Cox & Forkum Taking a Final Bow (for now)

My favorite political cartoonists over at Cox & Forkum Editorial Cartoons are calling it quits for all the reasons that I myself absolutely relate to. If you have been paying attention at all here at the Anvil, you have noted their work featured here every day.

This is a sad realization that negative energy and mediocre financing can push people further away from pursuing this grind on a daily basis, but I know that these gentlemen will be heard from again and again down the road when the creative and righteous call becomes too difficult to ignore. Here is some of what Mr. Forkum had to say on the matter:

Let me start by saying that quitting editorial cartooning has been one of my toughest decisions. Having such a creative outlet for expressing my opinions is immensely satisfying. It’s an art form I’ve admired for decades, so I do not take lightly having the opportunity to work in the medium and to have that work seen by others. One of my proudest moments came soon after 9/11 when I held in my hands our first published cartoon. It was easy to feel useless, even helpless, in the weeks and months following the attacks. But to be able to fight in the battle of ideas was empowering.

For better or worse, I’ve always had to approach the editorial cartoon work as a “part time” career. I never quit my “day job” as co-owner of a small newspaper publishing business. The editorial work, though intellectually rewarding, is not very rewarding financially. Furthermore, researching the cartoons, writing/designing them, managing the blog, publishing the books, marketing them, and running the business side all take an enormous amount of time.

All of that comes with the territory, of course, and John and I have done pretty well over the last six years. We’re fairly well known on the Internet, we have a few newspaper and magazine clients, we’ve self-published four books, and we’ve made some money, if not a living. But lately, for reasons I won’t go into here, I can no longer afford to divert so much time and attention away from my publishing business and other personal concerns, such as my family.

I also want to stop focusing so much of my creative energy on negative aspects of daily life. There’s still an ideological battle to be fought, not to mention an actual war, and I will stay engaged in some form and medium. But at this point, anything seems more appealing than immersing myself in the sewer of daily politics.

That said, I imagine we won’t be able to resist creating an occasional editorial cartoon. And if we do, we’ll post it here.

John Cox Art is available and both men will continue to work on other projects.

I will continue to feature the work of Cox & Forkum here at the Anvil as long as the Anvil continues. Considering that this conflict is only going to go on, I will not be at all surprised to one day see the return of Cox & Forkum by popular demand.

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