Write short notes on Toppi.
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The Italian comics artist and illustrator Sergio Toppi has passed away. Lauded as both a creator and for his warm and modest personality, Toppi was 79 years old.
Sergio Toppi was born in Milan. His family was evacuated during fighting in World War II. Toppi would eventually attend college in the early 1950s, but emerged as a working artist a year later.
Toppi began his career as an advertising artist, as an animator and as an illustrator for several clients including the lauded, centuries-old publisher UTET in the 1950s and into the 1960s.
In 1966, he collaborated with the writer Carlo Triberti on the character Mago Zurli for the publication Il Corrier dei Piccoli. This is widely considered his first work, although Toppi may have done some newspaper comics as early as 1960. He continued to work for that publication, the majority of his work coming in the war genre that were published as a series called Grand Avventure di Pace e di Guerra. These were in collaboration with the writer Milo Milani. Toppi eventually graduated to serial, one-shot publication, working mostly in historical genres, bouncing back and forth between CEPIM and the French publisher Larrousse. He would later work for Il Corriere dei Ragazzi -- the same publication where he got his start, now with its named changed -- and a comic tied into a Rome newspaper, Messaggero dei Ragazzi, again with historical work. Titles for the fomer included Dal Nostro Inviato and I Grandi nel Giallo.
Other clients included Linus, Il Giornalino and Corto Maltese. He was frequently collected into book form. His work for Il Giornalino starting in the mid-1970s was fruitful, leading to any number of stories which bolstered his reputation. This included 1985's I Grandi del Cinema, 1994's Don Alberioneand a 1997 adaptation of the Robinson Crusoe story, Le Avventure di Robinson Crosue. The Cepim-published Un Uomo, un'Avventura series of stories came during roughly that same 1970s starting point. His character Il Collezionista, starred in a number of stories starting in 1984 -- four major cycles in all. Russ Burlingame's brief obituaryindicates that this was a rare Toppi effort with a bit of penetration into the English-language market. Toppi was also a prolific illustrator of short stories in the second half of his career.
Toppi began to serialize Sharaz'de in 1979. Toppi's version of the Arabian Nights was perhaps his best known work, eventually published in France and Spain -- the 2000 publication of the work in France was a career highlight. Publication of that work in North America and China is imminent. At least one obituary mentioned a recent retrospective of Toppi's work in Shanghai.
In later years, the French publisher Mosquito was a primary publishing partner, releasing several of his work, including the collected Arabian Nights material, into the French language market. Toppi also did original work for the Spanish publisher Planeta DeAgostini in 1992. The 1990s also saw Toppi doing work here and there for Bonelli, and providing illustrations to a variety of projects, including gallery work. He may have been as well known for his portfolios as his comics in recent year.
A frequent subject of gallery shows in France and Italy -- his last major shows were at different galleries in 2007 and 2008 in Paris -- Toppi was guest of honor of the Festival De Saint-Malo Quai Des Bulles in 2004 and had an exhibition devoted to his work at the Angouleme Festival in 2008.
Toppi had a number of fans among his fellow artists, many of whom lauded and admired stand-alone pieces of comics art from the author even when they could not read it. If an American comics-maker were unaware of Toppi's work, surely she knew a working European artist who was a fan. Toppi's work was classically grounded but also uniquely staged, focused on the human figure in several panels and pages that would make stand-alone illustrations by themselves. Many of his better single make dramatic use of white space as a balancing and directional element. His greatest contribution might have been in how the details of his work could slip into the fantastic in a way that emphasized or gave emotional context to the historically rigorous scene being depicted. The drawing came first. There was also something grandly human and warm about the variety of cultures that Toppi engaged in his long career, the types of people and places he chose to represent.
A book of historical portraits is still pending from Mosquito, while Archaia is the North American publisher working with that French-language company to bring the Arabian Nights material to English-language audiences.
