Published 29 January 2024 in News
'Dutch comics magazine Aline wins international comics prize Angoulême'
NRC Media - News
Published 28 January 2024
(Translated from Dutch to English with Google Translate)
Comics Prize - The Dutch comics magazine Aline won a prize at the comics festival in Angoulême on Saturday evening. It won in the 'International alternative comic' category.
Visitors to the 51th Angouleme International Comics Festival in Angouleme, France
'Photo Yohan Bonnet/AFP'
The Dutch comics magazine 'Aline' won a prize at the comic festival in Angoulême on Saturday evening . The artistic comic magazine won in the 'International alternative comic' category. The festival in Angoulême, France is considered the largest and most important comics festival in the world. In the best book category, American comic book author Daniel Clowes won with his graphic novel 'Monica'. The British Posy Simmonds was previously honored with the oeuvre prize. The work of Simmonds and Clowes has been translated into Dutch.
It was a surprise that 'Aline' won. The 'Alternative Comics' category is the largest, with 48 nominees from all over the world this year. It is the first time that a Dutch-language publication has won the prestigious prize. During the presentation in the city's theater, 'Aline' 's initiator Wasco (pseudonym of Henk van der Spoel, 1957) received the characteristic fauve, a statue in the shape of a cool cat, which accompanies the prize.
The jury was particularly pleased with 'Aline' 's experimental and playful character . Arriving comic book authors publish in the magazine alongside students from the Comic Design course in Zwolle. Wasco was pleased that the jury appreciated this cross-pollination: “In my word of thanks I emphasized that Aline is made by a group of very diverse comic strip makers who are closely involved in its creation. We see it as a magazine for friends, we jointly choose a theme for each issue that appeals to us.”
Theme songs
Six songs by 'Aline' have now been released, based on themes such as meat, language and ego. The prize-winning sixth issue had the curious theme 'on', in which the makers linked the preposition to a word or phrase. It provides varied contributions: from a clay comic and shape experiments to classic comics about visiting and mountain climbing. Previous themes focused more on graphic journalism and engagement.
The prize is a boost for the makers, especially because the Dutch-speaking market for a publication like Aline is small. That is also the reason that the magazine appears in English from number 8 onwards. Wasco: “Next year we can present ourselves at the festival as part of the prize. That is valuable, especially because we can show how much young talent there is in the Netherlands. An excellent opportunity to show the work of the new generation of Dutch comics makers.”
The Angoulême Comics Festival was held for the 51st time this weekend, with dozens of major exhibitions, lectures and signings. This year, 1,400 international authors were present in the town, including a large number of Asian manga authors. In recent years, an average of 200,000 paying visitors came.
'Aline' (Holland)
'Aline' is a collective of Dutch authors who have published twice a year for 3 years a collection of short stories according to an imposed theme. The title is both a feminine first name and a play on words with the English “à Line” which symbolizes the drawing.
Artists: Typex, Wasco, Jeroen Funke, Anne Stalinski, Charlotte Dumortier, Helene Lespagnard, Octavia Roodt, Juliane Noll, Ludwig Volbeda, Wide Verjnokke, Frederik van der Stock.
AUTHORS:
Collective
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