Phantoms of the Louvre
Phantoms of the Louvre

Phantoms of the Louvre

Louvre Collection

COMICS & GRAPHIC NOVELS

144 Pages, 9 x 11.5

Formats: Hardcover, ebook: PDF

Hardcover, $29.99 (US $29.99) (CA $29.99)

Publication Date: June 2014

ISBN 9781561638413

Price: $29.99
 
 

Overview

Superstar comic artist Enki Bilal reimagines the Louvre as a ghostly place in this series of 22 portraits. The Mona Lisa, the Winged Victory of Samothrace, a reclining Christ, an Egyptian bust—these and other works of art are seen through the eyes of their own particular phantom. The motley collection of men, women, and children presented in these vignettes— a Roman legionary, a muse, a painter, and a German officer, among others—have little in common other than their often violent demises and an eternity spent haunting the iconic Parisian museum. Bilal recounts the life stories of these lost souls in dramatic biographies that combine fiction and historical reality, often evoking the creation of the works in question. The paintings that compose this graphic novel were presented in a special exhibition at the Louvre in early 2013.

Reviews

"The results are pretty unusual." —Heidi McDonald, the Comics Beat

"Bilal's art proves suitably unsettling: this is not a 'touristy' consideration of fine art masterworks, but the work of a politically engaged artist. Each painting catches the feel of the original work while adding its own ironic spin, resulting in the most unique and thought-provoking 'Louvre Edition' to date." —Bill Sherman, Seattle Post Intelligencer

Author Biography

Enki Bilal is a comic artist and film director widely recognized for his influence in expanding the prestige of the comics medium in Europe. He is the author of the Nikopol trilogy and the Beast trilogy.