Sergio Toppi died in the town where he was born. The cause of death was cancer. He is survived by his wife of 50 years, Aldina.
Sergio Toppi was born in Milan. His family was evacuated during fighting in World War II. Toppi would eventually attend college in the early 1950s, but emerged as a working artist a year later.
Toppi began his career as an advertising artist, as an animator and as an illustrator for several clients including the lauded, centuries-old publisher UTET in the 1950s and into the 1960s.
In 1966, he collaborated with the writer Carlo Triberti on the character Mago Zurli for the publication Il Corrier dei Piccoli. This is widely considered his first work, although Toppi may have done some newspaper comics as early as 1960. He continued to work for that publication, the majority of his work coming in the war genre that were published as a series called Grand Avventure di Pace e di Guerra. These were in collaboration with the writer Milo Milani. Toppi eventually graduated to serial, one-shot publication, working mostly in historical genres, bouncing back and forth between CEPIM and the French publisher Larrousse. He would later work for Il Corriere dei Ragazzi -- the same publication where he got his start, now with its named changed -- and a comic tied into a Rome newspaper, Messaggero dei Ragazzi, again with historical work. Titles for the fomer included Dal Nostro Inviato and I Grandi nel Giallo.
Other clients included Linus, Il Giornalino and Corto Maltese. He was frequently collected into book form. His work for Il Giornalino starting in the mid-1970s was fruitful, leading to any number of stories which bolstered his reputation. This included 1985's I Grandi del Cinema, 1994's Don Alberioneand a 1997 adaptation of the Robinson Crusoe story, Le Avventure di Robinson Crosue. The Cepim-published Un Uomo, un'Avventura series of stories came during roughly that same 1970s starting point. His character Il Collezionista, starred in a number of stories starting in 1984 -- four major cycles in all. Russ Burlingame's brief obituaryindicates that this was a rare Toppi effort with a bit of penetration into the English-language market. Toppi was also a prolific illustrator of short stories in the second half of his career.
Toppi began to serialize Sharaz'de in 1979. Toppi's version of the Arabian Nights was perhaps his best known work, eventually published in France and Spain -- the 2000 publication of the work in France was a career highlight. Publication of that work in North America and China is imminent. At least one obituary mentioned a recent retrospective of Toppi's work in Shanghai.
In later years, the French publisher Mosquito was a primary publishing partner, releasing several of his work, including the collected Arabian Nights material, into the French language market. Toppi also did original work for the Spanish publisher Planeta DeAgostini in 1992. The 1990s also saw Toppi doing work here and there for Bonelli, and providing illustrations to a variety of projects, including gallery work. He may have been as well known for his portfolios as his comics in recent year.
A frequent subject of gallery shows in France and Italy -- his last major shows were at different galleries in 2007 and 2008 in Paris -- Toppi was guest of honor of the Festival De Saint-Malo Quai Des Bulles in 2004 and had an exhibition devoted to his work at the Angouleme Festival in 2008.
Toppi had a number of fans among his fellow artists, many of whom lauded and admired stand-alone pieces of comics art from the author even when they could not read it. If an American comics-maker were unaware of Toppi's work, surely she knew a working European artist who was a fan. Toppi's work was classically grounded but also uniquely staged, focused on the human figure in several panels and pages that would make stand-alone illustrations by themselves. Many of his better single make dramatic use of white space as a balancing and directional element. His greatest contribution might have been in how the details of his work could slip into the fantastic in a way that emphasized or gave emotional context to the historically rigorous scene being depicted. The drawing came first. There was also something grandly human and warm about the variety of cultures that Toppi engaged in his long career, the types of people and places he chose to represent.
A book of historical portraits is still pending from Mosquito, while Archaia is the North American publisher working with that French-language company to bring the Arabian Nights material to English-language audiences.
Sergio Toppi died in the town where he was born. The cause of death was cancer. He is survived by his wife of 50 years, Aldina.
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