Les Fables de La Fontaine
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Authors
de La Fontaine, Jean
Issue Date
2010
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Type
Book, Whole
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Abstract
René Hausman is a celebrated illustrator of comic books in Belgium and France. Here is his La Fontaine, and it is wonderful! In image and after image, I found myself saying either He has it right! or I have not thought of that approach to this fable. This is an impressive volume of some seventy-nine fables, each with at least one trenchant illustration. One knows hardly where to start in this explosion of artistry! Look at FS on 10 and 11. Hausman catches the chagrin of the outwitted fox wonderfully. When it comes to humans, look at The Worker and His Sons on 16-17. Hausman catches the youth of these three figures. They will learn! I love the dimensions of The Bear and the Lover of Gardens (22-23). The rock is about to come crashing down on the insect -- and the head of the bear's own sleeping friend. Hausman is clever to avoid the problem many illustrators have with The Fly and the Coach by bringing the insect to the foreground and putting the whole caravan of travelers in the background (30-31). Again in The Banker and the Cobbler (56-57), Hausman does an excellent job with the faces of the two protagonists: one small and the other expansive. TMCM on 62-63 contrasts the two phases of the rats' experience brilliantly: the color of the orgy stands out against the black-and-white fear of the flight. Grippeminaud could not be more frightening than he is on 74 as the witless weasel and hare approach. He already recognizes them as victims. The approach to MSA on 86-87 took me completely by surprise, but it fits the piece well. Recognize nature -- yours and his -- and be smart. TT on 94-95 surprised and delighted me. I have never before seen an artist focus on the ducks who have lost their cargo. CW represents another surprise. Where other artists dwell on the pursuit, this is a loving picture-portrait, except that she is dangling a mouse on her fingers (98). SM (126-7) is a weird entry into anatomical and digestive processes; it images the fable perfectly. The second image for The Lion in Love (140) is classic. He has little idea what is hitting him -- and no defense. The four scenes of The Villager and the Serpent (166-7) track well the craziness at work in this story. There is a T of C on 174-5. This is a major contribution to the tradition of illustration for La Fontaine's fables.
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Citation
Publisher
Dupuis
License
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PubMed ID
DOI
Identifier
7075 (Access ID)