Ann Telnaes

Ann Carolyn Telnaes is an American editorial cartoonist. She creates editorial cartoons in various media—animation, visual essays, live sketches, and traditional print—for the Washington Post. She also contributes to The Nib.

Born in Stockholm, Sweden, Telnaes earned her B.F.A. at the California Institute of the Arts, specializing in character animation. Before becoming an editorial cartoonist, she worked for some years in the animation field, most notably with Walt Disney Imagineering. She contributed to such films as The Brave Little Toaster and The Chipmunk Adventure.

Unlike many editorial cartoonists, Telnaes does not draw for any one set newspaper. She is syndicated with Cartoonists and Writers Syndicate/New York Times Syndicate, with her work appearing across the United States in such publications as The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, the Chicago Tribune, the Los Angeles Times, Newsday, and the Austin American-Statesman; and internationally in Le Monde and Courrier International. Telnaes also contributes an exclusive weekly cartoon to the nonprofit online news service Women's eNews. Her animated editorial cartoons are featured on The Washington Post's website.

Between January 2000 and September 2005, she was one of the Six Chix cartoonists, drawing every Thursday strip.

Ann Telnaes creates editorial cartoons in various mediums — animation, visual essays, live sketches and traditional print — for The Washington Post. She won the Pulitzer Prize in 2001 for her print cartoons and the National Cartoonists Society’s Reuben for Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year for 2016. She was awarded the international EWK Award, named after the legendary Swedish cartoonist Ewert Karlsson in 2021 and was a Pulitzer Prize finalist for her illustrated reporting and cartooning in 2022.

Telnaes’ print work was shown in a solo exhibition at the Great Hall in the Thomas Jefferson Building of the Library of Congress in 2004. Her first book, Humor’s Edge, was published by Pomegranate Press and the Library of Congress in 2004. A collection of Vice President Cheney cartoons, Dick, was self-published by Telnaes and Sara Thaves in 2006. Her most recent book, Trump’s ABC, was published by Fantagraphics in 2018. Telnaes’ work has also been exhibited in Paris, Jerusalem, and Lisbon.

Telnaes attended California Institute of the Arts and graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts, specializing in character animation. Before beginning her career as an editorial cartoonist, Telnaes worked for several years as a designer for Walt Disney Imagineering. She has also animated and designed for various studios in Los Angeles, New York, London, and Taiwan.

Other awards include: The National Cartoonists Society Reuben division award for Editorial Cartoons (2016), The National Press Foundation’s Berryman Award (2006) – The Maggie Award, Planned Parenthood (2002) – 15th Annual International Dutch Cartoon Festival (2007) – The National Headliner Award (1997) – The Population Institute XVII Global Media Awards (1996) – Sixth Annual Environmental Media Awards (1996)

Her television and radio appearances include: – The Newshour with Jim Lehrer – C-Span – NPR – BBC radio -Sirius XM Radio- The Editors, World Affairs Television, Canada.

Telnaes is a past president of the Association of American Editorial Cartoonists (AAEC) and is a member of the National Cartoonists Society (NCS).

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