Antonio Arias Bernal, also known as "The Brigadier" (Aguascalientes, May 10, 1913- Mexico City, December 30, 1960) was considered one of the most important Mexican caricaturists and cartoonists of the twentieth century. His illustration work during the early 1940s targets the Axis with scathing interpretations culminating with his ''Album historico la II guerra mundial ilustrada por Arias Bernal'', a series of prints styled as oversized playing cards depicting world leaders and events relating to World War II.

Life

Bernal was born in the city of Aguascalientes on May 10, 1913 and died on December 30, 1960, in Mexico City. In 1932, he entered the

Academy of San Carlos The Academy of San Carlos ( es, Academia de San Carlos) is located at 22 Academia Street in just northeast of the main plaza of Mexico City. It was the first major art academy and the first art museum in the Americas. It was founded in 1781 as ...

and later began to contribute cartoons to the magazines Vea, El Hogar, México al Día, for the newspaper Excelsior, and for the García Valseca newspaper chain. He was a founding member of the cultural magazines ''Mañana'' and ''

Siempre! ''Siempre!'' is a news and political magazine published in Mexico. The magazine is published on a weekly basis. By the end of the 1960s the magazine became a significant part of Mexican politics and an important publication for democratization ...

'' in 1942, Bernal was brought to the Washington, D.C. at the paid invitation of the U.S. government to create editorial cartoons and posters for the Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs to promote the Allied war effort. The planning for this trip is fully documented in the Records of the Foreign Service Posts of the Department of State as "820.02 Propaganda Project: Arias Bernal’s Trip to Washington." News of his trip found coverage in October, 1942 by

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

which contained the following quote in reference to the importance of propaganda posters: “Posters,” said Señor Bernal, “reach the thousands of our people who do not read but who can understand quickly a dramatic picture.” Bernal won the prestigious Maria Moors Cabot Prize, which honors "journalists and news organizations with a distinguished body of work that has contributed to Inter-American Understanding," for his work as a cartoonist in 1952.

References

{{authority control 1913 births Mexican cartoonists 1960 deaths