Art isn't created just to please our eyes; it also transfers ideas and provokes thought on social problems. Austrian cartoonist Gerhard Haderer has been producing satirical illustrations and cartoons for adults for decades now, highlighting the awful problems with society.
Gerhard Haderer had even faced the court for one of his brutally honest books, The Life of Jesus. It triggered violent reactions, because of the society problems discussed in it, in Europe, especially from the Catholic Church. The story culminated in 2005 when Haderer was convicted in Greece for insulting the religious community and was given a six-month suspended sentence in absentia. A few months later, however, this verdict was corrected on appeal, and Gerhard Haderer was acquitted.
The artist developed his realistic style when working as a graphic designer and illustrator for advertising agencies early in his career. It wasn't until a cancer operation in 1985 when Gerhard abandoned his commercial dreams and became a freelance caricaturist and satirical illustrator, mainly focusing on social issues. Scroll down to check out his unsettling and at times scary cartoons and vote for your favorites.
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this happens so much at live concerts, just put the damn phone down and enjoy the experience!
This I do not understand. I like reading books in paper but there is nothing wrong with electronic editions. If anything, they are more eco friendly. It is still the same activity just different medium.
I think the point is that everyone is shocked to see an actual newspaper.
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The satire is not that the man is reading a paper, the satire is that everyone else is absolutely STUNNED that someone might still actually want to read an actual paper made of...paper! The human tendency to conform is so huge that one only has to look around on the street and see everyone -- and I mean everyone! -- either with earbuds or earphones blocking their ability to hear what's going on around them, and their eyes glued to their smartphones. What a waste of life! No one sees or hears anyone or anything else any longer. I work in a college, and the students no longer know how to make eye contact, or how to speak to anyone else, particularly those who are older than they are. They no longer know how to answer the phone, because they've never received a phone call from someone other than those that they know, so they don't know how to say, "Hello, this is Susan at the ABC Shop. May I help you?" It's that lemming-like tragedy that the artist is satirizing!
I'm the one in the train reading a book. All other people seem to be on the phone or listening to music. Do they ever rest or reflect?
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They are all the same. the only difference is the medium. Neither the one with the electronics nor with the newspaper is actually being any social.
That is another way to look at it. But my idea is that the artist portrayed this as how everyone with the electronic devices are shocked at the one man reading a newspaper. Because so many people use electronics today. You have a point, but I don't think (in my humble opinion) that this piece was about socializing.
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Wow. The generation speaks. When you are with someone having a meal, it is considered RUDE to plant your nose in a newspaper, or urgently , these days, plant your nose in a “device”. The fact that most are having trouble seeing the humour speaks volumes.
yep , only your interpretation is valid. sweet irony considering the art.
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I think it is more of the source of news. Internet aggregators and posters vs actual journalists.
My husbnd bought me a soft cover novel for x-mas this year. He told me that one of his favorite memories from when we were young was sitting and watching me while i read book after book... He asked why I stopped reading, Really dude? .We had children happened! Id love to read this book however , if i do get a break for a chapter or two, my husband will not be admiring me...he will need to look after the kids! LMAO. Was thoughtful gift tho honey. Thx 💜
Ahhh... But sometimes Luddites are the most interesting ones. If there is anyone one worthy of having a conversation, i reckon it's the old boy with the newspaper.
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I get this reaction every time people see me using a payphone and pull out my address book
Has everything to do with age, Plus when the paper has been read there nothing left, So you don't loose yourself for hours like you do on the net,
Has to do with age and your own comfort , Reading the paper is a fraction and that factors into comfort , Plus when your done reading the paper there is nothing left , So you don't get hooked for hours like you do on the net
This cartoonist is really very good, isn't he?! Most on BP are...not.
I'm sorry, I'm a bit of an oddity in this day and age when it comes to books! Personally, I don't think you can beat the feeling of sitting with your book in your hand, the feel of it, the weight of it, the smell of it - old and new books alike! I just love it! I understand and appreciate the benefits of ebooks - they save space (my spare room has piles of books everywhere, so many that my man is adamant we're never moving house as he refuses point blank to move them because of the weight lol!), have all your books available at the touch of a finger, etc, etc! But for me personally, you can't beat sitting with a book in your hands! I love it, and doubt very much I'd ever change lol!
