“The 'economy' became a god such as never before, and a happy, successful society was one that could please this god - sometimes by sacrificing beautiful things - to keep the deity from getting angry and harming the people by withdrawing favours.”

Australian cartoonist, poet and artist

Michael Leunig, known professionally as Leunig, was an Australian cartoonist, poet, and artist. He became widely known for his work in Melbourne’s The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald. Leunig’s work brought together cartooning, poetry, and visual art, and those newspaper contributions made him familiar to a broad Australian readership. His public voice was shaped by that blend of image and language, which is why his name remains closely associated with those papers and with his distinctive artistic output.