Antton Olariaga recalled the time when he began drawing drawings for Celestial Light, “not knowing to what extent he sent them by mail.” He explained that sending jokes or illustrations was like throwing a stone to the lake, “hoping that its influence would spread like the waves.”

Olariaga has talked about what is behind the illustrations: the influence of the style of each era, the cultural gestures, the knowledge of the context… At ARGIA Olariaga he has drawn upon the painted, the nuclear power plant, the police, the long struggle of non-numerical teachers, politics, masturbation, the Beatles, the competition of aizkolaris… They are images that portray each irony and he explains them to us with great.

“The illustrator doesn’t have to do what the text says; if the text is bad, the draftsman can make a forensic.” Yes, “it is essential to respect the tone of the text, to be complicit. If the text is dramatic, you will make a more serious gesture; if the tone of the text allows it, more humorous…”.

Margaret Thatcher's cartoon, that little satisfaction

Olariaga emphasizes graphic censorship: censorship applied to oneself for fear that the image is too abstract for the reader or too bold. He has also referred to the technique and the minor satisfactions: “For example, make a cartoon of Margaret Thatcher with snakes in the head, like Medusa.”

The usurbildarra has not escaped from Larrache’s provocative questions. “Does the large white space of this illustration make some metaphysical sense or is it an excuse to do less work?”, Larrathe. “Laziness, clearly,” Olariaga. “Do you allow yourself to laugh at the reader in the drawings?”, Larratxo. “To begin with, the question is: Are there readers? I work to enjoy, and since I don't see what's on the other side and we don't get much feedback, holy peace in the face of silence! If he hasn’t barked, it’s not that bad.”

Finally, he highlighted the illustrations made by ARGIA in cider posters, the work done with Jakoba Errekondo in the Altza Porru comic book and the Landarlantzen agenda, and those drawn for Kike Amonarriz's jokes books. By the way, he told us a couple of jokes about Amonarriz.

“When I get bad I enjoy it more”

Joseba Larratxo made his first drawing for ARGIA in the 2012 yearbook. “I come from the world of comics and in the first drawings you can see a lot the smell of the comic. Later, I’ve been making more realistic drawings to overcome that comic trend, and the goal has been to get an illustration that cannot be converted into a photograph.” In addition, in ARGIA he had to draw “important issues”, “and I, in other publications, was used to simpler topics”.

He has explained the lights and shadows of the digital drawing, he has shown us his sketches and his drawing process, he has told us about the work that Larrun does on the covers of the month and he has made us a recognition: “I recognize that I enjoy it when I get bad, when I get uncomfortable for the reader.”

He explains that he uses color as a narrative tool and tells us that on the computer he has an “Inspiration” folder filled with images of others, because it is always good to take into account the work of others to take ideas: “The cartoonists say, you don’t learn anything to calm, but you learn a lot to copy.”

Among other issues, Olariaga has also asked Larratxe about his relationship with the journalist and the strength of the drawing.

In conclusion, Asisko Urmeneta and his company have hung a small collection of works in Argia, with the aim of paying tribute to the Navarro DIBUJANTE.

Photos: Dani Blanco