OKT Conversation: Ralph Steadman

With a career that spans six decades, artist Ralph Steadman is probably best known for his work with writer Hunter S. Thompson, but his catalogue of works is infinitely greater than his collaborations with the gonzo journalist. From books, product art, and theater sets to illustrations for publications like Rolling Stone, The New York Observer, and The Independent, not to mention musical albums and films, Steadman has delved into just about every genre of artistic expression during his eighty-eight years on Earth.

Ralph Steadman: And Another Thing will open at the OSU Museum of Art in Stillwater on January 21. This new traveling exhibit features a trove of works and artifacts–sketches, notes, photographs, and many illustrations, including pieces from Hunter S. Thompson’s 1971 novel Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.

I had the opportunity to chat with Steadman and his daughter Sadie Williams—the Ralph Steadman Art Collection managing director and curator of this exhibit—over Zoom this week. From the family home in Kent, England, Ralph and Sadie talked about art, pets, and Leonardo da Vinci.

The following is an abbreviated transcript of our conversation. Stay tuned for the full interview on the Oklahoma Today Podcast in February.

Ralph Steadman at his home. Photo by Rikard Österlund

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Oklahoma Today: So, how many works are in this exhibit?

Sadie Williams: We have 149 pieces, plus ephemera and the life-sized Vintage Dr. Gonzo bronze sculpture by Jud Bergeron (a piece based on Steadman’s drawings of Hunter S. Thompson). So, it’s quite a full-on experience. It goes all the way back to when dad was learning to draw in the 1950s and ’60s, and the latest piece is 2023, which is a Donald Trump portrait.

Oklahoma Today: What are some of your favorite works that are in the exhibit?

Ralph Steadman: The Leonardo [da Vinci] stuff….The Last Supper on the wall upstairs in the bedroom.

Sadie Williams: Yeah, but we haven’t put that in the exhibition because we’d have to bring the wall.

OKT: I was wondering, did you end up making a [da Vinci] flying machine, a gliding device?

Ralph Steadman: Yes, I think it crashed, didn’t it?

Sadie Williams: Yeah, you threw it off the roof. I came home from school one day and he was throwing it off the roof with a film crew. Just another day in the Steadman household.

Vulture by Ralph Steadman

OKT: What inspires you to make art?

Ralph Steadman: What interests me I think the most is the blank sheet of paper. What are you going to do with that? Usually, I have to make a mark on it and take it from there. And I haven’t got a style. I always mention that to people. It’s not about style, it’s about information and content. The most important thing is the content of your drawing. I just try to draw something that communicates.

OKT: Who are some of your favorite artists?

Ralph Steadman: Leonardo da Vinci, George Gross, Rembrandt…um, who else?

Sadie Williams: John Steinbeck.

Ralph Steadman: Oh, yes, John Steinbeck.

Sadie Williams: The cat’s come to see what’s going on.

OKT: Oh, the cat. What’s your cat’s name?

Sadie Williams: Ozzy. She’s a girl. We used to have a black goldfish called Sabbath and he died, so we got a black cat and called her Ozzy.

Animal Farm by Ralph Steadman

OKT: What’s maybe the most memorable adventure that you’ve had in the course of your career?

Ralph Steadman: Probably going to Kentucky to the derby [1970 Kentucky Derby]. That was a pretty good experience, meeting Hunter for the first time . . . He was very weird.

OKT: Are you working on any new projects?

Sadie Williams: Well, you’re trying to do an Elon Musk...

Ralph Steadman: Oh, Elon Musk.

Sadie Williams: But it’s not quite there yet.

Ralph Steadman: It’s not grabbing my enthusiasm.

Sadie Williams: We’re kind of focusing on the exhibition. We’ve obviously got this [OSU exhibit] opening next week, and then we’ve got an exhibition opening in North London at the Heath Robinson Museum in the middle of February. So, we’ve got a couple exhibitions out there, which is quite nice. A lot of Dad’s work has been seen in magazines and books, but when you see the originals, they’re like this [stretches arms out to show large canvas size]. It’s nice to see people’s reactions to actually standing in front of an original artwork.

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas illustration by Ralph Steadman

OKT: This exhibit is dedicated to your late wife Anna. Did she influence your work significantly?

Ralph Steadman: She was a very big influence, and she used to do fantastic work in embroidery.

Sadie Williams: She was always doing something. She did embroidery, but she also did papier-mâché models. She used to keep a diary of every single trip she ever went on with you. There’s about fifty diaries that she’s got that are just filled with her writing, her observations, and her little sketches, as well. She was very creative as well, wasn’t she?

Ralph Steadman: Absolutely.

OKT: Is there anything that you’d like to tell people about the exhibit?

Ralph Steadman: There’s a secret drawing in there, and you’ve got to find out.

Sadie Williams: Guess which is the secret drawing [laughs]. I hope we’ve pleased people by putting in a few things they’d like to see–some of the Leonardo or some of the Hunter pieces, and things like that. I hope they get a few surprises, as well. I hope they kind of go, “I can't believe that's a Steadman!” or “God, how have I never seen that before?” It was fun to put together. I hope people enjoy the exhibition.

Ralph Steadman: And Another Thing runs through May 10.

Written By

Megan Rossman

Megan Rossman is Oklahoma Today's photography editor.