The iconic illustrator of Tom-Tom and Nana was present in person at the Boulogne-Billancourt Book Fair 2023, accompanied by an exhibition to immerse yourself in the albums that made generations of children laugh.
The interview
(Gazette du Salon, November 2023. Comments collected by Ch. D.)
She has accompanied hundreds of thousands of little readers throughout their childhood for more than 40 years. Tom-Tom and Nana, the Dubouchon family, regulars at the restaurant À la bonne couverture… have enchanted several generations of young fans of the heroes' pranks, thanks to the imaginative style of Bernadette Després and the stories written by Jacqueline Cohen and Evelyne Reberg. Very often, their adventures have guided children on the path to reading… what better way than laughter?
It's in 1977, in the first issue of the magazine I like to readthat the duo of little devils begins to conquer their readers. The stories were then grouped into 34 albums, which sold 16 million copies. In families, Tom-Tom and Nana are passed down like a precious heirloom. Television series have continued to tell these stories. Bernadette Després is very proud to mention that a escape game Tom-Tom and Nana was created in Paris; proof that the mischievous duo is keeping up with the times. Now an active octogenarian and still sparkling, she has received the honors due to her art: Honorary Fauve at the Angoulême Festival, Knight of the Legion of Honor in 2021, she still receives testimonials from grateful fans. His appearances always attract a large audience… Simply timeless.
How did you get into drawing?
I started drawing at 12, in 5e. In first grade, which I repeated (but shhh), I started drawing all the characters from the texts in the French course… Victor Hugo and the others. At that moment, my parents realized that drawing was my thing. They enrolled me in a drawing school.
Was drawing for children obvious?
Yes from the beginning. I loved having them as heroes. I started working for Pomme d'Api, for toddlers. And then I had four children, who inspired me. I wasn't yet thinking about professionalization, but I had a first contact with the publisher La Farandole, to whom I showed my drawings. Later, I met Jacqueline Cohen, who wrote the stories. At Bayard, they were creating the magazine J'aime lire, for young children aged 7 to 10. They liked our initial idea, making children laugh, our heroes, the drawing style. We launched in 1976.
What were your sources of inspiration?
Tintin of course, and what we called “the clear line”. For the stories, Jacqueline and I imagined this Dubouchon family, the restaurant, a place where anything can happen. And the antics of the two brothers and sisters, the consequences of which are never dramatic. The adults are not ideal, they also create chaos, like the indescribable Aunt Roberte, but everything ends without malice. I have always been convinced that children should be raised with as much joy as possible.
Can you offer us a drawing?
Yes of course, with the famous Aunt Roberte, who “invaded” the restaurant with a sculpture that Tom-Tom and Nana cannot get rid of… But they are as happy as I am to come to Boulogne-Billancourt! (See drawing below)
The exhibition
From November 28 to December 10, 2023, a retrospective was devoted to the work of Bernadette Desprès entitled “Annie, Valérie, Nicole… Tom-Tom et Nana”, at Espace Landowski. She took us to meet these protagonists, witnesses of their time, to (re)discover characters, resourceful, sensitive and full of tender humor which make the richness and singularity of the work of Bernadette Després. The ingenue illustrator, through albums, comics, games and paper constructions, will have created a new and captivating universe for young readers. An astonishing figure who has had a considerable impact on children's literature, counting among those authors who have elevated children's stupidities to the rank of an art of living and becoming.
