An alumnus of Stewart’s Melville College, Robin Sukatorn went on to graduate from the University of York with a first class degree in History and Philosophy, and from the Manchester School of Art with a Master of Fine Arts degree in Illustration with distinction. He is now an artist and illustrator based in Manchester, specialising in drawing, printmaking and ‘reportage’ illustration. In 2016 he was awarded the John Ruskin Prize in the student category for his political reportage drawings, and for the past two years he has co-directed SLOE Gallery, an artist-led exhibition space in Manchester city centre which he co-founded in 2016.
Robin has recently published Drawing Democracy, an illustrated record of democracy in action, drawn live from scenes and events he has witnessed in person over two years in Manchester, around the United Kingdom, and on the east coast of the United States. The book, released 100 years from the signing of the historic 1918 Representation of the People Act, brings together over 140 illustrations of scenes of democracy, all drawn from the direct experiences and observations of the artist, accompanied by written introductions offering a unique insight into his experiences. The drawings show scenes of local democracy in Manchester, including city council meetings, political rallies, election hustings and public vigils; debates on the Queen’s Speech in the House of Commons in London and on a second independence referendum at the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh; the historic Article 50 hearing at the Supreme Court in London as well as special hearings at the City Council Chambers in Edinburgh; the Global Green Party Conference in Liverpool and the Scottish National Party Conference in Glasgow; and scenes of democracy in the United States, including pro-healthcare and pro-Trump rallies in New York and Washington DC.
The book is out now, available from the project’s website www.drawingdemocracy.com, as well as through the Ruskin Prize Editions Collection of The Big Draw. This is the UK’s leading arts and education charity for drawing and visual literacy, which runs the world’s biggest drawing festival and the annual Ruskin Prize.
