BAR2 - Lot 29

BAR2 JOE BAR TEAM Volume 1, Vents d'Ouest, 1990 Original plate no. 22, prepublished in Moto Journal in 1989-1990. Signed. India ink and white gouache on paper 32.5 × 39.3 cm (12.8 × 15.47 in.) Here we are again, our intrepid Gégé, alias Black Greyhound, on the handlebars of his famous, super-powerful JBTInterceptor!... But, by the way, isn't this frantic chase set in the streets of a quiet town? And didn't Bar2 break the rules of conduct he had set himself? "Yes, I'm ashamed to admit it. But, as with plate 13, I was stuck. For a confrontation to take place between Gégé and the Joe Bar gang, I had no choice but to have it take place in the suburban corner entrusted to Black Greyhound's surveillance. You'll note, however, that I was careful to choose a spot that wasn't too crowded. Still, it was worth it, because I find this gag very effective. And I took great pleasure in drawing the attitudes and expressions of the little old men. It was important to show the stiffness of their joints and the difficulty of their movements. And writing their dialogues was a real treat. What's more, I think this panel illustrates a change of era quite well. The mentality of the retired, their attachment to order and respect, to the values of yesteryear, suddenly collides with the madness of the seventies, the wind of freedom that, in those years, blew into every corner of society. Even the setting shows us that a page is turning.