Two Ministers !!!???

Matthew (Matt) Somerville Morgan

Published by The Tomahawk: A Saturday Journal of Satire, London, 1870

About this Item

a professionally matted 11 X 16.5-inch color tinted woodcut by Matthew (Matt) Somerville Morgan, having appeared in the July 16th 1870 edition of the THE TOMAHAWK: A SATURDAY JOURNAL OF SATIRE. His use of contrast and contradiction complemented the edgy political and social content of the journal. In many ways Morgan was ahead of his times. Not just for his use of color and a double frame format but for the artful satirical mixture of higher cultural themes into items of popular appeal. It can be said that Morgan served as a precursor, diachronic in nature, to the postmodernist trends of the late 20th century. His lack of reverence and pointed critique under the guise of comedic license in some ways remind us of satirical tools used by NATIONAL LAMPOON and MAD MAGAZINE. Admittedly to prove a connection between Morgan Victorian age cartoons to American political humor in the 1970s would require a substantial bridge of evidence, but in a Gothic literary environment, would not have satire been much more sedate and reserved? How would have SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE played to a mid-19th century audience using newspaper print rather than television? Morgan went on to North America after The Tomahawk closed working for the Frank Leslie Illustrated Newspaper. He also went back to his beginnings doing theatrical scene painting. This scarce very clean woodcut is but a few of his cartoons for public sale. Seller Inventory # 003401

Bibliographic Details

Title: Two Ministers !!!???

Publisher: The Tomahawk: A Saturday Journal of Satire, London

Publication Date: 1870

Binding: No Binding

Condition: Near Fine

Dust Jacket Condition: No Jacket