Oleg Gutsol was born on 21st February 1964 in Ukraine,He Graduated from Kirvograd Machine-building Technical School and in 1994 from the Kiev National University .He has taken part in more than 400 international cartoon contests and exhibitions.
 

1. What was your first satirical drawing?

- It was long ago, somewhere in 1974 when I was 10 years old and I studied in the 4th class of school at the time of the Soviet Union. Then it was accepted at schools that each class published the wall newspaper, competitions on the best decorating of newspapers were held. I in the class drew better than other pupils and the teacher appointed me the artist of the wall newspaper. Here so I also started drawing caricatures on the schoolmates who had low marks in study, bad behavior.

And on changes between lessons I drew cartoons to teachers and schoolmates which, of course, I didn't show to teachers.

 2. When you began the professional work of the caricaturist?

- In March, 1987 I was taken for work in the small newspaper "Stroitel Kommunizma". Generally I worked in this newspaper as the journalist, went around the city and to the area, wrote notes, reportings, big articles. And besides – I drew for the newspaper of a caricature.

 3. When your work was for the first time published in the press?

- On January 5, 1987 in the Stroitel Kommunizma newspaper (the city Small the Temple, the Kirovograd area, Ukraine).
 

 4. What your first prize was?

- I won the first prize for a caricature in 2001 at the international competition of a caricature in the city of Pisek (Czech Republic).

5. What was your last prize?

- Hhahaha! My last prize in this life will be, I hope, not soon. I am going to live and draw still very long. And if it is serious, one of my recent prizes is a prize from the judge most talented caricaturist Alexander Sergeyev, widely famous in the world, at the International competition of a caricature "Karikaturum" in the city of Surgut (Russia).

 6. How you find new ideas for the caricatures?

- Differently. Generally ideas come to mind, apparently, it seems "from nowhere". Plots for drawings I can be thought out from communication with different people: as friends, and with people unfamiliar to me. Sometimes you see ridiculous, amusing or, on the contrary, sad sketches on the street, in transport, in shop, at office, say, everywhere where there are people. As in the center of almost each caricature always there is a person, an individual or society. Sometimes you read on the Internet of news and you watch the feature film, or you read the newspaper, or the book. Hop! Time – and in the head as flash of a lightning appears the ready picture or a plot of a caricature. It is only necessary to be enough paper and a pencil, and urgently to sketch the sketch of future caricature.
 

 8. What do you think of plagiarism?

- The good caricature is very difficult genre of art, it is an alloy, strong communication of good highly artistic graphics or painting with qualitative journalism. Today in the world some tens of thousands of caricaturists are, but not so there is a lot of great, real masters of a caricature. And it is quite natural that at many beginning caricaturists often appears desire politely to borrow or impudently to steal from great caricaturists or a drawing subject (often simply they have no ideas) or to adopt one to one manner of drawing of famous masters of a caricature. Therefore if young colleagues caricaturists have similar embarrassment, coincidence or repetitions, I treat it indulgently. Young let study! They can be scolded, specified slightly for it their mistakes, but not angrily to hold up to shame. After all great masters always have interesting new ideas to extreme old age, they always go only the own way. Much more strict I treat skilled, mature caricaturists who consciously steal subjects and idea of the colleagues. I happen, of course, practically at all caricaturists of coincidence or repetitions in works, from it nobody is insured (often many subjects or ideas simply roll under feet on the road, only lazy won't pick up them). But when already ready work of other artist undertakes and consciously one to one is redrawn, and then somewhere is published or shown at an exhibition or at competition – this is very dishonourable! Today in a century of the Internet, any attempt to steal foreign idea and to earn on it money is found very quickly.

 9. How you think, who the best Iranian caricaturist?

- It is very difficult to give an exact and irrefragable answer on this question. Over the last ten years the Iranian caricature made very powerful high-quality breakthrough forward, on the horizon of a world caricature there was the whole group of strong and gifted Iranian artists. Practically in all international competitions of a caricature, caricaturists from Iran take prizes or get special awards. Personally I very much like creativity of Kambiz Derambakhsh, Mahmood Azadnia, Massoud Shojai Tabatabai, Massoud Ziaei Zardkhashoei, Hossein Safi and it is a lot of other Iranian colleagues.

 10. Who the best caricaturist in your country?

- I am the Ukrainian artist, the citizen of Ukraine and me is pleasant creativity of Valery Zelinsky, Anatoly Kazansky, Anatoly Vasilenko, Vladimir Kazanevsky, Konstantin Kazanchev, Radna Sakhaltuev, Yury Kosobukin and many other Ukrainian colleagues. But as I now live with a family in Republic of Belarus, would like to mention also works of the world-class Belarusian artist Arkady Gursky. Unique artist!
 

 11. How you think, who the best foreign caricaturist?

- It is very difficult to tell! Art of a caricature is not sport. For example, the athlete-runner, ran 100 meters the first – and everything, all know that today he the best! And in art all differently. Here rather the rule works it "is pleasant" or "it isn't pleasant". It is almost impossible to call any one artist. Very much Ronald Searle's creativity, to Sempe, Lassalvi, Ross Thompson, Herman Ogorodnikov, Edgar Walter, Yury Pogorelov, Andrey Popov, Yaqub Veyatsky's and tens other great masters is pleasant.

  12. What best caricature which you ever saw? (if it is possible, send it to us).

- Such caricatures at me – one thousand! To choose from them the best it is almost impossible. It as to choose darling from the own children. I very much like witty caricatures and thus skillfully drawn.

