Aaron McGruder, who is the iconic creator behind The Boondocks comic strip and television show, isn't the only black cartoonist pushing the limits of political and social commentary and telling the experiences of Black America - one comic frame at a time. Let me introduce you to Jonathan Edwards, the creative mind behind Solar Powered Umbrella.
No seriously: check him out NOW because this brother is bound to blow up.
By Day, Edwards works as a social worker in the heart of Washington DC and by night he is transformed into a savy social commentarist, who scribbles the stark realities of a black life, using only a piece of paper, some colored pencils and an objective lens (Actually, I don't know if that's what he does at night. I mean he is married so I imagine that some of his evening is spent doing chores around the house and spending quality time with the Mrs. But yeah, he has to squeeze his drawing in at some point in the day, right? Whatever, just play along.).
Edwards has been drawing for as long as he could remember. However it was his experiences as both a high school student at a top-tier prep school, where he encountered white people with incredible affluence and access, as well as a student at Morehouse College, where he had first come to fully appreciate the true diversity of black folks, that ultimately propel him to take a more serious tone in his artwork. And after a successful yet short-loved stint of selling his powerful illustrations on t-shirts for fellow classmates around campus, Edwards decided to create Solar Powered Umbrella, in hopes of giving people around the world a chance to not only experience but connect with his art.
Check out more of what Edwards had to say about being a cartoonist, his influences and the Solar Powered Umbrella below:
RSS Feed