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Jean Giraud (aka Moebius): A Primer

Moebius

R.M. Rhodes, comic creator and friend of French comics, returns to introduce the uninitiated to another classic artist, whose influence you’ve experienced even if you didn’t realize it was him…

Jean Giraud (aka Gir, aka Moebius) is probably the most famous living French cartoonist. His career started in the early 60s when he started drawing the feature Blueberry with writer Jean-Michel Charlier for the French comics magazine Pilote. Giraud was immediately noticed for the quality of his linework and distinctive visual style. Blueberry went on to be a smash hit, becoming one of the most popular features in Pilote, a leading comic magazine of the period.

At the time, Pilote was edited by Rene Goscinny, whose point of view regarding the content of the magazine came into sharp conflict with Giraud and several other creators of his generation. The result of that conflict was the creation of a comic magazine with more adult sensibilities, called Metal Hurlant.

[ad#longpost]Even when he was making comics for the professional market, Giraud was also making uncensored comics for the underground market, signing them with the name Moebius. This name was revived for Metal Hurlant, most notably in the wordless Arzach series and the free-associational series The Airtight Garage of Jerry Cornelius.

He made a Silver Surfer comic with Stan Lee in the 1980s and collaborated with Alejandro Jodorowsky on a number of comics – most notably The Incal, a grand space opera comic. This series has spawned a few spinoffs, the most well-known of which is the Metabarons. Moebius has no direct input to these spinoffs that I’m aware of, but his visual style is evident in every book.

More than the diverse range of beautiful artwork that the man has produced (and he has produced a lot of artwork), Moebius will probably be best known for the influence that he has had on comics artists–in both the Francophone and Anglo-Saxon markets–and on science fiction movies. He has done design work for Tron, Alien and Dune. His styles are evident in Star Wars, Blade Runner and The Fifth Element.

Blueberry by Moebius
From Blueberry

At the age of 72, Moebius shows no signs of slowing down. There was a major show of his art in Paris last summer and there are plans to release a copy of the complete Incal in the United States any time now. His latest work is a profoundly beautiful book called 40 Days in the Desert and is a daily visual diary of when he recently decided to stop smoking marijuana.

For more from R.M. Rhodes check out his website at Oletheros Publishing.

Incal by Moebius
From The Incal

From The Airtight Garage
From The Airtight Garage

From Arzach
From Arzach
From The Silver Surfer
From The Silver Surfer

40 Days in the Desert by Moebius
From 40 Days in the Desert

Top Moebius image.

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