Update 22: 17/07/2017 Tribute to Moebius new adds:
I am currently finishing Volume 2 of Jim Hawkins, then the third and last volume. I have two or three other comic projects that will be done or not, I don't know. I will continue for a long time in comics, but I am also very attracted by cartoons. Today I find more pleasure in making illustrations as comic storyboards.
Thanks so much Sébastien, it's been a real pleasure having you in this tribute and getting to know you a littke bit more.We follow your upcoming proyects, congratulations.
We've found pure gold:
Sébastien Vastra.
Sébastien Vastra.
We can say that we've found pure gold...and we do not exaggerate. When I contacted Sébastien to explain him the tribute to Moebius that I wanted to develop in my blog, I could not even imagine that the drawing he was about to create would be so great.
Not the lieutenant, nor any of the main characters in the Blueberry universe .... the drawing for the tribute takes us to the album Ballad for a coffin, where we find Doc Hyeronimus, the liquor seller...and the rest is just pure magic.
This Normand Frenchman, after his Baccalaureat went on studying plastic arts. Before becoming professional, he won several comic contests: Le Havre (1995), Caen (1996), Amiens (1997 et 1998) et Rouen (1998 and 1999).
His first professional comic work, with Fred Duval, was Mâchefer (up to three albums) during the years 2002-2004.
He adds to his curriculum vitae the three albums of Eclipse (2007-2009) with Antoine Ozanam and volume 3 of Spyder (2011) with screenplay by Sébastien Latour.
But the most relevant of his works (in my opinion) comes in 2015: Jim Hawkins part 1: Flint's testament.
The prize for the best drawing at 39th Chambéry international comic festival awaited...
Sébastien answers some interesting questions involving his artistics influences, preferences and much more in the following interview:
- The Blueberry Encyclopaedia (TBE): What has your biggest artistic influence in the beginning of your artistic life?
My influences were very numerous, they were important at each stage and period of my life, depending on what I discovered and read.
As a child, there were the great classics, Gaston Lagaffe, Asterix and especially the universes of Disney.
In college I had a "role playing" period with the influence of illustrators of Fantasy and Dungeons and Dragons. Then in high school, at first I was influenced by fluid drafters Glacial: Gotlib-Maëster - Coyote and then I discovered manga with Akira, DragonBall and Apple Seed and the "Great" band drawn by Delcourt: Légendes des Contrées oubliées and Aquablue. Thierry Ségur and Olivier Vatine had an enormous influence on my Work before discovering the awesome Marini!
- TBE: ... and now, what artists do you respect the most?
Today, my influences are even more numerous, ranging from Rossi to Risso (For real!) I keep looking at the new generations, the one that comes from the animation who has a very great mastery of the narration. I love the work of Vivès, Reno, Valente, Amelie Fléchais, Bertolucci, Guarnido, Wendling ... Many cartoon artists influence me: Glen Keane, Eric Goldberg, Cory Loftis, Ryan Lang, Bill Schwab, Nathan Fowkes, Peter de Sève, Nicolas Marlet, Ryan Church etc ... the list is too long ^^
- TBE : with whom would you love to work?
The writer I admire the most is the awesome Alain Ayroles !! But I'm not sure to really want to work with him someday. From experience, I have seen one is not always happy to meet his idols ^^ (Besides he does his own story-boards and that's what I'd love to do, so I'd feel really frustrated!)
- TBE: What is your favorite technique for drawing and coloring? and what discipline...comic, storyboard, animation...?
The process of making a comic is very long, what I prefer is the storyboard, narration, finding the best narrative solutions to tell my story and not bore the reader (even try to surprise). I also like the composition of the images, the boxes, the best frames, the strongest, the most dynamic. I like less the crayonné and especially, I hate inking, it's always the part where you can spoil everything, you can turn a good dynamic or expressive pencil making it static, dull or even kill it with bad inking.
- TBE: What do you think of digital comic books ... is the comic industry in danger / crisis with the menace of pirate downloads? How can this affect the work of artists?
We realized that comic readers still love the book, the paper, holding them in their hands. I am a book lover, I do not read on tablet, I also have the impression that the digital format is devaluing comics and the work of authors, there is a "Cheap" side , making the paper book is not obsolete in my opinion but resistant to current "consumerism" of the "all included". The idea of a society where one consumes everything scares me, I want to continue loving, Contemplate, be marveled and take time to appreciate. I believe that the role of artists is precisely to be the guarantors, if not the guardians of this last space of dream that remains to us. If Art doesn't become a product, then everything will not be completely lost...even if I am conscious that comic is not art and that utopia has never prevented society to evolve in the right or wrong way.
- TBE: What are you doing today and what are your next projects? .... Are you going to make out more "one shots" while you finish the volumes of Jim Hawkins?
