Jirô Taniguchi (1947–2017)

Jiro Taniguchi was France's favorite manga creator, and this bande dessinée co-published with the Louvre was one of his final works. The quasi-autobiographical fantasy has as its narrator a manga artist who has come to Europe from Tokyo for a comics festival in Barcelona and goes afterwards to visit Paris. With the story set in 2013, the unnamed artist appears much younger than Taniguchi's age 65 in that year. The implied background also features the artist character's wife's death in an show more accident more than three years earlier.

In any case, the paneled pages lead the artist and the reader in tours of the Louvre, mixed with visions of the history of art, where Taniguchi uses figures like Asai Chu, Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot, and Antonio Fontanesi to illustrate the dialogue between European and Japanese art painting. The spirit of the statue of the Winged Victory of Samothrace serves as a psychopomp, and she eventually narrates the story of the preservation of the Louvre collection against anticipated Nazi pillaging in World War II.

The five days in Paris include one side trip to Auvers, which may just be a dream, since it includes a face-to-face conversation with Vincent Van Gogh. The book concludes with a final chapter that gives personal closure to the protagonist and affirms his discovered faith in the imaginal "guardians" of the Louvre.

The English edition I read is in BD folio format, with the painted illustrations printed in full color on glossy paper. It is bound and laid out right-to-left, manga style. There is a two-page appendix with encyclopedia-style articles on a few of the artists (and the writer Tokutomi Roka) who appear in the story. show less

A Japanese mangaka falls ill after a comic convention but still tries to carry through with his plans to tour the Louvre on his own. In a fever dream (or is it something more?) he interacts with the artwork and dead artists represented in the museum.

Despite having to wade through the dream garbage, I was fascinated by the connections, influences and exchange of ideas that Taniguchi revealed between French and Japanese artists. There is also a much-too-short section on the efforts the French show more people undertook to protect the treasures of the Louvre from the invading Nazi forces during World War II. These true guardians should have been the focus of the whole book. show less

An adventure tale dripping with the same sort of macho posturing and introspection that makes one either hate or love Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea. Having trailed and watched Habu's assault on Everest and pondered the mysterious fate of Mallory and Irvine, photojournalist Fukamachi feels he can only find true understanding of the mountaineering spirit and ultimate closure by attempting the summit himself. Will he survive the attempt and what will he find out about himself and those show more who proceeded him?

The story wraps up with more thrilling mountain climbing sequences, a few too many hallucinations, and some satisfying if tragic revelations. show less

Non mi ha preso, la tristezza senza sbocco del protagonista e di cui è pervasa l'intera storia ha reso la lettura poco emozionante e non mi ha tenuto incollato alle pagine come avrebbe dovuto. Non che non mi piacciano le storie tristi e malinconiche, ma questa decisamente non ha funzionato. Taniguchi apre un sacco di parentesi senza chiuderle in maniera soddisfacente e se da un lato ho apprezzato la risoluzione del mistero principale le motivazioni del padre e l'impossibilità del show more protagonista di riuscire a cambiare il passato, le ultime tavole mi sono parse buttate là al solo scopo di aggiungere un po' di mistero alla storia quando, a quel punto, non ne aveva assolutamente bisogno. show less