Readers of I like to read are in mourning. On Wednesday November 20, Bayard editions learned
the disappearance of Bernadette Després. The 83-year-old woman was particularly known for being the designer of “Tom-Tom and Nana”.
To formalize the terrible news, Bayard editions indicated to the Monde :
“It is with immense sadness that the Bayard Jeunesse teams learned today of the death of illustrator Bernadette Després”. They then clarified that a tribute will be paid to him at the end of November at the Book and Youth Press Fair in Montreuil (Seine-Saint-Denis).
Bernadette Després brought “Tom-Tom and Nana” to life
Born in 1941 in Paris, Bernadette Després had drawn for more than 30 years “Tom-Tom and Nana”. Created in 1977 in the pages of first issue of I like to readthis comic strip quickly became his flagship work. For three decades, readers were able to discover the adventures of the Dubouchon family.
In 2009, “Tom-Tom and Nana” finally stopped, after 34 album sold for more than 16 million copies. A decision taken by screenwriter Jacqueline Cohen, which did not fail to sadden the designer. “I would have liked to continue. Drawing Tom-Tom and Nana was such a joy. I never got tired of it” she confided ten years later to the Bayard group.
The designer had illustrated around thirty albums
In addition to the adventures of her characters in The Good Fork, Bernadette Després devoted herself to other works. She had thus illustrated around thirty albums for youth and had worked for different publishers. “She always humorously depicted texts relating to the daily life of children and the family.” explained Bayard editions.
In 2019, Bernadette Després won the Fawn of Honor of the Angoulême International Comics Festival for all of his work. Two years later, the designer was elevated to the rank of knight of the Legion of Honor. A real consecration.
