Reportage illustration

Jo Brocklehurst, Illustration for review of Die Eingeborene, 1999
Jo (Josephine) Brocklehurst (1935 - 2006) studied at Central Saint Martins and began her career as a fashion illustrator. She later focused on portraiture, drawing directly from models at her studio in West Hampstead and in nightclubs and theatres in Berlin, London and New York. Her work documents the alternative subcultures of the 1970s, 80s and 90s that went on to shape mainstream fashion and performance scenes. In 1999, Brocklehurst was artist in residence at newspaper Berliner Zeitung during Berliner Theatertreffen, a festival of new German theatre. The paper wanted to revive the Weimar tradition of theatre reviews being accompanied by illustrations, rather than using photographs. Brocklehurst drew behind the scenes and from her seat during performances. She worked up images like this one overnight for publication the following morning. This illustration accompanied a review of Die Eingeborene, published in Berliner Zeitung on 11 May 1999.
Content warning: sex references

Jo Brocklehurst, Berlin Rehursell, Play Writer, Achim Frayer, Exstrawdeary, 1999
Jo (Josephine) Brocklehurst (1935 - 2006) studied at Central Saint Martins and began her career as a fashion illustrator. She later focused on portraiture, drawing directly from models at her studio in West Hampstead and in nightclubs and theatres in Berlin, London and New York. Her work documents the alternative subcultures of the 1970s, 80s and 90s that went on to shape mainstream fashion and performance scenes. In 1999, Brocklehurst was artist in residence at newspaper Berliner Zeitung during Berliner Theatertreffen, a festival of new German theatre. The paper wanted to revive the Weimar tradition of theatre reviews being accompanied by illustrations, rather than using photographs. Brocklehurst drew behind the scenes and from her seat during performances. Brocklehurst attended the a rehearsal and performance of the play Die Eingeborene and drew its director, Achim Frayer.

Jacqueline Ayer, Untitled (Young woman, Saora), c. 1973
Jacqueline Ayer (1930–2012) had a career that spanned many creative fields. She began as a fashion illustrator, and later turned her hand to children’s books, textiles and garments, as she worked in New York, Paris, London, Bangkok, Hong Kong and across India. This drawing was used as one of the final illustrations printed in Ayer's publication Oriental* Costume (1974). *The term ‘oriental’ has colonial and racist origins. It was established during a period when European powers took political control of other countries and defined non-European cultures as ‘inferior’ to their own. ‘Oriental’ was commonly used in English-speaking countries until the late 20th century to group together people, culture and places in Northern Africa, East Asia and Southeast Asia, as well as objects thought to have originated in these areas. The term has been widely rejected today as it exoticizes and ‘others’ these diverse cultures. Ayer used the term here to collectively refer to modes of dress from Cambodia, China, Japan, Mongolia, Nepal, Thailand and Tibet.

Jacqueline Ayer, Untitled, 1999
Jacqueline Ayer (1930–2012) had a career that spanned many creative fields. She began as a fashion illustrator, and later turned her hand to children’s books, textiles and garments, as she worked in New York, Paris, London, Bangkok, Hong Kong and across India. Ayer often used a sketchbook to record her observations and ideas for book narratives and fashion designs. The context for this drawing is unknown.

Jacqueline Ayer, Untitled, Date unknown
Jacqueline Ayer (1930–2012) had a career that spanned many creative fields. She began as a fashion illustrator, and later turned her hand to children’s books, textiles and garments, as she worked in New York, Paris, London, Bangkok, Hong Kong and across India. Ayer often used a sketchbook to record her observations and ideas for book narratives and fashion designs. The context for this drawing is unknown.

Jo Brocklehurst, Evening at the Schiller Theatre, 1999
Jo (Josephine) Brocklehurst (1935 - 2006) studied at Central Saint Martins and began her career as a fashion illustrator. She later focused on portraiture, drawing directly from models at her studio in West Hampstead and in nightclubs and theatres in Berlin, London and New York. Her work documents the alternative subcultures of the 1970s, 80s and 90s that went on to shape mainstream fashion and performance scenes. In 1999, Brocklehurst was artist in residence at newspaper Berliner Zeitung during Berliner Theatertreffen, a festival of new German theatre. The paper wanted to revive the Weimar tradition of theatre reviews being accompanied by illustrations, rather than using photographs. Brocklehurst drew behind the scenes and from her seat during performances. This drawing may have been made during the interval of a performance of play Die Eingeborene at the Schiller Theatre.

Jacqueline Ayer, Untitled, c. 1956
Jacqueline Ayer (1930–2012) had a career that spanned many creative fields. She began as a fashion illustrator, and later turned her hand to children’s books, textiles and garments, as she worked in New York, Paris, London, Bangkok, Hong Kong and across India. Ayer wrote and illustrated five of her own books, four of which gave insight into 1960s Thailand to US and UK audiences, while the fifth was set in Hong Kong. Using reportage drawing to create books about Asia for children was a unique and refreshing approach.

Jacqueline Ayer, Untitled, Date unknown
Jacqueline Ayer (1930–2012) had a career that spanned many creative fields. She began as a fashion illustrator, and later turned her hand to children’s books, textiles and garments, as she worked in New York, Paris, London, Bangkok, Hong Kong and across India. Ayer often used a sketchbook to record her observations and ideas for book narratives and fashion designs. The context for this drawing is unknown.

