Apart from being a great story of friendship and humour, Billy and Buddy is first of all a poetic theatre. The series was first released by the graphic artist Jean Roba in the comic magazine Spirou in 1959. With the help of some 1,500 gags and nigh on 40 beautiful hardback comic books, the series caught the imagination of three generations of children. The main ingredients of the success are the close bond between Billy, a little boy, and his dog and a tender sense of humour. The parents too soon became enthralled with the series, as they loved the way in which the author managed to perfectly translate the universal world of childhood, family, relationships with the surrounding world, into gags, starting with the pets. The latter actually seem to have a really good insight into the human mind…

The adventures of Billy and Buddy were translated into some 15 languages, and from 1969 onwards they were turned into several animated television series. They subsequently also became the subject of a feature film in French with the actor Frank Dubosc playing the part of Billy’s father (2013 and 2017). In 2003, Jean Roba put Laurent Verron in charge of the production of the comic books. Since 2017, the series has been in the capable hands of two new artists: Bastide (graphic artist) and Cazenove (scriptwriter). They now walk in the footsteps of this great Belgian master.

With an amusing glimpse into the human condition, an environment of love and tenderness that needs to be preserved, as well as a certain feeling of nostalgia for all those ingredients that make for a simple and happy life, the portrayal of a dog’s life surrounded by a pet tortoise and the birds in the trees; the exhibition reminds us, as Saint-Exupéry once wrote, that one is the product of one’s childhood as one is the product of one’s country. So, we all somewhat belong to the country of Billy and Buddy. Or at least, that is what we aspire to.

Jean Auquier, Belgian Comic Strip Center

The exhibition is open until 31.12.19

The post A comic-strip exhibition you shouldn’t miss: Billy and Buddy, Sixty years of everyday happiness appeared first on Brussels Express.

The exhibition will hold some of the very best examples of Chinese comic culture, starting from the modern day and going back to its early beginnings.

The earliest evidence of illustrated books in China was in 868; almost 600 years before Europeans even began lettered production with the Gutenberg printing press. In the late 1800’s, books called Lianhuanhua began distribution in China, and these featured a story and image on each page.

However, Chinese comic culture as we know it didn’t become popular until the 20th century; with its rise largely mimicking that of Belgian comic culture.

A character named Mr Wang was the first Chinese comic strip hero to make a regular appearance, and his creation in 1929 occurred the same year as Tintin. Even more coincidental, China’s most famous comic strip character, San Mao, was created in 1935, the same year that published Tintin’s adventures in China, in The Blue Lotus.

In the 21st century, the communist government began opening China up to the world, and Chinese authors found new sources of inspiration in European, American and Japanese comic strips; even adopting their techniques of storyboards with dialogue in each small box.

As comics became popular in China, genres divided into the more tempered western style comics for the older generation and stylised manga for the children who had been raised on Japanese cartoons.

All this created a rich diversity in the canon of Chinese comics, and this will surely be demonstrated by those strips on display at the exhibition; with the very best Chinese authors’ works being selected.

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