 13. What is the time you spend for creation of one caricature?

- Differently. Sometimes drawing is created on one breath, on it two-three hours of time leave. If the caricature is drawn for the newspaper, is urgent in number, on its creation there is no more than an hour. Absolutely in a different way caricatures for the international competitions become. Some days or are thought out weeks a drawing subject, the pencil sketch is drawn further, then work becomes a water color, further the contour is led round by black ink. Happens, half a day or day leaves on drawing, and there is also a month. A lot of things depend on competition terms, on inspiration, on complexity of drawing.
 

 14. What tools, and what equipment you use for creation of a caricature?

- I use gel pens for creation of preliminary sketches, pencils, water color paints, black ink, thin feathers for drawing.

 15. What software you use in the work?

- I use Adobe Photoshop for scanning and sometimes for coloring of drawings.

 16. What can you recommend the to colleagues?

- To be kinder. Both in life, and in creativity.

17. What do you think of a comical situation in the world?

- In my opinion to a deep belief, all art including art of a caricature, has to unite people of the different races, nationalities, religious beliefs, political views rich and poor. But unfortunately, now in our restless time the caricature separates more people. It is very sad. In the world there is no kindness.
 

 18. You had ever problems because of your caricatures?

- Now not. Today I am engaged in more comic caricatures, often I draw for children, both a caricature, and an illustration to children's magazines and books. And earlier, in times when Ukraine was as a part of the Soviet Union when I drew political caricatures for the newspaper, yes, problems were. Often anonymous letters with threats of physical violence came to edition. And even earlier, when did the sergeant-frontier guard military service of the Soviet Union, I drew a caustic cartoon to one officer which served as the stomatologist in a medical medical unit of our frontier group. In a month somehow this cartoon fell into hands of this officer, he summoned me, seated in a chair and pulled out to me tooth. By the way, it wasn't sick. And tooth was the patient. I am very grateful to this doctor officer for it. He shook hands then with me, thanked me for a cartoon, smiled and told that will leave it to itself for memory.

 19. What best caricature at you?

- I don't know. Process of creation of a caricature is interesting to me. And what drawing the best to judge to my readers and colleagues.
 

 20. You ever were engaged in creation of animated cinema?

- Still not. But very much I would like to try. My many colleagues on a caricature were engaged or engaged in animation cinema. It is a new and interesting niche for creativity.

 21. You ever were judge in the international competitions of a caricature?

- Yes. Once in Tehran in 2007, two times in Tabriz in 2010 and 2013, in Azerbaijan in 2013, in Berlin in 2015 and now invited in jury to competition in India. It is invaluable experience.

 22. You ever worked in cooperation with other artist?

No, in a tandem I never worked with other artist.
 

 23. What you are opinions on the irancartoon.com website?

- Remarkable site! It is convenient that it has also an English-language version. On irancartoone I constantly receive fresh information on new international competitions of a caricature, on their results, I get acquainted with works of both the best Iranian caricaturists, and foreign artists. Keep in there!

 25. If you were born again, what you would choose as the professional career?

- I again would choose the caricaturist's profession. I like to draw the relation to the world.

 26. What and when there was your last exhibition?

- Even I don't know. I only in 2015 sent the caricatures for 36 international competitions and exhibitions of a caricature. Where exactly now pass group exhibitions with my participation I don't know. If to speak about my personal exhibitions, at me them was only two: one in 1969 in Ukraine, in kindergarten when I was 5 years old and in 2013 in the Tabriz museum of a caricature in Iran.
 

 27. What your definition or description of a caricature?

- When I studied at the Kiev National University at faculty of journalism, a subject of my thesis was "A caricature – as a journalism genre". I is quite proved I consider that the caricature is a journalism. With development of printing editions, with development of the press, with development of newspapers and magazines, the caricature found force and value in all countries. The caricature is the art which is taken out from the museums on the street to the people someone from researchers of history of a caricature spoke. With development of the press (and now and the Internet), the caricature found huge masses as admirers of a caricature, and her opponents.

 28. How you consider, the artist can earn a lot of money, being engaged in a caricature and a cartoon?

- Differently. Here a lot of things depend on the country and society where there lives the caricaturist, from talent, popularity and a demand of the artist, from luck and good luck, from a work place. From a political environment in the country. Somewhere tens of thousands of dollars pay the artist for one drawing, and in some countries the artist-caricaturist for his creativity is threatened by death.
 

 29. Who your favourite artist, except the comical world?

- Tremblingly and delight I treat works of the Belarusian artist-painter Valentin Gubarev. Amazingly talented master of painting! A distinctive feature of creativity of this master of painting is kindness and love to people, to "the little person".

 30. What book you read recently?

- Now I read the novel "Hundred Years of Yakov" of the Ukrainian writer Vladimir Lis. Tremendous thing!
 

 31. You think, what the humour can be studied?

The humour nature still managed to be solved to nobody though the best philosophers and minds of mankind puzzled over this question. After all the person - the only representative of fauna who possesses ability to laugh. To laugh not only evil, sarcastic laughter (chimpanzees too show a cheerful smile, seeing the enemy killed by them), and to laugh the kind laughter which isn't humiliating the person.
 

 32. What attitude at you towards "black humour"?

- There is an opinion that the misanthropes, people with the distorted mentality hating mankind are engaged in "black humour". It at all not so! I consider that "the black humour", in a caricature is a destiny only of kind people who sincerely love the person who laugh in the "black" caricatures not at the person, and at his shortcomings, at all negative and angry that is in thoughts and acts of this person. I adore black humour in a caricature. By the way, my very first album of caricatures which was published in 1991, not incidentally carries the name "Black Humour".

 

 33. Who the best artist in "black humour"?

- Masters of "black humour" - Chaval, Bosk, Sine, Addams Charles. Now fine examples of "black humour" to us are given by Sam Gross.

34. What was your last caricature?

- I am the optimist therefore I hope that I will draw the last drawings not soon.
This interview will be used in both English and Persian websites and also in Iran Cartoon Magazine.