Jacqueline Ayer, Untitled, Date unknown
Jacqueline Ayer (1930–2012) had a career that spanned many creative fields. She began as a fashion illustrator, and later turned her hand to children’s books, textiles and garments, as she worked in New York, Paris, London, Bangkok, Hong Kong and across India. Ayer often used a sketchbook to record her observations and ideas for book narratives and fashion designs. The context for this drawing is unknown.

Jo Brocklehurst, Untitled (drawing of Die Eingeborene), 1999
Jo (Josephine) Brocklehurst (1935 - 2006) studied at Central Saint Martins and began her career as a fashion illustrator. She later focused on portraiture, drawing directly from models at her studio in West Hampstead and in nightclubs and theatres in Berlin, London and New York. Her work documents the alternative subcultures of the 1970s, 80s and 90s that went on to shape mainstream fashion and performance scenes. In 1999, Brocklehurst was artist in residence at newspaper Berliner Zeitung during Berliner Theatertreffen, a festival of new German theatre. The paper wanted to revive the Weimar tradition of theatre reviews being accompanied by illustrations, rather than using photographs. Brocklehurst drew behind the scenes and from her seat during performances. This drawing is from a performance of Die Eingeborene.

Jacqueline Ayer, Untitled, 1998
Jacqueline Ayer (1930–2012) had a career that spanned many creative fields. She began as a fashion illustrator, and later turned her hand to children’s books, textiles and garments, as she worked in New York, Paris, London, Bangkok, Hong Kong and across India. Ayer often used a sketchbook to record her observations and ideas for book narratives and fashion designs. The context for this drawing is unknown.

Jo Brocklehurst, Untitled (drawing of Die Eingeborene), 1999
Jo (Josephine) Brocklehurst (1935 - 2006) studied at Central Saint Martins and began her career as a fashion illustrator. She later focused on portraiture, drawing directly from models at her studio in West Hampstead and in nightclubs and theatres in Berlin, London and New York. Her work documents the alternative subcultures of the 1970s, 80s and 90s that went on to shape mainstream fashion and performance scenes. In 1999, Brocklehurst was artist in residence at newspaper Berliner Zeitung during Berliner Theatertreffen, a festival of new German theatre. The paper wanted to revive the Weimar tradition of theatre reviews being accompanied by illustrations, rather than using photographs. Brocklehurst drew behind the scenes and from her seat during performances. This drawing is from a performance of Die Eingeborene.

Jacqueline Ayer, Untitled, Date unknown
Jacqueline Ayer (1930–2012) had a career that spanned many creative fields. She began as a fashion illustrator, and later turned her hand to children’s books, textiles and garments, as she worked in New York, Paris, London, Bangkok, Hong Kong and across India. Ayer often used a sketchbook to record her observations and ideas for book narratives and fashion designs. The context for this drawing is unknown.

Jo Brocklehurst, Untitled, 1999
Jo (Josephine) Brocklehurst (1935 - 2006) studied at Central Saint Martins and began her career as a fashion illustrator. She later focused on portraiture, drawing directly from models at her studio in West Hampstead and in nightclubs and theatres in Berlin, London and New York. Her work documents the alternative subcultures of the 1970s, 80s and 90s that went on to shape mainstream fashion and performance scenes. In 1999, Brocklehurst was artist in residence at newspaper Berliner Zeitung during Berliner Theatertreffen, a festival of new German theatre. The paper wanted to revive the Weimar tradition of theatre reviews being accompanied by illustrations, rather than using photographs. Brocklehurst drew behind the scenes and from her seat during performances.

Jo Brocklehurst, Untitled (drawing of the Spiegelzelt), 1999
Jo (Josephine) Brocklehurst (1935 - 2006) studied at Central Saint Martins and began her career as a fashion illustrator. She later focused on portraiture, drawing directly from models at her studio in West Hampstead and in nightclubs and theatres in Berlin, London and New York. Her work documents the alternative subcultures of the 1970s, 80s and 90s that went on to shape mainstream fashion and performance scenes. In 1999, Brocklehurst was artist in residence at newspaper Berliner Zeitung during Berliner Theatertreffen, a festival of new German theatre. The paper wanted to revive the Weimar tradition of theatre reviews being accompanied by illustrations, rather than using photographs. Brocklehurst drew behind the scenes and from her seat during performances. This illustration accompanied a review of play Onkel Wanja, published in Berliner Zeitung on 5 May 1999, but is a drawing of the Spiegelzelt, a tent used for talks and evening events.

Jo Brocklehurst, Evening at the Schiller Theatre, 1999
Jo (Josephine) Brocklehurst (1935 - 2006) studied at Central Saint Martins and began her career as a fashion illustrator. She later focused on portraiture, drawing directly from models at her studio in West Hampstead and in nightclubs and theatres in Berlin, London and New York. Her work documents the alternative subcultures of the 1970s, 80s and 90s that went on to shape mainstream fashion and performance scenes. In 1999, Brocklehurst was artist in residence at newspaper Berliner Zeitung during Berliner Theatertreffen, a festival of new German theatre. The paper wanted to revive the Weimar tradition of theatre reviews being accompanied by illustrations, rather than using photographs. Brocklehurst drew behind the scenes and from her seat during performances. This drawing may have been made during the interval of a performance of play Die Eingeborene at the Schiller Theatre.


