Hunter S. Thompson's Go-to Artist Wants to Save the World
We visited Ralph Steadman's studio to talk about his early career and his new book.
Words: Ceri Levy
The elephant is Ralph Steadman's favorite animal. Now on the red list of endangered species, elephant populations have declined by 71 percent since the artist—one of our very greatest—was born 81 years ago. It's partly because of elephants that Steadman, Hunter S. Thompson's collaborator in chief of three-plus decades, finally found a reason to draw—really draw—again. It's been 12 years since Thompson was found dead at home with a bullet in his skull.
Ceri Levy used to work as a documentary maker for the pop bands Blur and Gorillaz but felt something was missing from his life and, on a whim, became the brave and passionate type of conservationist who gets beaten up or arrested for protesting against the illegal shooting of marsh harriers.
