Revision History for faire semblant c'est mentir
Revision 8 details:
faire semblant c'est mentir
- Creator: Dominique Goblet
- Publisher: L'Association
- Published on: 2008-03-01
- ISBN: 2844142338
About This Book
The new book by the Belgian artist, Dominique Goblet, published by L’Association. The book has been nominated in the official selection for the Prix d’Angoulême 2008.
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Translation
[Again, no page numbers. I’m taking Page 1 as the introduction by Jean-Christophe Menu, so the first page of art is page 5]
Page 1
_Twelve Years of Reworking the Canvas_
The Goblette told me everything about that exalted day: the boozy reunion with ‘the Fireman’, the Magic that Nikita already had, Bleeding, the trunk “from when I brought back all the stuff from when I was with the pirates”, and which in the process totally disintegrated, turbo injection…Roger Out! When I say everything, I mean everything. It was the perfect moment for starting with the essential Autobiography, and through it, to arrive, of course, at the Attic.
It was back in 1995. The first pages of the first chapter were as striking as they were smelly. Each time I saw them, the oil had done something new to the paintings. This worried me a bit because I could see, clear as day, that Black and White would never be enough to capture such nuances.
Circumstances dictated that this Autobiography was often put on hiatus. There were other books, exhibitions, travels abroad…The Autobiography came back, went away, came back once more. The style changed, the grey graphite of a pencil would now capture and hold Brussels and Charleroi in place, but it was the same story as the pages from 1995, which had meanwhile continued to yellow. Bringing this sepia tone and their now discarded style into the present was a way for Dom to defy the passage of time, the real raw material of this book, completed twelve years after it was begun.
This book smells of oils, pastels, freshly cut wood, the canopies of the Old Market; it’s the exhalation after twelve years of energetic attempts to solve various problems, each now carefully worked out and laid to rest in their separate compartments. “Pretending is the Same as Lying” breathes like no other book.
Page 5
Panel 3
Pay attention Nikske
Panel 4
You go
Page 6
Panel 2
Have you hurt yourself?
Nikske: Holes! Holes! Hoooles!
Panel 3
Holes! There! There! Holes! Holes! Holes, boo-hoo-hoo!
Panel 4
Boo-hoo-hoo…
Panel 5
Okay, come on, we’ll take them off.
Page 7
Panel 1
It isn’t serious, watch carefully, I’m going to repair them!
Panel 5
But… she knows how to do magic…
Page 8
No text
Page 9
Chapter 1
Page 10
My father doesn’t drink any more. Not even a drop, it seems. I haven’t seen him for the last four years. My daughter will be four years old in July…next month, that is.
What is he like?
Um…he has a big moustache.
Panel 2
Hello!
Panel 3
Hey! Who’s that?
Panel 4
This is Nikita. She’s been asking me a million questions about you.
Page 11
Mommy…I’m going to tell you a secret.
Panel 2
I’m going to call him Papa Moustache.
Panel 3
(silent)
Panel 4
Do you know, we’re invited to go to his house and eat dinner tomorrow?
Panel 5
But, actually mommy, why didn’t you go see your dad anymore?
Page 12
Hey! Hey!
Panel 2
This is impossible…I’m dreaming…they’re drunk…they’re dead drunk.
Panel 3
We bought some Magicolors but we forgot to buy paper!
Hello, Cecile.
Panel 4
Wow, they’re pretty nice! Are you happy, Nikita?
Welll…not really. I already have some.
Panel 5
Hello Nikske, what do you think of my new private spot?
Wow, that’s great! Really neat.
In the Brussels dialect, this diminutive of Dominique means ‘little nothing’. (This aside is in the text).
Panel 6
My neighbor loves me, that’s right, he loves me! I go…he loves me! He’s the one who told me to put my car there.
Panel 7
I hope you’re not afraid of dogs? ‘Cause Kimi loves children! So you know, I’m walking, you know, she sees a kid, she crosses the street! This dog, he’s unbelievable!
Panel 8
Watch this, I’m switching my “Télémoustique” for the “Soir Illustré” my downstairs neighbor gets!
And he just loves me, my downstairs neighbor!
Page 13
Here’s that crazy guy!
Panel 2
He’s a real good animal. Not like that Doberman.
Panel 3
Watch out, huh? What a dog – 25 kilos!
