What are the movies? What effect do they have on us? Why do we love them so much? The influential, award-winning French cartoonist Blutch (born 1967) addresses these questions in a series of interlocking short comics that combine scholarly history with ribald romanticism, and feature a motley cast of actors and characters, including Claudia Cardinale, Jean-Luc Godard, Burt Lancaster, Ava Gardner, Michel Piccoli, Tarzan and Luchino Visconti. Blutch has published over a dozen books since debuting in 1988 in the legendary avant-garde magazine Fluide Glacial: among his books are Mitchum, Peplum and Le Petit Christian, and his illustrations regularly appear in Les Inrockuptibles, Libération and The New Yorker. As much visual essay as graphic novel, a daydream and fantastic meditation on the other art of telling stories with images, So Long, Silver Screen is the finest work yet from an uncontested master of contemporary cartooning, as well as his first full-length work to be published in English. It is designed by famed cartoonist David Mazzucchelli.
Featured image is reproduced from Blutch: So Long, Silver Screen.
In the April 19 edition of Boing Boing, award-winning graphic novelist Craig Thompson interviews the legendary French cartoonist, Blutch, whose work has just been collected and published in English for the first time by PictureBox. Thompson asks, "In So Long, Silver Screen, your persona converses with a nubile dancer, while you draw lines (tracing her movements?) with a mop-like brush. She is the conscience and counterpoint to your curmudgeon. What is the correlation between dancing and drawing?" Blutch responds, "First, I have to say that this specific sequence was inspired by abstract expressionism which used large brooms to paint on large surfaces. The initial idea was that the character was in such a dark mood that he felt the urge to fill the page with black, put it everywhere. But yes, for me, drawing and moving have always been related. There is something in cartooning that I find unique, the fact that it is an approach of rhythm. Like ballet, somehow, I have the impression that there is not much of a difference between a stage performance and a drawing performance, well I believe so… whatever! This is all very instinctive." For the complete interview, go to Boing Boing. continue to blog
FORMAT: Hbk, 8 x 11 in. / 88 pgs / 80 color. LIST PRICE: U.S. $22.95 LIST PRICE: CANADA $32 GBP £19.99 ISBN: 9780985159511 PUBLISHER: PictureBox AVAILABLE: 4/30/2013 DISTRIBUTION: D.A.P. RETAILER DISC: TRADE PUBLISHING STATUS: Out of stock indefinitely AVAILABILITY: Not available TERRITORY: WORLD
Published by PictureBox. Translation by Edward Gauvin.
What are the movies? What effect do they have on us? Why do we love them so much? The influential, award-winning French cartoonist Blutch (born 1967) addresses these questions in a series of interlocking short comics that combine scholarly history with ribald romanticism, and feature a motley cast of actors and characters, including Claudia Cardinale, Jean-Luc Godard, Burt Lancaster, Ava Gardner, Michel Piccoli, Tarzan and Luchino Visconti. Blutch has published over a dozen books since debuting in 1988 in the legendary avant-garde magazine Fluide Glacial: among his books are Mitchum, Peplum and Le Petit Christian, and his illustrations regularly appear in Les Inrockuptibles, Libération and The New Yorker. As much visual essay as graphic novel, a daydream and fantastic meditation on the other art of telling stories with images, So Long, Silver Screen is the finest work yet from an uncontested master of contemporary cartooning, as well as his first full-length work to be published in English. It is designed by famed cartoonist David Mazzucchelli.
