Comics Art Museum Brussels presents ‘The New Wave of Flemish Comic Strips’

Until June 2018, you can visit a temporary exhibition presenting the work of 17 Flemish comic book artists in the Comics Art Museum in Brussels. The curators call the ‘new generation’ that they are showcasing ‘a success story’, and highlight the support that Flanders Literature offers to comic book creators.

The exhibition displays a collection of original artwork by Serge Baeken, Randall Casaer, Pieter De Poortere, Brecht Evens, Ben Gijsemans, Ilah, Jeroen Janssen, Wauter Mannaert, Nix, Michaël Olbrechts, Bart Schoofs, Simon Spruyt, Brecht Vandenbroucke, Gerolf Van de Perre, Maarten Vande Wiele, Judith Vanistendael and Wide Vercnocke. In the past, all of these authors either received a grant from Flanders Literature in order to free up some time to create a new book, Flanders Literature promoted their work abroad, or both.

When it was founded in 2000, Flanders Literature immediately embraced comic books as a valued literary genre. This clear policy has borne fruit over the past years, both in terms of the wonderful comic books and graphic novels that have been published and the spectacular rise in the number of translations of these books. This is thoroughly highlighted in the exhibition, curated by Mélanie Andrieu and Tine Anthoni, among others in a trilingual interview with Flanders Literature team member Els Aerts.

The professional courses for comic book artists in our country and the ambition and courage of Flemish publishers also played an important role in the success story of this new wave of comic book creators. However, it is primarily the artists themselves who are carving out their place on the international stage, each with their own style and interpretation of the comic book medium.