Panel 4
But one day he gave me a bite on the ear. Well, maybe that was sort of my fault.
Panel 5
He wasn’t the kind of dog you play with. I think I’d gotten him a bit over-excited. I was sort of scrapping with him.
Page 14
Yes, and after that, he went for my throat, and bit me here, like that, and with no provocation at all!
Panel 2
Yeah, but, listen, is it me or you who’s telling this story?
Panel 3
The day after, I had him put down. But you’ve got to understand, this dog loved me, I did what I could. But one day, he just went crazy!
Okay..I can see this one is also on the road to ruin.
Panel 4
I called up Veeweyde. They wanted to bring me the body. That? Not here with me! {aside in the text: Veeweyde is an animal refuge}
Panel 5
HA BRAVO VEEWEYDE, BRINGING THE BODY HERE, LET’S LEAVE IT, IT’S OKAY, YEAH?
Panel 6
But when it comes to helping out before we took the dog in the first place, they never mentioned that he was a night guard dog in a parking garage and that he was dangerous! They didn’t bother to do that, huh!
Hey, Papa Moustache, you’re not talking right!
Page 15
Well, I’m talking okay for me, I’m a Flemish person.
Panel 2
Well, not Flemish, I’m from Bruxelles, but watch out, man, I’m perfectly bilingual!
Panel 3
And it’s for that same reason that I ended up doing my pre-prension work as a corporal with the fire brigade!
Panel 4
They were all disappointed when I left the service. THAT, I can tell you!
Panel 5
Jean-Pierre, we’re going to miss you! Everyone loved me there – CORPORAL, Dominique!
Panel 6
Yes, Dominique, yes!
Mommy?
Panel 7
WARRANT OFFICER!!
I want to draw.
Page 16
Over here, Nik, you can draw on top here.
Ha…but that’s a mistake, too!
Panel 2
What do you mean?
“On top”...that’s the Brusseleer! {Brussels mix of Belgian French and Dutch, as per Wikipedia)
Panel 3
But…no way, Dad!
Panel 4
No! NO! “On top”, that’s not correct…you have to say “onnn the toppp!”
Panel 5
Well, as far as I’m concerned, it’s just an abbreviation.
Panel 6
Okay, Dominique, have your way, let it go, I understand, let’s let this drop. I’m not talking about this with you any more, roger OUT!, anyhow it’s always been like this, you’re exactly like your mother, you’re two sides of the same coin.
Page 17
Here, have you seen her hair? that’s my friend.
Panel 2
Ha ha, she has long hair, your friend?
But..no? Why?
Panel 3
You just said that it’s your friend and that she has long hair.
Ha..no, that’s just a man.
Panel 4
But, Nikita, Cecile is right, you just said that -
ha, but mommy, it was just, you know, a little pretend.
Panel 5
WELL THEN YOU’RE A LITTLE LIAR!
Panel 6
WHAT IS IT, ANYWAY, MAKE BELIEVE? MAKE BELIEVE, IT’S LYING, IT’S LYING!
Page 18
Nikita, you want to come walk Kimi?
Okay.
Should I let her leave with this crazy woman?
YOU’VE FALLEN? LIAR! YOU’RE JUST PRETENDING! GET UP, DIRTY LITTLE GIRL!
Panel 1
See you in a minute, ommy!
Jeez, if I say anything, there’ll just be another drama!
Panel 2
So, Dom, I hear you’re at loggerheads with your mother again?
Well, yes, you heard right.
[aside in the text: ‘dom’, in Flemish, means ‘animal’}
Panel 3
She told me she’s furious with you because you want to take on cleaning jobs.
Panel 4
She told you that? That’s ridiculous!
Page 19
Well, you’re mother, she’s one of a kid, huh?
Panel 2
Hey, have you ever seen this?
Uh….no….
Panel 3
{silent}
Panel 4
{silent}
Panel 5
CRACK!
Panel 6
This thing here, this is the trunk from when I brought back from when I was with the pirates.
Panel 7
Andway, you’re not going to tell me…she’s one of a kind, your mother!
Page 20
You know, she called me the same day she broke up with that guy of hers?
Panel 1
That’s what I’m good for, huh?
Panel 2
Anyway, she’s always only thought of herself.
Panel 3
And you? And you, Dominique?
Panel 4
You, you , you were always in league with her!
