The brazen murder of the Charlie Hebdo cartoonists in Paris has brought a lot of attention to those who draw political satire. Australia's David Rowe is a singular practitioner of the art. He churns out four or five political cartoons a week for the Australian Financial Review . He does it with watercolors, bold brush strokes and a biting wit. "I'm not much of a writer. I'm more visual sort of cartoonist."

David Rowe, Australia, June 19, 2014 Credit: Courtesy David Rowe

A successful political cartoon is one you get with a mere glance. It's that marriage of art and journalism that excites Rowe. "I think people can grab a whole story in a couple of seconds and understand it."

David Rowe, Australia, October 28, 2013 Credit: Courtesy David Rowe

Rowe grew up in Canberra, Australia's capital, in a politically aware family. "We always talked about politics." As a kid, Rowe devoured the books of political cartoons his father would leave in the back of the family Volkswagen. "My parents always remember me drawing. That's all I did.I just loved caricature and I sort of had an awareness of who the [Australian] politicians were at a very young age."

Rowe has a take-no-prisoners approach when it comes to caricaturing Australian politicians. Current Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott made the mistake of wearing a red Speedo bathing suit at a swim club in Sydney in 2009. The Speedo, known in Australian slang as a 'budgie smuggler', is now a staple of every cartoon Rowe draws of Abbott. David Rowe, Australia, 2013 Credit: Courtesy David Rowe Rowe says his over-the-top visual satire, such as this effort after President Obama's State of the Union address, is very typical of Australian political cartoonists. "They are quite merciless when it comes to caricaturing politicians. They can be quite coarse and brash. They're not afraid to do anything. From our perpective, we see American editorial cartoons as a bit mainstream."

David Rowe, Australia, January 21, 2015 Credit: Courtesy David Rowe