Detailed cartoon

The body-builder

The above example is a high quality cartoon, typically reserved for editorial use. I enjoy sketching cartoon characters with irate or just plain stupid expressions, so creating this one was an absolute delight.

Fun cartoon

Pilot's license certificate

David Barnes commissioned me to create a cartoon for his flying lesson certificates, and I decided to depict a trainee pilot making a major error during their lesson.

Detailed cartoon

King Kong

The cover page of the Bellville-based property consultants Rode & Associates read, "Listed funds gobbling up property stock."

I particularly like King Kong's eyes' dumb, crazed look. And the flaring nostrils.

Simple cartoon

Sleepless

Cartoons are highly effective conveyors of messages because they use visual communication, such as humorous illustrations, to leave a lasting impression on the viewer's mind. 

An example is the above cartoon created to remind people to register for an upcoming conference. This cartoon is used in an annual email reminder and depicts a person unable to sleep due to worrying about not having registered yet.

Exquisitely intricate cartoon

Wyatt Earp – the Afrikaans comedy

A long time ago, I illustrated a poster for a satirical stage performance titled "Why't Burp," starring TV actor Chris Vorster. The show, subtitled "'n Afrikaanse Western," parodied the legend of Wyatt Earp in a uniquely South African way. 

Chris and I both hail from the same high school in Bellville, or "behind the boerewors curtain." The poster's style was deliberately naive, crude, and cartoonish, popular with rebellious, young Afrikaans speakers like us at the time. This style had been popularised by the likes of Conrad Botes in the graphic novel Bitterkomix. Incidentally, Conrad and I also grew up together.

According to Chris, the poster was so popular in the Durban leg of the tour that most copies got stolen shortly after they were posted on the streets, the ultimate compliment. Of course, Chris had been known to exaggerate, so the jury is still out on that one ;-)

Simpsons-style cartoon

The happy couple

The request from this client was for me to produce a Simpsons-style cartoon of a dear friend and her significant other, situated in the Simpsons' living room with its familiar objects, but with slight modifications that reflect this couple's pastimes. From a technical standpoint, it was a caricature, since the subjects needed to be identifiable while adhering to the style.

Elaborate cartoon Milking a dead cow The headline of Rode's Report on the SA Property Market, a quarterly publication by leading property economists Rode & Associates in Bellville, read, "Profit margins milked dry." As an artist, the imagery of a starving farmer milking a cow skeleton was right up my alley – I have a taste for the macabre.

Basic cartoon

Sleepwalking to work

I created this cartoon for a workers' training program depicting an early bird to illustrate that employees who arrive early to work are more productive.

This cartoon was produced in the late 90s using traditional Pantone markers on paper, and each project consisted of approximately 100 cartoons. While this technique was expensive and caused strain on my wrist, I have since transitioned to using pencil and pen outlines before digitally adding colour to the final product.

The commissions were for Marine Products (Marpro) for I&J and Sea Harvest.

Simple cartoon

Serving a grim dish

This cartoon depicts the surprised expression of a diner as he discovers bones protruding from the fish he ordered. The cartoon character appears to be someone accustomed to luxury, as indicated by the formally dressed waiter. The fish in the cartoon has a mischievous grin. 

The underlying message is that customers are unlikely to purchase products that do not appear visually appealing. This cartoon is one of hundreds created for I&J and Sea Harvest via Marine Products.

Fun cartoons

BigBird and Budgie

I was commissioned to create these cartoons as a gift for the client's partner, and I was tasked with using the likeness of the popular cartoon characters Tweety Bird and Kevin the bird.

Thabo Matime
General manager, New Product Development, Netcare

"Konrad, wow!!!! I’m blown away. Thank you so much. I've always wanted this. I really love it."

Pieter De Waal
Sole proprietor, Hermit on the Hill wines

"A stickler for detail, Konrad appreciates the difference between good and great, and won't stop tweaking till the end-product meets his exacting standards.

"His offbeat sense of humour, coupled with his ability to transform this into his designs, makes it a pleasure to brainstorm new concepts with him.

"Konrad has been a key member in developing my brand, and I always look to him for inspiration and creativity."

Tania de Maine-Oosthuizen:
Manager, Tharagay Addictions Services

"We love his work, from initial ideas to final designs! What he has done for us, was simple, yet elegant, and purely beautiful".

Zeki Hilmi
Sole proprietor, Chelsea Village Framers and Antique Shoppe

"Konrad has this exceptional ability to develop illustrations.

"We were so thrilled by the work he undertook for us that we employed Konrad to design our wedding invitation, which, through collaboration and Konrad's outstanding knowledge of graphic design, he designed for us exactly what we were looking for. All our guests commented and said, "what an amazing wedding invitation!"

"I recommend Konrad to everybody and will use him in the future again."

Sanett Uys
Marketing manager, Colliers International

"The work Konrad did for us has been outstanding! His customer service is great and his creativity exceptional. He is willing to think out of the box and come up with new ideas, which we love."

Ursula Jensen
Blue Sky Towers

"That is AWESOME. We handed the caricature pictures to the 3 guys at a dinner and they were completely blown away. What a lovely surprise it was for them."