Exhibition of original work, interviews and documents on social and political contextualisation between 1939 and 2007.
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A country seen through the eyes of its comic books, with their delightful 20th-century icons.
Much-loved over several generations, TBO, Virolet, Patufet, El V�bora, Makoki, Cavall Fort
witnessed and reflected Catalonia's up-and-down history over the second half of the last century.
Cataloonia, a Country Drawing Away into the Future invites visitors to follow the extraordinary
transformation of the country from 1939 to the present, guided throughout by the quick-fire,
ironic, critical and even visionary gaze of its comic artists.
Curated by: Georg-Christof Bertsch
Organised by: Institut Ramon Llull in cooperation with the Museum f�r Kommunikation
City: Frankfurt
Venue: Museum f�r Kommunikation Frankfurt
Dates: 21 September - 18 November 2007
Opening: 20 September 2007, at 7 pm
www.museumsstiftung.de
Due to the suppression of the Catalan language by
the Franco dictatorship, illustrated stories have always
been of quite special significance in Catalonia. Adopting
this illustrated approach, the exhibition charts
the period from the end of the Spanish Civil War, and
related events leading up to the establishment of the
fascist regime in 1939, through to the 1992 Olympic
Games in Barcelona. Original drawings, comic books
and large-format art works produced by key Catalan
comic authors highlight the cultural importance of the
comic and its role in shaping society. Works by Miguel
Gallardo, Nazario Luque, Max (Francesc Capdevila),
Lluis Juste de Nin, Xavier Mariscal, Daniel Torres and
Francisco Ibanez, the creator of Clever & Smart, create
a vivid impression of this phenomenon, which is here
featured in an exhibition for the very first time.
Exclusively
obtained video interviews with these protagonists,
and with publishers, authors and cultural historians,
come together to create a lively account of the history
of comics in Barcelona.
By special arrangement with Catalan television station
TV3, our guest in the children's workshop area will
be the unique TV production Una m� de contes
(A handful of stories): 85 artists enact stories for
children using the most diverse of resources.
The exhibition is designed to coincide with "Catalan
Culture," this year's guest of honour at the Frankfurt
Book Fair, and is staged in association with the Ramon
Llull Institute Barcelona.