Patrick Chappatte

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Patrick Chappatte
Born (1967-02-22) February 22, 1967 (age 57)
Karachi, Pakistan
NationalityLebanese-Swiss
Area(s)Cartoonist
Pseudonym(s)Chappatte
AwardsThomas Nast Award (2011, 2015)
Spouse(s)Anne-Frédérique Widmann
chappatte.com

Patrick Chappatte (known simply as Chappatte) (b. February 22, 1967, in Karachi, Pakistan) is a Lebanese-Swiss cartoonist known for his work for Le Temps, NZZ am Sonntag , the German news magazine Der Spiegel, The New York Times International Edition and the French satirical newspaper Le Canard enchaîné. He also worked as an illustrator for the New York Times and as cartoonist for Newsweek. Many of his cartoons reflect events in Swiss and international news, such as the September 11 attacks, the rise of the Swiss People's Party, and the Israeli–Palestinian conflict.

Biography[edit]

Born to a Lebanese mother and a Swiss father in Karachi, Pakistan, Chappatte was raised in Singapore and Switzerland.

Chappatte lives between Los Angeles and Geneva.

Career[edit]

Editorial cartoons[edit]

Patrick Chappatte drew a twice-weekly cartoon in the Opinion section of The New York Times International Edition, formerly known as the International Herald Tribune, which published his work from 2001 to 2019 (when the paper stopped publishing editorial cartoons altogether).[1][2]

Over the years, he has collaborated with editorial cartoonists in conflict-ridden countries with the goal of promoting dialogue through cartooning. These projects focused on Serbia, Ivory Coast, Lebanon, Kenya and Guatemala.[3] He described the work in a TED talk in 2010.[4] His work is syndicated by Cagle Cartoons.

Comics journalism[edit]

Since 1995, Chappatte has worked in graphic journalism, or comics journalism, a genre of reporting using the techniques of graphic novels. His most recent stories covered the war in Gaza (2009), the slums of Nairobi (2010) and gang violence in Central America (2012). These reports were published in several newspapers, including the New York Times; one was turned into a short animated documentary[5] in 2011. (see below)

In May 2016, Chappatte (with his wife, journalist Anne-Frédérique Widmann) published "Inside Death Row," a five-part series published by The New York Times about the death penalty in the United States.[1]

Animated documentary[edit]

Chappatte went to southern Lebanon in 2009, where people still live with the threat of actual time bombs, in the form of cluster munition bomblets. While there, Chappatte created a report in comic-book format: Death in the Field, which was published in Le Temps. The report was released in 2011 as an animated documentary.[6] It was aired on Swiss and French TV, toured documentary festivals, and won an award in Australia. Chappatte said the process of creating the documentary was both a personal and professional endeavor. "I have a Swiss father and a Lebanese mother, so I wanted to better understand the problems that the people of Lebanon are still facing, long after the fighting stopped," he said. "I also wanted to use my craft as a cartoonist, my experience as a journalist and my sense of satire to create a new kind of prism through which to view forgotten conflicts and a new technique for revealing the humanity behind the story."

Awards[edit]

In 2012, Chappatte became the first non-American to win the Overseas Press Club of America’s Thomas Nast Award for best cartoons on international affairs.[7] He would be awarded this prize twice more: in 2016[8] and 2019.[9]

In February 2013, he received the 2012 Audience Award from the Swiss satirical journal Nebelspalter.[10]

In 2017, the Swiss association Films Plans-Fixes produced a documentary tracing his career.[11]

In 2020, the Swiss Fondation pour Genève awarded him its annual prize "for his exceptional contribution to the influence of Geneva and for his commitment to freedom of the press and expression".[12]

Bibliography (English)[edit]

  • Stress Test, 2011-2012: Cartoons from the International Herald Tribune (Globe Cartoon, 2012) ISBN 978-2970047551
  • Signs of Recovery, 2009-2010: Cartoons from the International Herald Tribune (Globe Cartoon, 2010) ISBN 978-2970047544
  • Partly Cloudy, 2007-2008: Cartoons from the International Herald Tribune (Globe Cartoon, 2008) ISBN 978-2970047520
  • Globalized, 2005-2007: Cartoons from the International Herald (Globe Cartoon, 2007) ISBN 978-2970047513
  • Another World, 2000-2004: Cartoons from the International Herald Tribune (Globe Cartoon, 2004) ISBN 978-2970047506

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Cavna, Michael. "Comics: The New York Times cuts all political cartoons, and cartoonists are not happy," Washington Post (June 11, 2019).
  2. ^ Simon, Scott. "Political Cartoonist On Implications Of 'NYT' Ending Cartoons," NPR (June 15, 2019).
  3. ^ Ajroudi, Asma. "Cartoonist Patrick Chappatte weighs in on free speech debate," Al Aribaya (09 February 2015).
  4. ^ "The Power of Cartoons," TED (July 2010).
  5. ^ "Death in the field, the film," BDreportage.com. Archived at the WayBack Machine. Retrieved Nov. 11, 2020.
  6. ^ "Living with the constant threat of death in Lebanon," International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) (Apr 17, 2011).
  7. ^ Thomas Nast Award Goes To Swiss Cartoonist Patrick Chappatte, The Comics Reporter (April 27, 2012).
  8. ^ Patrick Chappatte remporte pour la seconde fois le Thomas Nast Award), Le Temps (April 28, 2016).
  9. ^ Le Thomas Nast Award va pour la troisième fois à Patrick Chappatte, Le Temps (March 21, 2019).
  10. ^ Karikaturist Chappatte erhält «Nebelspalter»-Publikumspreis 2012, nebelspalter.ch (February 2013).
  11. ^ Patrick Chappatte, Association Plans Fixes (2017).
  12. ^ Prix 2020 remis à Patrick Chappatte, Dessinateur de presse, fondationpourgeneve.ch (October 28, 2020).

External links[edit]