BAR2 - Lot 5

BAR2 JOE BAR TEAM Volume 5, Vents d'Ouest, 2003 Original cover. Signed. India ink and graphite on paper 24.5 × 18.3 cm (9.65 × 7.2 in). The Joe Bar Team albums are peppered with drawings of motorcycles heavily distorted by the power of heavy braking. This is one of the main distinguishing marks of this comic strip, the hallmark, one might say, of the "Bar2 style". "One of the most stressful phases of driving on a road with tight bends is braking. It's the moment when you're most likely to overtake a rival, and the moment when you're most likely to go off the road - with all the enormous risks that entails. In other words, when you approach a bend at a speed that's a little too fast, you don't skimp on the power you exert on the brake lever: you grip it like a madman, praying that "it'll pass". The cover illustration for Volume 5 perfectly illustrates what I've just described. And it's without doubt the most successful of all those in my albums that illustrate this piloting phase. Successful both in terms of the drawing, the deformation of the bike, and the inking. But if I have a particular affection for the drawing I'm talking about, it's not only because I'm quite proud of its workmanship, but also because it's the last drawing I did for a Joe Bar album. And I confess that I sometimes contemplate it with a certain nostalgia."