We are all going to go blind if we rely solely on reading from electronic devices... My vision has already worsened. Myopia is on the rise in our youth (globally). I much prefer reading from a book than on any device.
It seems to me like the man with the paper is being just a rude as the other patrons, just with a different format.
I perfer an actual paper (same goes for books) I like the tactile aspect of it, and how much easier it is to scan through looking for articles of interest. It makes me sad to see them go away, even though I know it's better for the environment.
At least paper can be recycled = ECO-FRIENDLY. I-phones .....not so much..
The problem is the media! On a paper tomorrow's chip paper! On a device it's there for good even if it's wrong!which is most of the time!
This is supposed to envoke the feeling of nostalgia for simpler days gone by and how seeing someone reading an actual paper or using a real telephone is an anomaly
Nice; love the hypocrisy; people glaring are doing the equivalent .
I think it is interesting that science, industry, commerce, society -- all force innovations on the public at large, and then mock the public at large for using those innovations.
Ola, I believe this illustrates how the old man is stuck in his old ways while the younger people have embraced the new.
Ola, I think this illustrates the old man is stuck in his old ways while the younger people embrace the new.
I experienced this waiting in the Dr. waiting room.I haden’t Had time to read the newspaper at home so took it with me. I could feel the thought interruption in the people around me when I CARFULLY turned the page. I like e-books too. But this was kinda sad.
It is true. The artist is portraying what happens when society as a whole embraces electronics and looks astonished at someone who refuses to change and blindly follow the masses into the abyss of social media.
Y every single guy with laptop has mouse with it ...........it shows cartoonist knowledge of technology 😂😂😂
That’s me. Except we don’t read at the table, we actually talk to each other during the meal. I still have subscriptions to newspapers and magazines.
a lady on my bus once yelled at an older man (but younger than her) for chastising a student with a cell phone because "that kid could at least see me to say good morning, but you have the whole newspaper up over your face, you can't see anything!"
Trackpad, no trackpad... mouse, no mouse, ... print, no print. btw. the "carbon foot print" is not any better when using electronic devices
A newspaper like a book can be shared and read by countless people without the use of energy and arguably last for centuries. Unless you're powering your laptop / PC / phone on solar, you're not as eco-friendly. And don't forget to toss them for the latest technology every few years.
I think it is to represent how we as a community would find it rude that someone would read a newspaper at the dining table yet tablets and such are more or less accepted while they basically are the same.
Nothing like a real book for me. Love the feel the smell. I find reading electronically uncomfortable. Maybe i am old fashioned. To each his own
No eye contact, no verbal communication, total loss of humanity to machines.
What looks odd, is that no group/table or individuals are having a discussion. At least, of what’s in the news.
you do realize how many finite and environmentally hostile products go into making a computer, do you not? Paper resources, properly managed, are infinite and infinitely renewable. manual reading from a tactile, interpersonal source also helps seat the information in your mind and engages you far more deeply than reading on an electronic screen. That i s beyond the semantics however, of the actual image the artist displays for your perusal
Don’t get this one...technology advances. Haven’t read a physical paper in years.
The point is that this is “supposed” to be a restaurant, not an office (note the tables, not desks). Everybody is looking at their laptops so that they don’t have to talk to, look at, or even acknowledge the other people in the room.
people think that reducing the use of paper is an eco-friendly way but the largest percentage of garbage comes from electronic gadgets plus the use of electricity causes air pollution not where you plug it but from the power plants where the source of electricity comes from...
says this while we are all reading this on some kind of electronic device
Older man reading the paper, younger people on lap tops...times have changed.
The younger generation is into tech more than the older ones. They don't understand why he's still reading the paper when they're all on laptops, etc. But any smart person knows that these gadgets were created to keep you distracted. And all this man wants to do is read the paper. Not pay attention to distractions. He goes at his pace and entertains what he wants to. Nice.
Why is everyone making the assumption that the people on the laptops are reading the paper?
hidden fun fact: no one uses a wireless mouse, fat laptops, no obvious MacBooks, its not a starbucks... guess the year :P :D
That's the truth too..........book and magazines and newspapers are virtually extinct...........
How is NOT reading the newspaper something wrong with society? It saves just a tiny bit more trees by not printing as much paper as went into it before. Was this picture taken at this cafe before the invention of pc and internet then everyone would have their own newspaper each and there would be no difference! This picture is a failure!
