as a specimen of fashionable society 113 years ago.

He is an airhead showing off new money rather than content. Specimens of his type can be found everywhere, indeed 113 years later we recognize him as a specific person of the name Trump or in legalese Individual-1.

The drawn character before us is defined by the emptiness of his eyes. Add to this the haughtiness of his posture, puffing up himself and with arms closed before him to underline his righteousness.

Detail of Valdemar Andersen above, 1906 

In that latter detail was his punch line of which the original exchange by an unknown writer underneath the cartoon is not worth repeating. The couple is commenting on a divorce among their acquaintance. The cartoon appeared in a special edition on modern divorce in the satirical magazine Klods-Hans.

Valdemar Andersen placed his couple on a sofa so curved that it is on the brink of breaking into two.

William Hogarth, "The Tête à Tête", the 2nd panel in the series
Marriage à la Mode, 1743-45, The National Gallery.

Modern divorce is a classic in cartooning art history with Hogarth depicting marriage à la mode in 1743, showcasing the corrupted human as the emblem of a corrupted society.

Ah, Hogarth.

The specific specimen of today we recognize in Valdemar's cartoon is as self-proclaimed as his drawn and painted twins. We need not attempt to define him by his features. All that could be specific to him is insignificant. It is by his being a type, we shall know him.

Detail of Valdemar Andersen above,
1906. 

As Hogarth before us we have a name for his type. It is corruption.



The photos of Valdemar Andersen were taken by me and are as such not of premium quality, for which I apologize.