Not the lieutenant, nor any of the main characters in the Blueberry universe .... the drawing for the tribute takes us to the album Ballad for a coffin, where we find Doc Hyeronimus, the liquor seller...and the rest is just pure magic.
This Normand Frenchman, after his Baccalaureat went on studying plastic arts. Before becoming professional, he won several comic contests: Le Havre (1995), Caen (1996), Amiens (1997 et 1998) et Rouen (1998 and 1999).
His first professional comic work, with Fred Duval, was Mâchefer (up to three albums) during the years 2002-2004.
He adds to his curriculum vitae the three albums of Eclipse (2007-2009) with Antoine Ozanam and volume 3 of Spyder (2011) with screenplay by Sébastien Latour.
But the most relevant of his works (in my opinion) comes in 2015: Jim Hawkins part 1: Flint's testament.
The prize for the best drawing at 39th Chambéry international comic festival awaited...
Sébastien answers some interesting questions involving his artistics influences, preferences and much more in the following interview:
- The Blueberry Encyclopaedia (TBE): What has your biggest artistic influence in the beginning of your artistic life?
My influences were very numerous, they were important at each stage and period of my life, depending on what I discovered and read.
As a child, there were the great classics, Gaston Lagaffe, Asterix and especially the universes of Disney.
In college I had a "role playing" period with the influence of illustrators of Fantasy and Dungeons and Dragons. Then in high school, at first I was influenced by fluid drafters Glacial: Gotlib-Maëster - Coyote and then I discovered manga with Akira, DragonBall and Apple Seed and the "Great" band drawn by Delcourt: Légendes des Contrées oubliées and Aquablue. Thierry Ségur and Olivier Vatine had an enormous influence on my Work before discovering the awesome Marini!
- TBE: ... and now, what artists do you respect the most?
Today, my influences are even more numerous, ranging from Rossi to Risso (For real!) I keep looking at the new generations, the one that comes from the animation who has a very great mastery of the narration. I love the work of Vivès, Reno, Valente, Amelie Fléchais, Bertolucci, Guarnido, Wendling ... Many cartoon artists influence me: Glen Keane, Eric Goldberg, Cory Loftis, Ryan Lang, Bill Schwab, Nathan Fowkes, Peter de Sève, Nicolas Marlet, Ryan Church etc ... the list is too long ^^
- TBE : with whom would you love to work?
The writer I admire the most is the awesome Alain Ayroles !! But I'm not sure to really want to work with him someday. From experience, I have seen one is not always happy to meet his idols ^^ (Besides he does his own story-boards and that's what I'd love to do, so I'd feel really frustrated!)
- TBE: What is your favorite technique for drawing and coloring? and what discipline...comic, storyboard, animation...?
The process of making a comic is very long, what I prefer is the storyboard, narration, finding the best narrative solutions to tell my story and not bore the reader (even try to surprise). I also like the composition of the images, the boxes, the best frames, the strongest, the most dynamic. I like less the crayonné and especially, I hate inking, it's always the part where you can spoil everything, you can turn a good dynamic or expressive pencil making it static, dull or even kill it with bad inking.
- TBE: What do you think of digital comic books ... is the comic industry in danger / crisis with the menace of pirate downloads? How can this affect the work of artists?
We realized that comic readers still love the book, the paper, holding them in their hands. I am a book lover, I do not read on tablet, I also have the impression that the digital format is devaluing comics and the work of authors, there is a "Cheap" side , making the paper book is not obsolete in my opinion but resistant to current "consumerism" of the "all included". The idea of a society where one consumes everything scares me, I want to continue loving, Contemplate, be marveled and take time to appreciate. I believe that the role of artists is precisely to be the guarantors, if not the guardians of this last space of dream that remains to us. If Art doesn't become a product, then everything will not be completely lost...even if I am conscious that comic is not art and that utopia has never prevented society to evolve in the right or wrong way.
- TBE: What are you doing today and what are your next projects? .... Are you going to make out more "one shots" while you finish the volumes of Jim Hawkins?
I am currently finishing Volume 2 of Jim Hawkins, then the third and last volume. I have two or three other comic projects that will be done or not, I don't know. I will continue for a long time in comics, but I am also very attracted by cartoons. Today I find more pleasure in making illustrations as comic storyboards.
- TBE: What are your memories/relationships/influences wih Jean Giraud and his artworks?
Despite the immense talent of Giraud, I must confess that I was not really
influenced by his work. I didn't grow up with him, nor with Blueberry albums
(And I find Charlier far too talkative, too many texts that do not leave room enough to Giraud's talent). At the age of 14, I entered the amateur contest
of the Angoulême festival and I had won the album "Balad for a coffin", and this character ( Doc Hyeronimus) had marked me, that's why I decided to
"Revisit" him in my own way.
Thanks so much Sébastien, it's been a real pleasure having you in this tribute and getting to know you a littke bit more.We follow your upcoming proyects, congratulations.
