Image of Gallery in South Kensington
Request to view at the Prints & Drawings Study Room, level F , Case I, Shelf 139, Box II

"We should be safe down here for four more years!"

Drawing
2005 (made), 21/01/2005 (printed and published)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This cartoon appeared in the Evening Standard on 21 January 2005, and is artist Marf's take on the current news story. As she describes it: 'Having won the US election against Democratic candidate Bob Kerry in November, President George W. Bush is sworn in for a second term, a depressing thought for a great many Britons and Americans.'

'Marf' drew daily topical cartoons for the Evening Standard between March 2002 and August 2005, moving to the Londoner's Diary page in August 2003. The drawings cover key political and social issues of the period, providing a vivid and often hilarious response to the main news of the day. The Evening Standard is London's only evening newspaper, publishing up to five editions a day. In Marf's own words: 'The cartoonist needs to keep up with the rapid pace of event.'


Object details

Categories
Object type
Title"We should be safe down here for four more years!" (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
Pen and ink on paper
Brief description
Cartoon, "We should be safe down here for four more years!" by 'Marf' (Martha Richler), published in The Evening Standard, 21 January 2005; London.
Physical description
Black and white line drawn cartoon showing the interior of a cellar or basement. A harrassed looking woman, wearing spotted blouse and black skirt, is coming down the stairs holding a newspaper with the headline 'Bush second term'. A man, wearing shirt, pullover and pin-striped trousers, is already in the basement holding a mug of tea and looking quite cheerful surrounded by boxes of biscuits, tins of tuna and bottles of drink.

Some lines have been blocked out with liquid paper, and faint underdrawing can be seen.
Dimensions
  • Height: 42cm
  • Width: 29.6cm
Production typeUnique
Marks and inscriptions
  • FRIDAY 21st JANUARY * OPTION A (Written in pen top centre)
  • "We should be safe / down here for / four more years!" (Written in pen across bottom; title to piece)
  • MARF (Artist signature bottom right of image, vertically)
  • [Please follow / my line-breaks / for 3-line / caption - / thanks!] (Written in pen to left of caption)
  • [scan: / 40 X 54 / mm] (Written in pen to right of caption)
  • 14 [in circle] (Written in black biro on transparent protective sheet, bottom right)
  • BUSH / SECOND / TERM (Newspaper headline, part of image)
  • Biscuits (Part of image, label written on storage box, bottom centre)
  • [arrow pointing up] / tuna (Part of image, label written on storage box, bottom left)
Credit line
Given by the artist
Object history
Donated by the artist.
Production
Attribution note: for publication in newspaper
Reason For Production: Commission
Subjects depicted
Summary
This cartoon appeared in the Evening Standard on 21 January 2005, and is artist Marf's take on the current news story. As she describes it: 'Having won the US election against Democratic candidate Bob Kerry in November, President George W. Bush is sworn in for a second term, a depressing thought for a great many Britons and Americans.'

'Marf' drew daily topical cartoons for the Evening Standard between March 2002 and August 2005, moving to the Londoner's Diary page in August 2003. The drawings cover key political and social issues of the period, providing a vivid and often hilarious response to the main news of the day. The Evening Standard is London's only evening newspaper, publishing up to five editions a day. In Marf's own words: 'The cartoonist needs to keep up with the rapid pace of event.'
Collection
Accession number
E.367-2007

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Record createdMay 4, 2007
Record URL
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