First of all, I would like to thank you. Your invitation has been a great honor for me, as I feel grateful being with you .I also feel very comfortable being at your country as I have already visited it 10 times. The people there, the music, the culture are just like the opposite side of the Aegean, where my country is. Even ‘YENI RAKI’ must be something like ‘OUZO’. I would call them siblings if you like. Furthermore, one of the greatest things I have heard in my life was something I heard last year when being to ANKARA….’’having a neighbor means having god’’.
Your invitation has also been e challenge for me to look for the connection between caricature and philosophy. For years I had a great amount of things in my head, but there were all unorganized until you sent me that invitation end helped me put them in order. I tried to create the text with simple words so as to be as clear as possible. During the creation of it I was listening to some Turkish music. MFO (Mazhar-Fuat-Ozkan)
Assuming that in a football match the two teams competing are philosophy and caricature. Clearly the philosophy will accomplish to win…because human beings first started thinking and then drawing their thoughts. Of curse the difference between the two goals would be tiny as we all know that caricature needs philosophical thinking, search, and knowledge. Obviously the two teams would be able to have the same court and the same trainer.
Philosophy is seeking for ‘’Why?’’. ’’Why do we all exist?’’ ‘’Where are we going?’’ ‘’Where do we come from?’’ …’’What is life?’’ ‘’What is death?’’ Coming to this part, and taking in account what they say that laughter makes life longer, there must be a disagreement between these two. I believe philosophical thinking is the one preparing the ground for caricature to be built. The general scenario, the ones taking part in it(humans)….It’s just that caricature owes a director too.
Philosophy is a beautiful word meaning ‘’ friend of wisdom’’ and for all the data it processes, it always takes in account the values of each society, of each time end of each historical conditions.Complex, misleading and long-lasting is the route of philosophy…a thousand years maybe….Caricature is more recent as her evolution depended on typography, which came later that philosophy.
In this part we must definitely mention that satiric drawings have been found on Pyramids ‘walls and amphoras of the Classical period. The first caricatures which have been found in prohistorical caves were presenting human beings and animals of the age. This must have been the first try for human to place his existence and his coexistence with the other creatures and last but not least pictures of cooperation with nature and the fight for the survival.
In my mind I have two kinds of people. The one is devoted in philosophy and the other one is sketching. Both of them are imprisoned and they are trying to escape to breathe some of the air of freedom, knowledge and truth. They are both looking for the ideal and both their tries are connected with an ethical seeking of what I mentioned above. It is all about the benefit of the world and the common good. It is well known that immorality has to do with the luck of knowledge and many times, a bad man is a man uninformed.
Philosophy and Caricature have a common thing. They are both looking for the ideal, the things which can be approached, the also both operate for a Creative Society. It is no coincidence that both of them (philosophy and caricature) have appeared where the freedom of mind (the chance to have your own thoughts and not been forced by the others) existed.
Many times the ethic that is connected with philosophical thinking has to face the ethic which has to do with religion and its values. This is a different topic though… If someone is looking for the truth, it demands careful observation of the things going on around and of each phenomenon connected with a specific thought so as to find common characteristics. So we can end up to a general definition. – Philosophizing is a special activity, so is creating caricatures…A caricaturist must distillate information and knowledge to create a proper and beautiful caricature.
–Both of these two artists, the philosopher and the caricaturist, have to escape. It is just that the caricaturist has also the ability of the director, he can use some drama, some tragedies or some comedies too. Furthermore, one common thing they have(the philosophy and the caricatures) is that they both cannot be presented properly and give what they can give us by the use of television. Fortunately television has not accomplished to destroy all our beautiful treasures yet.
Finally, I have made it to a final conclusion:-Making caricatures is philosophizing- (το να κάνεις Γελοιογραφίες σημαίνει Φιλοσοφείς)I have to thank you for your patience
Yours Faithfully
Giannis Geroulias
Cartoonist