Vittorio Giardino
Encyclopedia
Vittorio Giardino is an Italian comic
artist.
Giardino was born in Bologna
, where he graduated in electrical engineering in 1969.
At the age of 30, he decided to leave his job and devote himself to comics. Two years later
his first short story Pax Romana was published in La Città Futura, a weekly magazine published by the Italian Communist Youth Federation and edited by Luigi Bernardi.
In 1982 Giardino created a new character: Max Fridman, an ex-secret agent involved in the political struggle in 1930s Europe. His first adventure, Hungarian Rhapsody was serialized in the first four issues of Orient Express and brought Giardino in the limelight of the international comic scene. Max Fridman adventures have been published in 18 countries, and are universally recognised as comic book classics. Some of the prizes the series won include Lucca Festival's Yellow Kid and Brussels' St. Michel.
Starting in 1984, Giardino produced a number of short stories for the Italian magazine Comic Art, where he introduced Little Ego
, a young and sexy girl inspired by Winsor McCay
's Little Nemo
who stars in one-page dreamy erotic stories.
In 1991 Giardino created a new character, Jonas Fink for the Il Grifo magazine. Jonas is a young Jew in 1950's Prague whose father is arrested by the communist police. He and his mother have to cope with the discrimination and oppression of Joseph Stalin
's regime. The book won the Angoulème Alfred prize for best foreign work in 1995 as well as an Harvey at San Diego in 1999.
Giardino's maniacal attention to details in both his art and his stories has made him a star even outside the comics community. Unfortunately, it is also the reason of his proverbial slowness: his fans have to wait for years to read the conclusion of his books. Giardino art style recalls the French ligne claire
, while his writing owes a lot to famous hard boiled and spy story authors like Dashiell Hammett
and John le Carré
.
Italian comics
Italian comics are comics made in Italy. They are locally known as fumetto – plural form fumetti – although this latter term is often used in English to describe a specific comic genre . The most popular Italian comics have been translated into many languages...
artist.
Giardino was born in Bologna
Bologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
, where he graduated in electrical engineering in 1969.
At the age of 30, he decided to leave his job and devote himself to comics. Two years later
his first short story Pax Romana was published in La Città Futura, a weekly magazine published by the Italian Communist Youth Federation and edited by Luigi Bernardi.
In 1982 Giardino created a new character: Max Fridman, an ex-secret agent involved in the political struggle in 1930s Europe. His first adventure, Hungarian Rhapsody was serialized in the first four issues of Orient Express and brought Giardino in the limelight of the international comic scene. Max Fridman adventures have been published in 18 countries, and are universally recognised as comic book classics. Some of the prizes the series won include Lucca Festival's Yellow Kid and Brussels' St. Michel.
Starting in 1984, Giardino produced a number of short stories for the Italian magazine Comic Art, where he introduced Little Ego
Little Ego
Little Ego is a comic strip written and drawn by Vittorio Giardino, as well as the title character of the strip. Little Ego first appeared in Glamour International Magazine #12 .-Publication history:...
, a young and sexy girl inspired by Winsor McCay
Winsor McCay
Winsor McCay was an American cartoonist and animator.A prolific artist, McCay's pioneering early animated films far outshone the work of his contemporaries, and set a standard followed by Walt Disney and others in later decades...
's Little Nemo
Little Nemo
Little Nemo is the main fictional character in a series of weekly comic strips by Winsor McCay that appeared in the New York Herald and William Randolph Hearst's New York American newspapers from October 15, 1905 – April 23, 1911 and April 30, 1911 – July 26, 1914; respectively.The...
who stars in one-page dreamy erotic stories.
In 1991 Giardino created a new character, Jonas Fink for the Il Grifo magazine. Jonas is a young Jew in 1950's Prague whose father is arrested by the communist police. He and his mother have to cope with the discrimination and oppression of Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
's regime. The book won the Angoulème Alfred prize for best foreign work in 1995 as well as an Harvey at San Diego in 1999.
Giardino's maniacal attention to details in both his art and his stories has made him a star even outside the comics community. Unfortunately, it is also the reason of his proverbial slowness: his fans have to wait for years to read the conclusion of his books. Giardino art style recalls the French ligne claire
Ligne claire
Ligne claire is a style of drawing pioneered by Hergé, the Belgian creator of The Adventures of Tintin. It uses clear strong lines of uniform importance. Artists working in it do not use hatching, while contrast is downplayed as well...
, while his writing owes a lot to famous hard boiled and spy story authors like Dashiell Hammett
Dashiell Hammett
Samuel Dashiell Hammett was an American author of hard-boiled detective novels and short stories, and political activist. Among the enduring characters he created are Sam Spade , Nick and Nora Charles , and the Continental Op .In addition to the significant influence his novels and stories had on...
and John le Carré
John le Carré
David John Moore Cornwell , who writes under the name John le Carré, is an author of espionage novels. During the 1950s and the 1960s, Cornwell worked for MI5 and MI6, and began writing novels under the pseudonym "John le Carré"...
.
Chronology
- Pax Romana (1978)
- Da territori sconosciuti (1978)
- Ritorno felice (1978)
- La Predella di Urbino (1978)
- Un cattivo affare (1978)
- Sam Pezzo: Piombo di mancia (1979)
- Sam Pezzo: Nessuno ti rimpiangerà (1979)
- Sam Pezzo: Risveglio amaro (1980)
- Sam Pezzo: La trappola parte (1980)
- Sam Pezzo: Merry Christmas (1980)
- Sam Pezzo: L’ultimo colpo (1980)
- Max Fridman: Rapsodia Ungherese (1982)
- Sam Pezzo: Shit City (1982)
- Sam Pezzo: Nightfire (1982)
- L’ultimatum (1983)
- C’era una volta in America (1984)
- A Carnevale... (1984)
- Circus (1984)
- A Nord-Est di Bamba Issa (1984)
- Max Fridman: La Porta d'Oriente (1985)
- Little EgoLittle EgoLittle Ego is a comic strip written and drawn by Vittorio Giardino, as well as the title character of the strip. Little Ego first appeared in Glamour International Magazine #12 .-Publication history:...
(1985-) - Umido e Lontano (1987)
- Sotto falso nome (1987)
- Candidi segreti (1988)
- Safari (1988)
- Fuori stagione (1988)
- Quel brivido sottile (1988)
- Il ritrovamento di Paride (1988)
- Little Ego: Beduini (1989)
- La terza verità (1990)
- Jonas Fink: L'infanzia (1991)
- Vecchie volpi (1993)
- La rotta dei sogni (1993)
- Troppo onore (1983)
- Jonas Fink: L'adolescenza (1998)