Comics, Waffles and Beer – oh my! Belgian guests join Lakes International Comic Art Festival line-up

Belgian Creators at the Lakes International Comic Art Festival 2019 include Serge Baeken, Ephameron, Loic Gaume, Ben Gijsemans, Valentine Laffitte, Pascal Lemaitre, Marine Schneider, Judith Vanistendael and Joris VermassenThe Lakes International Comic Art Festival 2019 has announced nine Belgian comic creators are part of the line-up for this year’s weekend-long event in Kendal in October – an event that will also offer a fine blend of Belgian culture beyond the printed page!

Nearly 70 comic creators from fourteen countries from this year’s guest list, including, from Belgium, creators Serge Baeken, EphameronLoic GaumeBen GijsemansValentine Laffitte, Pascal LemaitreMarine Schneider, Judith Vanistendael and Joris Vermassen.

A heady mix of Belgian comic art, waffles, chocolate and an exclusive beer, brewed specially for the Festival, is in store for Festival patrons, supported by the General Representation of the Government of Flanders in the UK, Flanders Literature and Wallonie Bruxelles International.

Wallonia-Brussels International, with the help of LICAF, will also be bringing a very special Smurfs exhibition to Kendal, taking place from 4th October to 3rd November 2019 at the Sugar Store in The Brewery Arts Centre, Kendal. Presented in the form of games, photos and informative texts, it will tell the story of the Smurfs from their origins to the present day.

The announcement of creators from Belgium follows previous guest announcements for Comics Laureate Hannah BerryLaurence CampbellKate CharlesworthBecky Cloonan, Garth Ennis, Duncan Fegredo, Staz JohnsonJohn McCrea, Junko Mizuno, Declan ShalveySimon Spurrier and Rob Williams.

Commenting, the Festival’s partners on this aspect of this year’s Festival said:

“The General Representation of the Government of Flanders in the UK and Flanders Literature are very excited to be part of this year’s festival and to help showcase the incredible comics talent our region has to offer. To be able to do so with our fellow Belgians is fantastic, as it is a great opportunity to give the visitors a taste of our culture.”

“We’re delighted to be bringing some great Belgian comics and culture to Kendal as part of this year’s Festival”, says Festival Director Julie Tait. “We’re determined to continue our commitment to bringing the very best of international comics to the Lakes!”

“Philippe Geluck, well-known for his character of Le Chat, said: “To the question: do you still trust the polling companies/organisations? 64% of the French answer no and 59% say yes.” Wallonia-Bruxelles International is the birthplace of surrealism. We are happy LICAF is taking a bigger interest in Belgian Comic Art this year and we wish them well.”

• The Lakes International Comic Art Festival returns to Kendal at various venues across the town 11th – 13th October 2019

• Tickets for the 2019 Festival are on Sale Now at www.comicartfestival.com/buy-tickets

• Web: www.comicartfestival.comFacebook | Twitter | YouTube | Podcast 

LiCAF 2019 - Belgian Guests

© 2019 Standaard Uitgeverij

MEET THE GUESTS

Serge Baeken

Serge Baeken – Photo by Wim Carens

Award-winning graphic mercenary Serge Baeken studied fine arts and graphics. He lives and works in Antwerp, Belgium and illustrates some of the major Dutch and Belgian magazines and newspapers, and is a creator of both books and comics, gaining critical acclaim and many prizes.

His graphic novel Sugar has been translated into French, English, Polish, Czech, Portuguese and Japanese.

Serge Baeken – www.sergeontherocks.com Twitter: @srgbkn

Ephameron. Photo: Zosia Poplawska

Ephameron. Photo: Zosia Poplawska

Ephameron (Eva Cardon) Is a Belgian artist who explores a sensitive side of the world, where small and intimate dramas of life are documented.

She is the creator of Wij twee samen (“Us Two Together”), published in 2015, a moving autobiographical story about her father’s struggle with dementia and the impact of the disease on the family. An English language edition is being released by Penn State University Press and will be launched at the Festival in October.

Her publication re/collection, published in 2017, collects 320 pages from her travel diaries. She has also had illustrations published in a.o. De StandaardDe TijdL’EchoKnack and The New York Times.

Ephameron also curates and participates in group and solo shows all over the world and holds master’s degrees in both Fine Arts and Illustrative Design, and currently teaches at LUCA School of Arts / Sint-Lukas Brussels while preparing her PhD in the Visual Arts, researching autobiography in graphic narratives.

• Web: ephameron.com

Loic Gaume. Photo © Nicolas Guerin

Loic Gaume. Photo © Nicolas Guerin

Based in Brussels, Loïc Gaume is a graphic designer, illustrator, cartoonist and author of children’s books. His first children’s book, Contes au carré (“Tales Squared”), was recognised in the 2017 Bologna Ragazzi awards.

Loïc is also one of the authors of the “new generation” published by The Association between 2009 and 2011 in the journal Rabbit. He began publishing during his studies at the “La Cambre” art school by self-publishing 30 issues of the Wafel fanzine for three years, before creating his own publishing house, “Les Details”.

Web: loicgaume.blogspot.com

Ben Gijsemans

Ben Gijsemans

Ben Gijsemans studied audiovisual arts and comics in Ghent and Brussels and the first chapter of his debut Hubert was his thesis. It was well received at home and abroad, and immediately translated into French, English and German.

