In this post I want to talk to you about one of my favorite cartoonists. His name is Ricardo Siri, but he calls himself Liniers, which is the second name given to him in honor of his great-great-grandfather. He is from Argentina and since 2016 he lives in Vermont drawing and enjoying family life. In the past he tried to pursue a law degree, studied Communication Sciences and advertising, but Liniers devoted himself primarily to illustration, painting and publishing.
In an interview he was given in June 2019 when he was asked what it really means to be a cartoonist, he replied:
“A cartoonist is someone honest” because “nobody draws comics saying ‘I’ll have a lot of money’ or ‘the girls are coming'”. “It’s like poets, nobody publishes a book of poetry thinking how to sell millions. The cartoonist does what he has to do and then we are a little useless to function in the commercial world, so there are many efforts that end in small tragedies. My job is not to draw well, my job is to make the little drawing have a kind of life, no matter if it’s right or wrong. Many people come to me and tell me ‘I love Mafalda, because Mafalda is an 8-year-old little girl and she says such great things’. And you say Mafalda is not an 8-year-old girl, she is a 40-something man who was losing his hair, but Mafalda is so well made that she separates from Quino and continues by her side. ”
In the year 2002, he began to publish his “Macanudo” comics in the Argentine newspaper La Nación, and it is with this work that he achieves enormous national and international recognition for his work. And it is precisely in “Macanudo” where many characters appear that I want to talk to you about.
My favorite is Enriqueta, a girl who wears a blue dress and whose main fun is reading great books, dedicating herself to imagining and enjoying nature. She has two friends, Fellini, her cat, and Madariaga, her teddy bear.
There are also many penguins, a gang of goblins wearing very long striped hats and other strange characters: The mysterious man in black, Martincito and his imaginary friend Olga and Liniers, who draws himself as a rabbit with glasses.
During my Spanish lessons, I use his vignettes to work on different formal aspects of the language such as vocabulary, grammar and culture. In addition, they are an excellent starting point to reflect and express opinions during conversation lessons.
In addition to having published numerous books with compilations of his work, he has designed the cover art for the albums of some musicians such as Andrés Calamaro, Marcelo Ezquiaga and Kevin Johansen. With Johansen, he has also collaborated drawing live from the stage during his recitals.
In 2012 he received a Diploma of Merit from the Konex Foundation in the Humor and Cartoon category and in 2014 he was named Outstanding Personality of the Culture of the City of Buenos Aires by the Legislature.
In 2018 he won his well-deserved Eisner Award in the category Best Publication for Novice Readers (up to eight years old) for his book “Good Night”, at the International Comics Convention (Comic-Con) that takes place in San Diego, California, United States.
Did you know this cartoonist? What do you think about his work? Do you want to know more about him and follow his publications? Here is the link to his Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/porliniers/
Thank you for reading and see you in another publication!