comixology:

A comiXologist Recommends:
Harris Smith recommends Arsene Schrauwen

Ollie Schrauwen’s new graphic novel Arsene Schrauwen, from fantagraphics, is rich and fantastical, yet at the same time resolutely physical and sensual. It is a comic that provides much more than a story; reading it is an experience. Arsene Schrauwen follows its titular hero, the author’s grandfather, as he travels from Belgium to a lush tropical landscape identified only as the Colony. There, he teams with his cousin, Roger, to turn the Colony into an ultramodern utopia based on Roger’s sprawling, impractical yet wondrous design. Along the way, Arsene falls for Roger’s wife, Marieke, and gradually loses touch with reality, or perhaps encounters an entirely new form of reality.

Schrauwen, the author, keeps the level of realism we should expect from his story somewhat mysterious from the very beginning, creating at first a dreamlike, gauzy feel but becoming, as Arsene’s sense of his surroundings becomes more bizarre and unnerving, more feverish and haunting. There is an element of old world fable, distinctly European, to Arsene Schrauwen, as well as the kind of modernist journeys portrayed in books like Kafka’s Amerika, with their emphasis on the conflict between an individual’s internal struggles and the absurdity of their surroundings, both subtle and sublime. 

All of this is rendered in a loose, yet fine lined and playful style, with Schrauwen, the author, cleverly utilizing elements of the medium to emphasize tonal or narrative threads. On some pages, text drifts out of narration boxes to show disorientation. On others, the author encourages readers to take a week or two off between chapters (and graciously thanks us for doing so). Schrauwen also uses his coloring expressionistically, shifting between monochromatic blue and orange, occasionally mixing the two and expanding his palette towards the end. All of this, combined with the skill of the artwork and the charm and wit of the writing, serves to give Arsene Schrauwen the feeling of providing, upon conclusion, a complete, satisfying experience. You’ll want to thank Ollie Schruawen for creating such a masterful work, and thank for yourself for taking the time to read it.

[Read Arsene Schrauwen on comiXology]

Harris Smith is a Brooklyn-based comics and media professional. In addition to his role as a Senior Production Coordinator at comiXology, he edits several comics anthologies, including Jeans and Felony Comics, under the banner of Negative Pleasure Publications. He’s also the host of the weekly radio show Negative Pleasure on Newtown Radio.

Arsene Schrauwen is part of our Angouleme Sale!