Johannes Leak
Johnanes Leak | |
|---|---|
| Born | 25 October 1980 Dießen am Ammersee, Bavaria, Germany |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Education | Sydney Boys High School Julian Ashton Art School |
| Occupation | Editorial cartoonist |
| Father | Bill Leak |
| Website | johannesleak |
Johannes Leak (born 25 October 1980)[1] is a German-born Australian editorial cartoonist and painter.
Life
He is the son of cartoonist Bill Leak and teacher Astrid, née Wiegand.[1] The family lived in Dießen am Ammersee before moving to Australia.[1] He attended Sydney Boys High School and then Julian Ashton Art School for five years on a scholarship.[1]
In November 2019, Leak was appointed editorial cartoonist of The Australian, a position held by his father until his death two years before.[2]
Leak's August 2020 cartoon of Kamala Harris, the presumptive Democratic vice presidential nominee in the 2020 election was deemed as offensive and racist by a number of politicians and journalists.[3] The cartoon had used Joe Biden's use of the phrase "little brown girls".[4]
In February 2021, Leak was awarded a $40,000 contract from the Australian Department of Parliamentary Services to paint an official portrait of former prime minister Tony Abbott.[5][6]
Leak submitted paintings to the Archibald Prize in 2021 with a portrait of Warlpiri Country Liberal Party politician Jacinta Nampijinpa Price and in 2025 of Jewish advocate Alex Ryvchin.[7] Neither were selected as finalists, although the State Library of New South Wales bought the portrait of Price for about $20,000, but following some First Nations employees taking offence to the acquisition, the picture is not shown on the library's website[8] and can only be viewed by appointment.[9]
References
- ^ a b c d Pawle, Fred (8 November 2019). "Johannes Leak follows in the footsteps of his father". The Australian.
- ^ Vivienne Kelly (9 November 2019). "Bill Leak's son Johannes takes up cartoonist position at The Australian". Mumbrella. Retrieved 7 May 2025.
- ^ Meade, Amanda (14 August 2020). "Johannes Leak cartoon of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris denounced as racist". The Weekly Beast. The Guardian. Retrieved 14 August 2020. "Picture"
- ^ Nampijinpa Price, Jacinta (18 August 2020). "Johannes Leak cartoon shows that the left just can't handle the truth". The Australian.
- ^ "Johannes Leak awarded $40,000 commission for Tony Abbott's official portrait". The Guardian. 9 February 2021. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
- ^ "Anthony (Tony) John Abbott AC". Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 7 May 2025.
- ^ Christopher Allen (2 May 2025). "Archibald Prize 2025: When works of quality like this fail to make the cut, we have a problem". The Australian. Retrieved 7 May 2025.
- ^ "Portrait of Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, by Johannes Leak". State Library of New South Wales. 2021. Retrieved 7 May 2025. "Picture"
- ^ Kelly Burke (27 March 2023). "State Library of NSW staff angered by acquisition of Jacinta Price portrait by controversial cartoonist". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 May 2025.
