Henry Mayo Bateman (15 February 1887 – 11 February 1970, Mgarr, Malta) was a British humorous artist and

cartoonist A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comic book illustrators in that they produce both the literary and ...

. H. M. Bateman was noted for his "The Man Who..." series of cartoons, featuring comically exaggerated reactions to minor and usually upper-class social gaffes, such as "The Man Who Lit His Cigar Before the Royal Toast", "The Man Who Threw a Snowball at

St. Moritz St. Moritz (also german: Sankt Moritz, rm, , it, San Maurizio, french: Saint-Moritz) is a high Alpine resort town in the Engadine in Switzerland, at an elevation of about above sea level. It is Upper Engadine's major town and a municipality in ...

" and "The Boy Who Breathed on the Glass at the British Museum." which appeared in the satirical magazine ''

Punch Punch commonly refers to: * Punch (combat), a strike made using the hand closed into a fist * Punch (drink), a wide assortment of drinks, non-alcoholic or alcoholic, generally containing fruit or fruit juice Punch may also refer to: Places * Pun ...

''.

Early life

Winston Churchill by Henry Mayo Bateman ca

Henry Bateman was born in the small village of Sutton Forest in New South Wales,

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. His parents were Henry Charles Bateman and Rose Mayo. His father had left England for Australia in 1878, at the age of 21, to seek his fortune, then returned to England briefly in 1885 before going back with an English wife. Soon after Henry was born, his strong-willed mother insisted that they return to London 'and civilisation'. He had one sister, Phyllis, three years younger. Bateman was always drawing from an early age, consistently producing funny drawings that told stories. He was inspired by comics, had a keen critical eye, and was enthusiastically drawing at every available moment. At the age of 14, he had already decided that he would draw for publication. In 1901, the cartoonist Phil May, in response to a letter from Rose, showed interest in his drawings, and that year he was inspired by an exhibition of black-and-white art at the Victoria and Albert Museum. His father had initially decided that his son should follow him into business, but eventually, after many arguments between him and Rose, his father financed his study at the Westminster School of Art which he commenced at the age of 16. He did well but was bored by the lifeless "life" classes and after qualifying at Westminster transferred his study to the New Cross Art School. He also did some practical work at the studio of Charles van Havenmaet.

Career

Bateman's first solo exhibition in 1901 was at the Brook Street Gallery,

Mayfair Mayfair is an affluent area in the West End of London towards the eastern edge of Hyde Park, in the City of Westminster, between Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly and Park Lane. It is one of the most expensive districts in the world. ...

, in central London. His first contract was in 1904, for ten drawings and two illustrations in a fourpenny monthly magazine called ''The Royal''. At the age of 17, his style was already that of a mature artist. He then progressed to a contract with '' The Tatler'' and many other magazines besides, including the '' Illustrated Sporting News and Dramatic News'', '' Pearson's Weekly'' and ''

''. Bateman greatly influenced the style of American cartoonist Harvey Kurtzman. Bateman was selected by Percy Bradshaw for inclusion in his 1918 '' The Art of the Illustrator'' which presented a portfolio for each of twenty illustrators. His work was also part of the painting event in the art competition at the

1928 Summer Olympics The 1928 Summer Olympics ( nl, Olympische Zomerspelen 1928), officially known as the Games of the IX Olympiad ( nl, Spelen van de IXe Olympiade) and commonly known as Amsterdam 1928, was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated from ...

Personal life

Bateman married Brenda Collison Wier and they had two children, Diana and Monica, both of whom became artists. They lived at Curridge, just north of

Newbury, Berkshire Newbury is a market town in the county of Berkshire, England, and is home to the administrative headquarters of West Berkshire Council. The town centre around its large market square retains a rare medieval Cloth Hall, an adjoining half timbere ...

. In later life, Bateman carried on an increasingly acrimonious battle with the Inland Revenue. His final years were spent on the island of

Gozo Gozo (, ), Maltese: ''Għawdex'' () and in antiquity known as Gaulos ( xpu, 𐤂𐤅𐤋, ; grc, Γαῦλος, Gaúlos), is an island in the Maltese archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. The island is part of the Republic of Malta. After t ...

, Malta.''The Best of H. M. Bateman'' (Bodley Head, 1987) A centenary celebration of his work was exhibited at the

Royal Festival Hall The Royal Festival Hall is a 2,700-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge, in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is a Grade I l ...

on London's

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in 1987. An English Heritage

blue plaque A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place in the United Kingdom and elsewhere to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person, event, or former building on the site, serving as a historical marker. The term i ...

, unveiled in 1997, commemorates Bateman at 40 Nightingale Lane in Clapham south London.

Publications

* Bateman, H. M., intr. A. E. Johnson. ''Burlesques''. London: Duckworth, 1916. * Bateman, H. M. ''A Book of Drawings''. London: Methuen, 1921. * Bateman, H. M. ''Colonels''. London: Methuen, 1925.

Notes

References

External links

H. M. Bateman: the website
* *
Bateman's Punch Illustrations
in HeidICON
Searchabe Archive
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bateman, H. M. 1887 births 1970 deaths People from Chieveley People educated at Glenalmond College Alumni of the Westminster School of Art Alumni of Goldsmiths, University of London British cartoonists Punch (magazine) cartoonists Olympic competitors in art competitions