Seven hundred pages Louna Sloane it defined Philippe Drieu as much as the artist defined that series. Their bond is unbreakable
It is an understatement to say that Philippe Drieu is a comic author and even a visual artist. In the comics category, his influence has been omnipresent since the seventies. He shaped generations of readers and creators, built tastes, tried out new trends, in short - he founded the scene as much as Moebius.
His work has been painfully neglected in Serbia - and in the former Yugoslavia. Until recently, only one of his albums was published, Belgrade's Stalker published it Night, which is unanimously considered his strongest work ("Vreme" August 21, 2021). Night is, in addition to its mesmerizing visuality, a truly cryptic work that is difficult to understand without realizing that it is an allegory of the death of Drie's wife and the anger the artist feels at the loss of a loved one. Few artists can so effectively channel a survivor's anger, frustration, and total agony into a single work of art and create something as disturbing and beautiful as At night. But Drije is not just any artist.
And then recently Stalker released and Louna Sloane.
The integral edition of Drie's Louna Sloane it is extensive reading. As many as seven hundred pages of one of the most revolutionary approaches to the comics medium are contained in it. For the sake of reading experience and ease of reading, Stalker divided the domestic edition into two books of 350 pages each. That is the only difference compared to the most representative French edition, compared to which the Serbian version is better thanks to that. Although Drije has behind him several less voluminous titles, even less risky in the commercial sense (such as Yragala inspired by Murcock Elric), it is a commendable move to publish his very key work that defined his entire oeuvre.
Lone Sloan defined Drieu as much as the artist defined that series. Their bond is unbreakable. While it is Lone Sloan was a training ground for Drie's most revolutionary ideas in the medium of comics, that's all Lone Sloan forced the artist to explore the limits of his art. Like the first serious comic he drew, Secret abyss from 1966, which is at the beginning of the first of two Stalker books. It will be almost a decade since Secrets of the Abyss before Drieu with Dione and Möbius founded Humanoid and start Irish metal. And there we see a more rudimentary Drier, whose first work is only a reminder of how far he has come to mature works from At night or the rest Sloane. Sloane's Phantasmagoric Voyage of Secrets of the Abyss, then over The Six Journeys of Lou Sloan and two parts Delirium as key cycles within this opus, until gaela, two parts Salammbé i Chaos, constitute an artistic journey of almost half a century of creativity.
While these individual parts were being created Louna Sloane, Drier was a key participant in the francophone comics revolution of the seventies, he lost his wife and drew Night, and went from anonymous, through reformers to the undisputed authority of the ninth art. And during all those significant crossroads in life, he stood by him Lone Sloan and matured along with him.
Drier quickly became a force to be reckoned with in terms of drawing. After rudimentary Secret abyss, but a mini opus The Six Journeys of Lou Sloan from 1972 brings a mature artist. The composition of each panel is an artistic experiment and a work of stunning beauty, while playing with the narrative Odysseus, the Bible, myths, philosophy and ancient chants, and even the concept of the medium of comics. The name of Loune Sloan's ship - "O Siddhartha" - is sufficient testimony to the extent to which Drieu went in designing various aspects of his main series. And the very scale of his compositions take on galactic dimensions. Full of details and exceptional color, Drie's boards captivate with beauty. Especially those done over the entire two pages, and he didn't shy away from making the reader turn the edition vertically in order to see certain scenes.
If they are The Six Journeys of Lou Sloan primarily Odyssean stories, two parts Delirium from 1973 and 2012 represent a phantasmagoric adventure on the planet of pleasure with anarchist-dissident elements. Of course, Drije turns a simple search into an event of galactic proportions, and creates a messianic personality out of his protagonist. The reason for such a hiatus between the two works is simple: the screenwriter Jacques Lob passed away in the meantime, and Drieu needed time to heal the wounds of another loss. Just as visually fascinating as its predecessor, Delirium 2 represents a much more stubborn and cynical Drie.
Gail from 1978 is subjectively the most impressive visually, but also the darkest in terms of tone and themes. Namely, it was started before the death of his wife, but work on it was interrupted due to At night. It falls exactly in the darkest, but also the most creatively exciting period of Drie's creativity.
Opposite him stands Salamba, created between 1980 and 1986, based on the work of the same name by Gustave Flaubert. Here, the artist managed to reconcile the premise of a science fiction epic with the heroic-fantasy theme of Flaubert's novel about the decadence of Carthage. If he reached his drawing peak earlier, Drija through Salambu reaches the ultimate range of his narrative skill. He plays with storytelling with ease and uses words as skillfully as he used to handle brushes and pencils. Through Salambu Naked from 2010 tried a new kind of narrative by directly quoting Flaubert and retelling the entire story with only large and magnificent depictions of the female body.
And at the end, Chaos from 2000 is complete decadence embodied in another visually fascinating tale. U Chaos Drie put an end to Lone Sloan as a character, while at the same time bringing him back to life, only leaving his fate uncertain. Why? Because he can.
Half a century of Drieu's work, all his ups and downs, doubts and fears, losses and triumphs, are all contained in these seven hundred pages, filled with some of the most beautiful comic scenes one can see. Those pages still radiate the power of one of comics' greatest authors, are as fascinating as they were when they first saw the light of day, and are an eternal reminder of what's possible in this medium.
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