I have seen people sitting four to a table, each on his own phone/tablet. What has happened to conversation?
I so miss sitting down with the paper and a cup of coffee in the mornings.
Timeline: Catholic Church's sex abuse scandals https://www.cnn.com/2017/06/29/world/timeline-catholic-church-sexual-abuse-scandals/index.html
I'm not seeing this as a "fast food/obesity" thing, more like a CEO or corporate leader just greedily eating funds. Fat in wealth kind of thing
I immediately thought that the commando in the middle thinks in black and white, and reality is all sorts of colors.
George Orwell- Animal Farm: ''Twelve voices were shouting in anger, and they were all alike. No question, now, what had happened to the faces of the pigs. The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again; but already it was impossible to say which was which."
Not sure how many people knew this, but there is a forth monkey in this series. See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil and do no evil.
I'm honestly tired of people, artists or not, claiming there's something "wrong" with today's society and the way we interact with technology. I'm sorry but if you want your kids to be "addicted" to technology, DON'T buy them a phone when they're six years old, suck it up and try PARENTING instead of shunning your kids away with digital toys and electronics.
Every time I see these kinds of things this is all I can think of raunisex_t...fef027.jpg 
I always think of Caveman Science Fiction: http://dresdencodak.com/2009/09/22/caveman-science-fiction/
Load More Replies... Lol,complaining about society and technology in a digital way.I am sure that all those artist never use computers,smartphones and social media.They should stop being hypocritical and blame the "society"
I didn't think about it as someone complaining, I thought it was just a reminder for myself to double check where I stand in these pictures. I thought they were interesting to scroll through.
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I love the mind of people who can tackle entire issues in a single image.
ya'll don't get the term, "satire" do you? Here you go. SATIRE: the use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues. Illustrators can joke about the things they see using the their own medium. This illustrator does a funny job of poking at topical issues. Get a grip. If you enjoy your phone, keep enjoying it. Relax.
Honestly? STOP WITH THE SELFIE STICK! It’s so overdone, every satrical illustration has the selfie stick. And yes, I do watch tv, but I GO OUTSIDE AND PLAY TOO!
If you think it is all about watching tv then you totally missed the point.
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Such superb artwork - such grievously sad subjects. Thank you, Gerhard Haderer, for holding up the mirror.
Caricature is always about something worth criticising or at least about making a mockery of. Haderer is a great artist, I love all his work.
These are great satires & political art ideas! Despite what many on here are bitching about, these are fun.
I browsed through all of this looking for the voluptuous girl riding a giant crocodile, did I find the wrong article?
People SUCK! Knowing what's wrong, see it graphically illustrated is one thing. Realization and doing something about it is another. Denial is the factor in between.
It amazes me how some people find fault with everything. Do they think their negativity makes them superior by pretending to overlook someone else’s obvious talent? The “flat earth” mentality is an example of logic being tossed out and replacing it with ego driven nonsense.
Another series of illustrations about "what's wrong with today's society" that says all the same things as the previous artist. No new insights. Boring.
There is a balance. I see the zombie students walking around staring at their phones. I see the fear of original thinking. I see (as most can) the way people burble on about Harry Potter and its ilk like they have zero imagination. I guess it's easy to steal what is of little value.
In my time we had real community where people actually engaged culture, played and talked together. Oddly, now that I'm older I'm glad everyone is disconnected / dumbed-down because for those of us non-techno deebs, it's nice to have every space to myself....even when it's filled with "people"...
In my time we had real community where people actually engaged culture, played and talked together. Oddly, now that I'm older I'm glad everyone is disconnected / dumbed-down because for those of us non-techno deebs, it's nice to have every space to myself....even when it's filled with "people".
These are about loneliness and emptiness, not about technology per se. Our whole society has been set up to eliminate all kinds of real human interactions. Don't blame technology, blame societal morays of rugged individualism, personal shame, and mindless worship of money.
Not nice to see comments written without thinking, in the comments section of an article with pictures that are supposed to make you think...
