Born February 7th, 1929, in Tocopilla, Chile, of a Jewish Ukrainian
immigrant family. Jodorowsky was multi-talented from an early age,
becoming skilled in puppetry and mime, in addition to writing, by
his late teens. He traveled with a pantomime troupe in the 1950s,
and within a couple years had made his way to Paris where he
collaborated with the world-renowned mime Marcel Marceau. In the
1960s, Jodorowsky ventured further into the world of theater,
creating in Mexico, the Panic Movement. This innovative artistic
movement allowed him to creatively participate in over a 100
theater productions. The 1970s saw him transition into the world of
film where he quickly put a defining stamp on all his cinematic
works. He directed several cult films, namely the infamous "El
Topo," a Midnight movie favorite. Shortly thereafter, Jodorowsky
became attached to direct the adaptation of the famous Frank
Herbert sci-fi epic novel "Dune." At the preparation stage of the
film, he brilliantly assembled a team of extremely diverse and
gifted artists such as HR Giger, Chris Foss, Dan O'Bannon, and
Moebius, all of who would later be hired as concept artists on
Ridley Scott's "Alien." The development of "Dune" came to a halt
due to financial problems, but Jodorowsky, having been exposed to
such immense visual talent, propelled himself into writing graphic
novels, pairing up with the artist Moebius. This collaboration
resulted in what many consider to be one of the most creative
European sci-fi graphic novel series of all time, "The Incal,"
which went on to sell millions of copies worldwide. Since penning
"The Incal," Jodorowsky continued writing top selling comic books
with a wide variety of Europe's most talented artists, such as "The
White Lama" (with Bess), "The Metabarons" (with Gimenez), "The
Technopriests" (with Janjetov), and most recently "Bouncer" (with
Boucq). Along with nurturing his many other talents, Jodorowsky
remains a unique storyteller whose published contributions have
secured his status as one of the world's most prolific graphic
novel writers.
Born November 26th, 1943 in Mendoza, Argentina.
Gimenez finished his high school education as an industrial design
major and advanced his artistic education by attending the Academy
of Fine Arts in Barcelona, Spain, where he studied drawing. For the
next few years, he dedicated himself to the drawing of comic books,
both back in his native Argentina with such publishers as Colomba
and Record, as well as in Spain, contributing to magazines such as
Zona 84, and Comix International. By this point, Gimenez had made
quite a name for himself for his extremely detailed renditions of
machinery, chiefly in the war and science fiction genres. His art
further propelled him to international collaborations, and it was
in 1979 that he was first published in France with a series of
titles including “Leo Roa," which he also wrote. The following
year, he participated, as a creative designer, on a segment of the
film “Heavy Metal." For the next decade, he continued his work in
comic book magazines, notably the French comics anthology Metal
Hurlant and the Italian L'Eternauta.
The 1990s saw him strengthening his fan base as he was repetitively
voted best artist by European audiences, a recognition that was
mirrored in the festival and critical realms, with such awards as
the Gaudi award at the Feria Internacional del Comics de Barcelone,
in 1990. In 1992, he meets Alejandro Jodorowsky for the first time,
and the two began work on “The Metabarons," a sci-fi saga of epic
proportions in both art and story. It is to this day regarded as
one of the true graphic novel classic of the genre and it continues
successful sales around the world.
Gimenez currently maintains a consistent yet varied workload,
lending his talents as illustrator to covers for CD albums and
novels, as well as serving as a concept artist on video games, and
motion pictures. He also remains in high demand as a graphic novel
artist, collaborating with some of Europe's most acclaimed authors
such as Carlos Trillo, Emilio Balcarce, and Roberto Dal Prà, when
he is not writing his own stories as he successfully continues to
do, as with “The Fourth Power" collection.
On April 2nd, 2020, he passed away in his home province of Mendoza,
Argentina, from COVID-19 complications.
Web sites:+ http://www.juangimenez.com/
"What keeps me going back to “The Metabarons” is the immense volume and speed of its innovation. There is literally a new and mad idea on every page." - Warren Ellis, writer of “Transmetropolitan,” “Plan "The Metabarons’ is a magnum opus of unadorned emotion and one that will surprise you in its thoughtfulness and craft." - All-Comic.com "'The Metabaron' cycle (...) is, to my mind, the greatest work of graphic fiction ever produced." - David S. Goyer "...if you want an epic, brutal space opera with some hilarity throwing there between shocking events then pick up this book." - The Frog Queen
|
Ask a Question About this Product More... |
|