Web: www.bengijsemans.com | bengijsemans.tumblr.com

Valentine Laffitte

Valentine Laffitte

Valentine Laffitte has been living in Brussels for some years. She experiments with the technique of collage, which allows her to explore and question the idea itself of the construction of the image. The paper becomes a playground, a way to play with shapes and colours, themes and ideas.

In April 2017 her first children book, Little Blue Fear, was published by Belgian publishing house Versant Sud Jeunesse. She is now working on a new project, Around the World, a book about climate change.

Valentine is part of the children’s art group “Kidzone”, which she created with friends. By creating artistic installations or workshops, the idea is to define a space for free and artistic experimentation that stimulates the perceptions of the participants.

Web: valentinelaffitte.tumblr.com

Pascal Lemaitre

Pascal Lemaitre

Pascal Lemaitre is a freelance author and illustrator based in Belgium. His editorial work has appeared in The New Yorker, The New York TimesLe MondeLibérationLe 1LacroixAstrapiJ’aime LirePom d’Api and Dorémi, among many other publications. His illustrations for children and adult books can be found in the catalogues of many American, Belgian and French editors such as L’École des Loisirs/Pastel, L’Aube, Simon & Schuster, Scholastic and Penguin Books.

He has had the enormous privilege of working with authors Toni and Slade Morrison, Stéphane Hessel, Edgar Morin, Boris Cyrulnik, Jean-Claude Ameisen, Pierre Rahbi and Rascal.

In 2015, the museum Tomi Ungerer curated an exhibit titled “Tomi Ungerer invites Pascal Lemaitre”, featuring Pascal’s children books’ illustrations. Among them, The Book of Mean People by Toni and Slade Morrison prompted legendary illustrator and author Bill Steig to exclaim: “These drawings are wonderful, and you can quote me!”

Web: www.pascallemaitre.com

Marine Schneider

Marine Schneider

Marine Schneider is a Belgian illustrator who, aged just five, she declared she would make children books when she was grown up. Fast forward 15 years, and she started studying illustration in Ghent, where her passion for picture books was only reinforced.

A traveller at heart, she loves wandering through vast and preferably snowy landscapes, alone or with company. Her travels around the world, from the very North to the very East, inspire her and nourish her stories.

Her great joy is to tell simple but beautiful stories with words as well as images, stories that may be sad but are nonetheless beautiful.

She has also illustrated three books by Norwegian author Elisabeth Helland Larsen: Jeg er DødenJeg er Livet and Jeg er Klovnen (Life and I: a Story about Death, I am LifeI am a Clown, published by Little Gestalten).

Hiro, Hiver et Marshmallows, published by Versant Sud Jeunesse, is the first album she both wrote and illustrated herself.

Marine Schneider is on Facebook at marineschneiderillustration

Judith Vanistendael | Image: Wikimedia

Judith Vanistendael is a Belgian author of graphic novels, whose longform work includes Dance by the Light of the MoonWhen David lost his Voice and Mikel, which will be published in English in September 2019 by SelfMadeHero.

Her themes include refugees, love, cancer, terrorism, and bodyguards and their sunglasses.

Judith, who lives in Molenbeek, Brussels. also illustrates children’s books, but as they are only 40 pages long, she considers working on them something of a holiday!

Web:  https://judithvanistendael.wordpress.com

Joris Vermassen

Joris Vermassen

Joris Vermassen is a Belgian comic artist. He started his career with absurdist stories, which he published in major Flemish and Dutch magazines. His style gradually evolved from pythonesque to tragicomical.

In 2014, he published Het Zotte Geweld (Mad with Joy). This graphic novel, about a troubled comedian who has to cope with the illness of his sister, became an instant classic and which will be published in English in September 2019 by SelfMadeHero and launched at the Lakes International Comic Art Festival.

Joris also works as a cartoonist. He has a PhD in the Arts and teaches illustration and storytelling at the School of Arts Gent.

Web: jorisvermassen.be

Art by Serge Baeken

Art by Serge Baeken

• The Lakes International Comic Art Festival returns to Kendal at various venues across the town 11th – 13th October 2019

– Tickets for the 2019 Festival are on Sale Now at www.comicartfestival.com/buy-tickets

FESTIVAL PARTNERS

The General Representation is the first point of contact for all issues related to the Government of Flanders and its competences. These devolved powers include education and research, arts and culture, the environment and infrastructure, agriculture and fisheries, economy and employment.

Flanders Literature opens a window on the dynamic and diverse literary landscape in the northern part of Belgium. Its mission is to help publishers and festival organisers find that one particular title or author that is the perfect fit for their list or audience.

Wallonia-Brussels International (WBI) is in charge of the international relations between Wallonia, the Wallonia-Brussels Federation and the French Community Commission of the Brussels-Capital Region with other countries. Its actions are carried out within the framework of development cooperation, human rights, culture, health and social affairs, the environment, youth exchanges, education and training, higher education and scientific research.

• The Lakes International Comic Art Festival returns to Kendal at various venues across the town 11th – 13th October 2019

– Tickets for the 2019 Festival are on Sale Now at www.comicartfestival.com/buy-tickets

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