We are still a long way from Christmas but these works could well make an impact under the tree…
We start with a new collection called The Comic Booksnamed after the famous magazine, and two works which inaugurated it, Franquin and I et Draw!.
He was called Smurf at the very beginning of the adventure, in 1969, and was only a fanzine run by a future great publisher, Jacques Glénat. It will become over time Smurf The Comic Books, Then The Comic BooksThen The Comic Books before stopping in 1990… and resuming under the same name in 2017. It is in the “natural extension” of this magazine, writes the editor Glénat, that this new collection is positioned today.
In a small format, Draw! allows Frank Pé to reflect on an art that he does not consider as an “hybrid animal” but like a “single and coherent language” who asks “mastery of particular means, such as writing dialogue or color”. Wishing here to address apprentice designers but also professionals and readers, in short to all those who love the ninth art, the author dissects this art and questions it based on his experience and on some big names in the field, Franquin , Follet, Hermann or even Moebius.
With a first question: What makes a good drawing? And a first affirmation: “I must admit that part of my motivation to talk about drawing here comes from the observation of an accumulation of mediocrities that we see deployed in contemporary publishing with great aplomb”.
Whether he approaches drawing as such, new trends such as reportage comics, narration, cutting or even awards, one thing is certain, Frank Pé does not beat around the bush, sometimes at the risk of ‘being scathing but never incorrect, never mentioning the name of what he calls his dark matter, the negative examples. These are above all the words of a lover beautiful work, this comic strip which transports us to unsuspected horizons, universes, imaginations. Small but strong, Draw! What’s more, it is sumptuously illustrated by finely chosen iconography. Exciting !
In a more substantial format this time, Franquin and I is in a way the making of another book, cultism, recently republished by Glénat editions, And Franquin created the blunder. Numa Sadoul brought together his interviews with one of the great masters of Franco-Belgian comics, André Franquin, discussing the resumption of the adventures of Spirou and Fantasio, the creation of Gaston Lagaffe, the famous Idées noirs, the Illustrated Trombone… and more broadly his profession as a comic book author. This book has become a reference for all lovers of the ninth art.
It is therefore not surprising that one day the sprinkler becomes the sprinkled, in other words that the interviewer takes the place of the interviewee. And in the role of the interviewer, it is Christelle Pissavy-Yvernault who is there, a huge specialist in Franco-Belgian comics and in particular Dupuis editions. With the idea of making a book bringing together the theoretical and bibliographical knowledge of one and the intimate knowledge of Franquin of the other. Like And Franquin created the blunder, Christelle Pissavy-Yvernault’s book is an interview book. Numa Sadoul recounts his beginnings in fanzines, with Jacques Glénat, his contributions in the world of theater, literature, opera, his first meeting with Franquin, their friendship… and the creation of the legendary And Franquin created the blunder. The circle is complete!
Change of publisher and universe with this sumptuous artbook published by Editions Daniel Maghen and dedicated to the creator of the children’s series Ernest and CelestineGabrielle Vincent. For those who were never children, the series Ernest and Celestine was created in 1981 and features images of a bear, Ernest, and a mouse, Célestine. Infinitely tender, their adventures brought international recognition to Gabrielle Vincent and established themselves today as a classic of children’s literature and beyond. The adventures ofErnest and Celestine have been adapted into a children’s novel, an animated film, an animated series, a play, etc.
Patchwork offers us a biography in images of Gabrielle Vincent. More than 300 pages, almost as many illustrations, from his first nudes produced in the studio to the preparatory drawings forErnest and Celestineincluding scenes of life in Brussels or North Africa, portraits or landscapes. With each time, precision in the line, elegance in the movement, emotion in the eyes. At Gabrielle Vincent, everything involves drawing. A reference for many illustrators and comic book authors!
Eric Guillaud
Draw!, by Frank Pé. Glénat. 25€
Franquin and I, conversations with Numa Sadoul, by Christelle Pissavy-Yvernault. Glénat. 32.50€
Patchwork, by Gabrielle Vincent. Daniel Maghen. 39€
