Colin Self's highly personal and distinctive style of drawing led the artist Richard Hamilton to call him 'the best draughtsman in England since William Blake.
Born in Norwich, Self attended the Slade School of Fine Art in London from 1961 to 1963, where he befriended David Hockney and Peter Blake, who began to collect his work. By 1964, he was showing at the cutting-edge Robert Fraser Gallery. Four years later, in 1968, Self was producing technically groundbreaking prints. As a printmaker, Self became a great innovator and played a central role in the 1960s boom in printmaking. Drawing images from various commercial sources, he created the 'Power and Beauty' series of screen-prints in 1968 at Editions Alecto. Throughout this period, his engagement with Cold War politics and the nuclear threat brought a sinister mood and political edge to his work, distinguishing it from the mainstream of Pop art. In 1995, the Tate Gallery in London presented a display of their entire holdings of his work, including an important group of drawings, sculptures, paintings, and prints acquired in the preceding years directly from the artist.
'Jerry' captures the playful mischief between Tom and Jerry. It takes us back to childhood, making this drawing especially endearing.