Cartoonist

Are You My Mother?

8 May 2012

Alison Bechdel is on tour, too bad she isn’t coming to this side of the pond. Last week she presented her 2nd and newest graphic memoir “Are you my mother?“, diving once again into the deepest links that tie her to her progenitor. Focused on the sometimes-tense relationship with her mother AYMM isn’t presented as a sequel to her very harsh hit “Fun Home” but as an even more fascinating portrait of her childhood, mother-daughter relationship and herself  becoming the artist her mother wanted to be.

from a presentation of her latest novel (all photos by Alison Bechdel)
Are you my mother? on display at 57th Street Books in Chicago (all photos by Alison Bechdel)

You probably remember her 2006 novel “Fun Home“, number 1 book of the year (Time mag), a top-seller on NYTimes book-listing and even transformed into a Broadway musical…  although she’s probably best known for the long-running comic strip Dykes To Watch Out For which run until 2008.

AYMM brings Alison mother’s unhappy marriage back to the table and embarks herself on a quest for answers concerning the mother-daughter gulf. “A richly layered search that leads readers from the fascinating life and work of the iconic twentieth-century psychoanalyst Donald Winnicott, to one explosively illuminating Dr. Seuss illustration, to Bechdel’s own (serially monogamous) adult love life”. One to watch out for.

  share news item

RIP Mingote

8 April 2012

Liberal, charming, well-educated and exquisitely respectful, that’s how many will remember Antonio Mingote‘s artwork, but also his persona, character and image.

We finally have simultaneous translation in the senate - find the 7 differences - Mingote
We finally have simultaneous translation in the senate - find the 7 differences - Mingote

The Catalan-born, Madrilian-adopted legend who died last  Tuesday was considered by many the most successful cartoonist in Spain, whose contemporary history couldn’t really be understood without him. 80 years dedicated to the art of political & social satire and whose tramps, bourgeois young men and easily-shocked women have covered one of the oldest Spanish newspapers (ABC) for over 59 years.

Mingote - 1962 drawing related to the NASA expeditions
Mingote - 1962 - drawing related to the NASA expeditions

Being 13, in 1932 he published his very first drawing on the ABC-supplement Black&White, prior to joining the newspaper in 1953 for a long & fruitful relationship… he even got to draw many covers for the Madrid-based publication, something rarely seen on Spanish newspapers.

When arriving to the capital (in 1944) he quickly became friend with Rafael Azcona who introduced him to the most successful humor publication at that time: La Codorniz. And even if he had a promising career within the army, as soon as he could live from his drawings he didn’t hesitate to leave it. After collaborating with other local publications and signing with ABC he definitely made the jump in 1954.

Mingote - Translators - Dad and mom speak each their own autonomic language, how about I play to be their translator and we laugh a lot
Mingote - Translators - Dad and mom speak each their own autonomic language, how about I play to be their translator and we laugh a lot

Needless to mention the large number of awards, novels (also some graphic ones) and even a 1978 film he produced during his career, Spanish cartoonism is a little bit emptier now.

Mingote - They're taking down all Franco-related statues, hopefully we don't have to remind we were here before
Mingote - They're taking down all Franco-related statues, hopefully we don't have to remind them we were here before
  share news item

Ramen Music cover illustration

Ramen Music n9 cover by Phil McAndrew
11 January 2012

Ramen music is one of the best on-line music zines on the planet, no joke, but we’ll talk about them another day. Their upcoming issue cover (n9 already) has been designed by Phil McAndrew (whole process this way), and we tell you… this is their first, but not their last collaboration…

Ramen Music n9 cover by Phil McAndrew

Ramen Music n9 cover by Phil McAndrew

After so many exhibitions (the last one about Cloudy Collection), works for big, small and tiny magazines, brands and musicians there are few things left from the Syracuse cartoonist, except, maybe… us.

diplomacy - for a project that never was - Phil McAndrew
diplomacy - for a project that never was - Phil McAndrew

(Funny to see how he’s got many more followers / friends on google+ than on fb, twitter or else). Anyway! Phil is preparing a new book…which managed to partially fund via Kickstarter last May and if we’re lucky, it will join the long list of kids, sharp minds and comic books he’s been releasing over the past 6 years very shortly.

work for Kingmag - Phil McAndrew
work for Kingmag - Phil McAndrew

As a self-publishing expert Phil knows how hard it is to get partners on board, but now he’s pretty well-known so it shouldn’t be a problem from now on to get all those super-secret projects out in the daylight. Hopefully we’ll get to see not only that personal comic book but also his other formal book on advices for new illustrators project. This year should be.

slide by Phil McAndrew
slide by Phil McAndrew
  share news item