Cartoon from 30 December 2020, commenting on the way the Dutch government refuses to take responsibility for the "benefits affair". Between 2013 and 2019, approximately 26,000 parents wrongfully became victim of fraud suspicion with the child care allowance and/or tax authorities.
Benjamin Kikkert is a Dutch political cartoonist, whose drawings have appeared on political blogs and news portals, as well as specialized print publications. He originally signed his work "Bah", but nowadays uses the abbreviation "Kik".
Early life and career
Born in 1976 in Den Helder, Kikkert was raised in Den Hoorn, on the Wadden isle Texel. He studied analytical chemistry in Alkmaar, graduating in 2001. He started working as a lab engineer in a linoleum factory, and eventually became a technical specialist in solar energy at the Energy Research Center of the Netherlands (ECN) in Petten. In his spare time, he found his true passion in cartooning. Self-taught, he ranks Stefan Verwey, Zak, Zaza, Gummbah and Kamagurka among his influences.
Early "Bah" cartoon ("Not now, honey. We have tickets for [Dutch comedian] Hans Teeuwen nine months from now.").
Early cartoons
From 1997 on early work by Kikkert appeared under the pen name "Bah" in small press comic magazines. His work subsequently appeared on websites and special interest magazines. These included the Amsterdam student magazine De KLNK and Mens & Gevoelens, the cultural humor magazine of the Paul Haenen character Margreet Dolman. After a while, he switched to the pen name "Kik". Kik has additionally made cartoons for Nieuwe Revu magazine, housing corporation Eigen Haard, Forbo Flooring, the website of newspaper De Telegraaf, the political party Leefbaar Nederland and his employer, ECN.
"Research report sale: "Can you find a conclusion that suits you?" (Trouw, 5 August 2019).
Political cartoons
Most of Kik's cartoons are inspired by national and international news. Between 2005 and 2007, he commented on the local Texel news on the front page of the Texelse Courant newspaper. During that same period, his cartoons also appeared on the weblog of the socialist politician Jan Marijnissen. When Marijnissen left politics in 2008, Kikkert became house cartoonist for the website of the Dutch Socialist Party (SP), along with Kees Willemen and Arend van Dam.
He additionally provided the cover illustrations for the in-house magazine of the political Nieuwspoort society. Since 2011, he contributes cartoons to the opinion website Joop.nl of broadcasting organization BNNvara, and since April 2018, he is the house cartoonist of the specialized medical magazine Medisch Contact. Between 2012 and 2014 he made weekly cartoons for the website of newspaper Trouw. For the same newspaper, he has filled in during holidays for cartoonist Pieter Geenen. He is also a regular contestant in the annual Inktspot Prize for political cartoons, organized by the Pers & Prent foundation.
Homonym confusion
Benjamin Kikkert should not be confused with the glass designer and mixed media artist of the same name from Vancouver, British Columbia.
Editorial cartoon about the declining Dutch pensions, published in the February 2020 issue of Spanning, a publication of the research department of the Dutch Socialist Party.