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Inspiration From Artists Wk 133 Bonus Artist : Dudley D Watkins.

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Paul (Dixie) Dean

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Welcome to this weekends bonus artist thread , I will start by making no apologies for my choice of artist as I believe some people may consider him not to be an artist but a cartoonist. It due to people like him that I started sketching and used comics to better my reading which I found very difficult due to dyslexia.  An enlightened teacher hit on the idea of drawing the figures and learning to read at the same time . . Dudley D Watkins 1907-1969 was an English cartoonist and illustrator. He is Best known for his character Oor Wullie and The Broons, he also illustrated The Beano, The Dandy and tThe Beezer and Topper. Born in Prestwick in Lancashire however the family moved to Nottingham whilst he was still a baby.  His farther was a lithographic print artist who noticed his son’s early artistic talent and ensured he received extra classes at Nottingham School of Art . There is an excellent Bio on Wikipedia. I hope you enjoy my choices and it brings back happy memories for some of you .

Tessa Gwynne

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Great stuff Dixie! My hubby remembers the little guy with the top hat but can’t think of his name…Lord something or other! Someone here will know?
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Paul (Dixie) Dean

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I think  it was l Lord Snooty or something like that.

Tessa Gwynne

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He says it was! Good memories eh!?
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Lewis Cooper

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Dudley D Watkins was the first artist I became aware of.   When you're 7, 8, or 9, things like artist's names don't really register.  I had the Dandy and my mate the Beano.  My earliest memories are of copying Desperate Dan, and then trying to create my own Desperate Dan comics.  I recall using the school notebooks that you could buy from Woolworths...they had red covers and on the back page lists of measurements and weights.  Do you remember them?  Later, I started using Woolworth's art pads, very thin paper but OK for pencil and  pen. Through Dudley's work I took an interest in other cartoonists and illustrators, finding many books on them at the Library.  So this artist was responsible for my lifelong interest in art  and drawing. He had two styles, the first the cartoonish Desperate Dan stuff, and another, more realist style for more serious subjects. He was very prolific, but tight deadlines never made him scrimp on the work involved.  In the cartoons, he was unusual in that he mostly drew the full figures in each panel together with detailed backgrounds, at a time when other artists, due to the pressure of deadlines, were simplifying the drawings as much as possible. So for me...a great artist.
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Paul (Dixie) Dean

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When I chose to feature his work I though bet this is right up Lew’s street, like you I copied all the characters . I do remember the red exercise books from Woolworths along with many other things good memories from artwork and the thought that come up from thinking back all those years.
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Marjorie Firth

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Happy memories - comics were one of the mainstays of entertainment. I had all of the above - do you remember the free gifts which sometimes came with comics? I remember one from the Topper ( it obviously made an impression ), it was triangular folded cardboard and made a bang when you jerked it forward. The artists’ styles were important to me too, if I didn’t like it, it would put me off reading the comic/book. I also noticed when another artist took over and usually didn’t like it as much. Worzel Gummidge had an illustrator I wasn’t keen on I remember….

Tessa Gwynne

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Lew I also remember those exercise books and the pages at the back! I used to love starting a new exercise book in school. 🤣
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Marjorie Firth

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Oh yes, those tables on the back of the shiny red exercise books - how many rods ( roods? ) in a perch etc😆
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Carol .

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A nostalgic trip down memory lane, Dixie, a great choice. I like the jolly characters going to the local tavern, that old boy in the background is a nice touch. 

Tessa Gwynne

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Oh yes, those tables on the back of the shiny red exercise books - how many rods ( roods? ) in a perch etc😆
Marjorie Firth on 21/09/2024 13:46:44
No idea then, and no idea now!
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Marjorie Firth

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Or was it in a peck?🤔
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