François Schuiten designs the poster for 2019 Brussels Comic Strip Festival

For this tenth edition, from 13 to 15 September 2019, the 2019 Brussels Comic Strip Festival unveils the artist behind its new poster. To celebrate the release of the latest Blake and Mortimer album, The Last Pharaoh, the festival’s poster will be designed by none other than Brussels’ comic book artist François Schuiten. As with the album, it will be famous Brussels poster artist Laurent Durieux who adds the colour. The festival opens on Friday 13 September with a day devoted, among others, to schools. A good way to start the school year.

Since it was created back in 2010 by visit.brussels, the Comic Strip Festival has come a long way. Launched after a year dedicated to Brussels about the 9th art, the Comic Strip Festival welcomes around 100,000 visitors and more than 250 comic strip artists each year.

This year the festival will once again take place in Brussels Park, where its traditional marquees will be pitched from 13 to 15 September. As well as the traditional parade of giant balloons printed with panels from the biggest comic strips, the Festival offers comic strip fans the chance to attend talks, screenings, book signings and other activities which are open to all.

For this 10th edition, the unmissable event for fans of comics has already unveiled two new important novelties:

• François Schuiten, the designer of the festival’s poster, will of course be at the festival. As well as book signing sessions, the artist will take part in a special talk on the legendary duo, accompanied by the series’ various artists. It’s a unique opportunity to talk about Edgar P. Jacobs’ work and the influence it still has today on comic strip artists. Questions will be answered on topics such as the original work, or the focus of this last chapter on Brussels.

• The festival will be open from 10am on Friday 13 September. Schools can expect a very colourful programme. From an introduction to the plot, to a workshop on anti-racism with Lilian Thuram, via an unearthing of World War Two history with the writer of the “Children of the Resistance” series – many unusual activities await them. Schools will be able to take part in several new activities without signing up in advance, as :

• The little comic strip explorer booklet: Through following different paths that are both fun and topical, the children will embark on a discovery of the Comic Strip Festival’s marquees.

• “The Children of the Resistance” exhibition: It’s spring 1944, and an allied pilot is lost in occupied Belgium… Put yourselves in the shoes of a child of the resistance to be able to help him get back to England so he can get back to fighting!

The Comic Strip Festival and Lombard publishing offer an exhibition based on the series “The Children of the Resistance” of Benoît Ers and Vincent Dugomier. Full of fun and specially adapted for a young audience (8-12 years), the exhibition explains, in an educational way, the main themes behind World War Two and the Resistance in France and Belgium. A treasure hunt gives the children a chance to step into the shoes of a member of the resistance: throughout the exhibition, they must solve clues to help the allied pilot get back to England.

Third edition of the Atomium Comic Strip Prizes

The Comic Strip field has diminished in the last few years. It is becoming increasingly difficult for comic strip professionals to make a living.

For the last two years, visit.brussels has worked closely with its partners to support this art, bringing together existing enterprises to award prizes, most of which are in cash, to allow the recipients to finance their work.

The prizes:

• The Raymond Leblanc Prize for Young Artists – Raymond Leblanc Foundation (award: 20,000 Euros offered by the French Community Commission (COCOF) and Futuropolis).

• The Wallonia-Brussels Federation Comic Strip Prize –Minister of Culture for the Wallonia-Brussels Federation (award: 10,000 Euros)

• The Brussels Atomium Prize –Minister-President of the Brussels Region (7,500 Euros) as well as backing from BX1

• The PREM1ÈRE Graphic Novel Prize – RTBF (20,000 Euros of advertising space)

• The Cognito Historical Comics Prize – Cognito Foundation (3,000 Euros)

• The Le Soir Comics Reportage Prize – Le Soir (20,000 Euros of advertising space)

• The Atomium Citizen Comics Prize – Le Cœur à lire (5,000 Euros)

• New in 2019: The Vandersteen Prize (new in 2019) – Sabam for Culture & Stripgids (5,000 Euros)