Eugene Zimmerman - ZIM - Large Self-Caricature from JUDGE Magazine - 1895
Artist: Eugene Zimmerman (All)
4,465 Views - 11 Comments - 11 Likes
Additional Images:
Eugene Zimmerman - Before and After Conservation
Eugene Zimmerman - Artwork in Its Original State
Eugene Zimmerman - Printed Cartoon - 1895
Eugene Zimmeran - Exhibition Show Card - Circa 1900
Artwork Details
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DescriptionSo here's the story: About a week ago, I was researching the work of a favorite old cartoonist of mine. In the course of my research, I ran across a six-year old blog post, which talked about a great old collection of cartoon art for sale, primarily by C.E. Toles, but also containing work by others, including the artist I was researching. I figured the collection was long gone after six years, but no harm in sending an email. I was right. The collection was long gone. Except for two pieces that the owner held onto, intending on framing them up. Six years later, the pieces weren't framed, and he was interested in selling them. Now I've been collecting original comic art for over 40 years now, and tend to shy away from pieces with strong racial stereotypes. I understand the historical context, but the stereotypes can be strong enough to bother me. One of the pieces, by Toles, had that type of stereotype, so I passed on it. But this piece by Eugene Zimmerman, known to we cartoon fans as ZIM, was something else. It pictures ZIM himself in bed, trying to sleep, being haunted by every single stereotype that he ever jammed into his long and illustrious career, and believe me, there were loads of them. I looked at this piece and laughed out loud, because it was so over the top that it reminded me of a Lenny Bruce routine. Along with the artwork, I wound up getting a four-page letter from ZIM to Toles, and an exhibition card from when the two cartoonists exhibited 160 drawings somewhere around 1900. The card itself is something I've never seen before.Craig Yoe informs me that the ZIM cartoon is from the December 7, 1895 issue of Judge magazine, and was accompanied by the following caption: "Our comic artist's nightmare. After celebrating a little too freely he dreams his favorite characters take a dire vengeance on him." Many thanks to Craig for the information. Every so often these treasures still unearth themselves, with lots of luck. ADDENDUM (May 14, 2019): I decided to have the Zim cartoon conserved by Robert Dennis. The piece was fairly brittle, after being laid down onto an acid board for many years. There were also small edge and corner pieces missing. The plan was to have Robert reline the piece onto an acid-free substrate, but after deacidifying the artwork, it returned to a supple state. And since there were some editorial notes on the back, we decided not to reline the artwork. Robert did an excellent job on the piece, but sadly, after his actions on January 6, 2021, I will never use his services again. I have replaced the main image with one of the newly conserved piece, but have put in a side-by-side image, so that you can see what the piece looked like originally. Social/Sharing |
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Comments on this Artwork
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Monty B 
Member Since 2006
Posted on 12/17/2017
Absolutely stunning illustration...please let me know if you ever decide to part with it...
Rarebit Fiend
Member Since 2005
Posted on 12/17/2017
Outstanding. ZIM was one of the greatest geniuses ever to work in the cartoon business.
John B
Member Since 2004
Posted on 12/18/2017
Plenty of ZIM influence in Jack Davis, I guess. Really great piece. I'd have bought it in a heartbeat.
Roger K.
Member Since 2005
Forum Moderator
Posted on 12/18/2017
Amazing piece, Rob! I love stories of tracking down art in unexpected places. What a rush! And this piece is sooo out of this world. 122 years old! Wow!
Alex Johnson
Member Since 2006
Forum Moderator
Posted on 5/14/2019
Wow, the restoration is beautiful. Robert killed it. It's a wonderful piece and you have given it the best home it could find. Congratulations.
Benno Rothschild
Member Since 2003
Posted on 5/14/2019
What a great piece of cartooning! well worth the money to preserve properly.
Jeff Singh
Member Since 2004
Posted on 5/14/2019
Nice piece well deserving of conservation. Well done!
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