Phil Somerville was born in Sydney, Australia, in 1954, the same year that Miles Davis kicked Heroin. After a Catholic education he took a humble job at a Murdoch tabloid newspaper for 3 years. It was a case of unrequited love and thereafter left to travel extensively in the Pacific, America and Europe for several years.
On return he commenced freelancing as a cartoonist in the early 1980s, initially with small trade union newspapers, and eventually a door opened at the well-regarded then broadsheet The Sydney Morning Herald.
Since then he has contributed both apolitical humour cartoons and editorial cartoon commentary to a wide variety of newspapers and magazines in print and online.
Publications include The Australian, The Bulletin, Freewheeling, Nexus, Matilda, The Independent, The Diplomat, Habitat (magazine of Aust Conservation Foundation), Good Weekend Magazine, Limelight and the last few editions of the English Punch magazine. In 2008-2009 he was chief editorial cartoonist for The Sun Herald.
He currently produces a digitally delivered private-subscription topical cartoon called Line of Thought (see Subscribe).
He lives in the Blue Mountains and nurtures his cynicism despite birdsong and bountiful bushland.
Links
- Mini-memoir by Phil Somerville in OzArts Magazine Spring 2017
- Australian Cartoonists Association
- Sample viewer response to shelved Somerville cartoon on Sept 11th attacks, Media Watch, ABC TV, Australia. 2002.
- Somerville guest spot on "Talking Pictures" segment of weekly current affairs ABC TV programme, Sept 14, 2008.
- Sampler of very early work, bicycle cartoons and general bicycle biz site.
- More Somerville cartoon folio on Australian Cartoonists' Association member site.
- CartoonStock UK Fast rising major Internet cartoon bank.
The Fine Print All graphic images and text are copyright © the artist Philip Somerville.