This guy is so pretentious with his holier than thou attitude. Judging by the ratings on these images, it looks like the lot of Boredpanda's commenter demographic is an older generation of pseudo pretentious persons who are mad at younger people for existing. How dare the new generations continue to progress and leave you behind. I feel sorry for you guys who upvoted the selfie images because you will never be truly as pretentious as this artist. Ever. Even though you think you are lmao
Don't buy your children smartphones and don't let them watch TV. They are being manipulated! And you too, by the way.
People, there are options between saying nothing and going nuclear
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So you share his opinions that some things are wrong, yet you area allowed to write it very boringly but he can't draw them in humorous ways? Why?
Load More Replies... I'm honestly tired of people, artists or not, claiming there's something "wrong" with today's society and the way we interact with technology. I'm sorry but if you want your kids to be "addicted" to technology, DON'T buy them a phone when they're six years old, suck it up and try PARENTING instead of shunning your kids away with digital toys and electronics.
Every time I see these kinds of things this is all I can think of raunisex_t...fef027.jpg
I always think of Caveman Science Fiction: http://dresdencodak.com/2009/09/22/caveman-science-fiction/
Load More Replies... Lol,complaining about society and technology in a digital way.I am sure that all those artist never use computers,smartphones and social media.They should stop being hypocritical and blame the "society"
I didn't think about it as someone complaining, I thought it was just a reminder for myself to double check where I stand in these pictures. I thought they were interesting to scroll through.
Load More Replies... I love the mind of people who can tackle entire issues in a single image.
ya'll don't get the term, "satire" do you? Here you go. SATIRE: the use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues. Illustrators can joke about the things they see using the their own medium. This illustrator does a funny job of poking at topical issues. Get a grip. If you enjoy your phone, keep enjoying it. Relax.
Honestly? STOP WITH THE SELFIE STICK! It’s so overdone, every satrical illustration has the selfie stick. And yes, I do watch tv, but I GO OUTSIDE AND PLAY TOO!
If you think it is all about watching tv then you totally missed the point.
Load More Replies... Such superb artwork - such grievously sad subjects. Thank you, Gerhard Haderer, for holding up the mirror.
Caricature is always about something worth criticising or at least about making a mockery of. Haderer is a great artist, I love all his work.
These are great satires & political art ideas! Despite what many on here are bitching about, these are fun.
I browsed through all of this looking for the voluptuous girl riding a giant crocodile, did I find the wrong article?
People SUCK! Knowing what's wrong, see it graphically illustrated is one thing. Realization and doing something about it is another. Denial is the factor in between.
It amazes me how some people find fault with everything. Do they think their negativity makes them superior by pretending to overlook someone else’s obvious talent? The “flat earth” mentality is an example of logic being tossed out and replacing it with ego driven nonsense.
Another series of illustrations about "what's wrong with today's society" that says all the same things as the previous artist. No new insights. Boring.
There is a balance. I see the zombie students walking around staring at their phones. I see the fear of original thinking. I see (as most can) the way people burble on about Harry Potter and its ilk like they have zero imagination. I guess it's easy to steal what is of little value.
In my time we had real community where people actually engaged culture, played and talked together. Oddly, now that I'm older I'm glad everyone is disconnected / dumbed-down because for those of us non-techno deebs, it's nice to have every space to myself....even when it's filled with "people"...
In my time we had real community where people actually engaged culture, played and talked together. Oddly, now that I'm older I'm glad everyone is disconnected / dumbed-down because for those of us non-techno deebs, it's nice to have every space to myself....even when it's filled with "people".
These are about loneliness and emptiness, not about technology per se. Our whole society has been set up to eliminate all kinds of real human interactions. Don't blame technology, blame societal morays of rugged individualism, personal shame, and mindless worship of money.
Not nice to see comments written without thinking, in the comments section of an article with pictures that are supposed to make you think...
This guy is so pretentious with his holier than thou attitude. Judging by the ratings on these images, it looks like the lot of Boredpanda's commenter demographic is an older generation of pseudo pretentious persons who are mad at younger people for existing. How dare the new generations continue to progress and leave you behind. I feel sorry for you guys who upvoted the selfie images because you will never be truly as pretentious as this artist. Ever. Even though you think you are lmao
Don't buy your children smartphones and don't let them watch TV. They are being manipulated! And you too, by the way.
People, there are options between saying nothing and going nuclear
Load More Replies... So you share his opinions that some things are wrong, yet you area allowed to write it very boringly but he can't draw them in humorous ways? Why?
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