AIB Gallery: “Drawing Breath — A Retrospective Whisper from Ralph Steadman”

From two cherished emails from the artist:

#1:

I was about to send Bonnie a 'kit of parts' to make the invite up from. However- here you are!! So why don't I send it direct to you. You are the only person who figured out the King Ludd reference. [his email was kingludd@...] Well done!! You get the special prize of an old-fashioned thing. Don't worry! I will find you one. Something crippled and old.

I am glad you are working on the invite/poster, T-shirt, jockstrap, whatever for the show. I did the artwork this morning and I did not want to touch it, except to say, use it as you think fit. I am going to send you a high rez of the lettering which you can manouvre to fit your arrangement with all the other blurb which I think should be typeset. Don't you? Anyway, welcome and I will send you the writing now and then the picture to use for the complete design….

#2:

And here is the second e-mail containing the Nuclear smile in high rez. But you will have the original picture there(when it arrives) if what is sent is not adequate. In my kingdom I give my subjects a massive five minutes to get their new-fangled thing to work or I pull the plug....

Hope these get to you. I have sent a surf runner on ahead with pigskin areas namibulating at speeds of 64 drimules(old time) containing the wisdom you need, but he may be tardy in your world. Give him a sip of water when he arrives but don't shoot him. He is to be internally upgraded to 3 gloads on his return to my kingdom.

RALPH

JK, September 2011