The Rudiments of Wisdom Cartoon Encyclopedia

RUDIMENTS OF WISDOM looks much like a collection of comics pulled from a book and posted online -- which is exactly what it is. The British artist Tim Hunkin has been drawing these comics for more than three decades, for newspapers and in several books, and the enduring popularity of his work is a reflection of his creativity and imagination. He takes on an enormous range of topics, from chess to puppetry, bacteria to electricity, guitars to submarines and much, much more. Each comic explains a single idea or concept, using clever drawings and short text descriptions. They are very clear, effective and entertaining. But Hunkin’s work loses something when translated to the Web. There is little to do on the site other than peruse his drawings, and the lack of interactivity could make it unappealing to people, especially young people who are more accustomed to Web sites that give them more to do. This is not a statement on the quality of his excellent work, but Hunkin’s comics may be better suited to books than the Web.