Saša Rakezić (born 1963 in

Pančevo Pančevo (Serbian Cyrillic: Панчево, ; german: Pantschowa; hu, Pancsova; ro, Panciova; sk, Pánčevo) is a city and the administrative center of the South Banat District in the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia. It is located on ...

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

), better known by his

pen name A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a literary double, is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen na ...

Aleksandar Zograf, is a

cartoonist A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comic book illustrators in that they produce both the literary and ...

. His works focus mostly on life in the former

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...

, such as ''Life Under Sanctions'', ''Psychonaut'', ''Dream Watcher'' and ''Bulletins from Serbia''.

Career

Zograf's works started being published outside Serbia in the early 1990s, appearing first in American comics anthologies such as '' Weirdo'' and '' Zero Zero'', and

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

Fantagraphics Books Fantagraphics (previously Fantagraphics Books) is an American publisher of alternative comics, classic comic strip anthologies, manga, magazines, graphic novels, and the erotic Eros Comix imprint. History Founding Fantagraphics was found ...

. British publisher

Slab-O-Concrete Slab-O-Concrete Productions was a British mail order distributor and publisher, founded by Peter Pavement, Dave Hanna, Emma Copsey, and Chris Tappenden; operating mostly in Brighton and Hove during the 1990s. Initially selling British small press ...

also published a number of his books, and his works were translated and published in several European magazines. His solo titles have been issued by publishers

L'Association L'Association is a French publishing house located in Paris which publishes comic books. It was founded in May 1990 by Jean-Christophe Menu, Lewis Trondheim, David B., Mattt Konture, Patrice Killoffer, Stanislas, and Mokeït. L'Association i ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, PuntoZero and Black Velvet in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, Jochen Enterprises in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, Službeni Glasnik and SKCNS in

, VBZ in

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

, KAPSIMI in

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

, Nyittott Kőnyv in

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

, and Under Comics in

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. In 2002, Zograf's work was exhibited at Cartoon Art Museum, titled "Dreamtime/Wartime". A year later, he also wrote an 8-page story titled "How I met America" for New York's Whitney Museum exhibition "American Effect" catalog. Since 2003, Zograf has published a weekly two-page comic in the Serbian news weekly magazine
VREME
In 2017, Zograf signed the

Declaration on the Common Language The Declaration on the Common Language ( sh, Deklaracija o zajedničkom jeziku / ) was issued in 2017 by a group of intellectuals and NGOs from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro and Serbia who were working under the banner of a project ...

of the

Croats The Croats (; hr, Hrvati ) are a South Slavic ethnic group who share a common Croatian ancestry, culture, history and language. They are also a recognized minority in a number of neighboring countries, namely Austria, the Czech Republic, G ...

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language. The majority of Serbs live in their na ...

Bosniaks The Bosniaks ( bs, Bošnjaci, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia, which is today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who share a common Bosnian ancestry ...

and

Montenegrins Montenegrins ( cnr, Црногорци, Crnogorci, or ; lit. "Black Mountain People") are a South Slavic ethnic group that share a common Montenegrin culture, history, and language, identified with the country of Montenegro. Genetics Accordin ...

.Signatories of the Declaration on the Common Language
official website, retrieved on 2018-08-16. Zograf appeared as a researcher and the main narrator in the film ‘

The Final Adventure of Kaktus Kid ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

’, released in 2018 and directed by Djordje Markovic.

Bibliography

* ''Life Under Sanctions'' (Fantagraphics, 1994) * ''Psychonaut'' (#1-2 published by Fantagraphics, 1996; #3 by Monster Pants Comics/Freight Films, 1999) * ''Flock of Dreamers'' (Kitchen Sink Press, 1997) * ''Bulletins from Serbia: E-Mails & Cartoon Strips From Beyond the Front Line'' (Slab-O-Concrete, 1999) — translated into several languages.Zograf profile
Lambiek's Comiclopedia. * ''Dream Watcher'' (Slab-O-Concrete, 1999) * ''Jamming with Zograf'' (self-published, 2002) — collaborations with other cartoonists, including

Jim Woodring James William Woodring (born October 11, 1952) is an American cartoonist, fine artist, writer and toy designer. He is best known for the dream-based comics he published in his magazine ''Jim'', and as the creator of the anthropomorphic cartoon ...

and

Robert Crumb Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...

. * ''Regards from Serbia'' (Top Shelf Productions, 2007)

References

External links

www.aleksandarzograf.com, official site
*An Interview at The High Hat, (2004) https://thehighhat.com/Marginalia/008/lanier_zograf.html *The Comics Reporter's Short Interview With Aleksandar Zograf (2007) https://www.comicsreporter.com/index.php/resources/interviews/7202/ *Regards from Pancevo: an interview with Aleksandar Zograf conducted by Nina Bunjevac (2012) http://bturn.com/6987/regards-from-pancevo-an-interview-with-aleksandar-zograf *“I Am a Quiet Man, Busy with My Thoughts” – Artist Aleksandar Zograf on Serbian Comics, Flea Markets and Why the Graphic Novel is Not His Medium of Choice (2020) https://www.brokenfrontier.com/aleksandar-zograf-serbian-comics-kaktus-kid/ *An interview with Zograf regarding ‘The Final Adventure of Kaktus Kid’ and his book ‘Partisanenpost’ published by Bahoe Books of Vienna (2020) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITE-CRAmI0s *Trailer for ‘The Final Adventure of Kaktus Kid’: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-1UmNE2S7U&t=133s Alternative cartoonists Living people Serbian comics artists Serbian comics writers Comics critics Comic book publishers (people) 1963 births People from Pančevo Signatories of the Declaration on the Common Language {{cartoonist-stub