Arkas ( el, Αρκάς) is the
pen name of a popular Greek
comics artist
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 a ...
that began working in early 1981. His comics have a unique style, often combining humor and deep philosophical questions. The structure of the stories are generally very simple with each volume being made up of individual strips which follow some general plot guidelines. Most of the times we will only see two main characters: One is the rational, skeptical and questioning figure, while the other is a rude, vulgar or just empty-headed character who usually provides the punchlines. The stories take place in a variety of different locations/situations with protagonists that are usually animals but humans and occasionally video-game characters are also featured.
Arkas seldom appears at conventions and generally avoids publicity and appearances on television shows or interviews, as he has been quoted to believe that the artist should be known through his work, not through personal promotion. A mystery has been created around his identity and his real name still remains unknown, although the Greek newspaper ''Kathimerini'' has also mentioned it as Antonis Evdemon.
According to fan rumors, he is a psychiatrist, possibly a university professor.
Arkas in Greek means Arcadian or someone from the province of
Arcadia
Arcadia may refer to:
Places Australia
* Arcadia, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney
* Arcadia, Queensland
* Arcadia, Victoria
Greece
* Arcadia (region), a region in the central Peloponnese
* Arcadia (regional unit), a modern administrative un ...
. However, the
CamelCase
Camel case (sometimes stylized as camelCase or CamelCase, also known as camel caps or more formally as medial capitals) is the practice of writing phrases without spaces or punctuation. The format indicates the separation of words with a single ...
style in which his name is written suggests that Arkas may be only his initials. Arkas has been translated into other languages and has become known outside Greece. Translations of his books can be found in
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
,
French,
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
,
Romanian
Romanian may refer to:
*anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania
**Romanians, an ethnic group
**Romanian language, a Romance language
*** Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language
** Romanian cuisine, tradition ...
,
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
,
Portuguese
Portuguese may refer to:
* anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal
** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods
** Portuguese language, a Romance language
*** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language
** Portu ...
,
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
,
Bulgarian
Bulgarian may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Bulgaria
* Bulgarians, a South Slavic ethnic group
* Bulgarian language, a Slavic language
* Bulgarian alphabet
* A citizen of Bulgaria, see Demographics of Bulgaria
* Bul ...
,
Polish
Polish may refer to:
* Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe
* Polish language
* Poles
Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...
and
Serbian.
Works
Comic book titles
* O κόκκορας / The rooster – 1981
* Show business – 1983
* Ξυπνάς μέσα μου το ζώο / You bring out the animal in me – 1985
* Μετά την καταστροφή / After the destruction – 1986
* Φάε το κερασάκι / Eat the cherry – 1987
* Ο Παντελής και το λιοντάρι / Pantelis and the lion – 1987
* Αταίριαστοι έρωτες / Ιncongruous love – 1988
* Ο ισοβίτης / The lifer – 1989
* Χαμηλές πτήσεις / Low flights – 1991
* Καστράτο / Castrato – 1995
* Πειραματόζωα / Lab animals – 1998
* Ο καλός λύκος / The big good wolf – 1998
* Η ζωή μετά / The afterlife – 1999
* Οι συνομήλικοι / Peers
* Θηρία ενήμερα / Informed beasts
* Το μικρό και το μεγάλο / The small and the big
* Επικίνδυνα νερά / Dangerous waters
CD albums
*Ξυπνάς μέσα μου το ζώο / You bring out the animal in me – 1997
Theatre plays
*Εχθροί Εξ Αίματος / Blood Enemies – 2007
*Βιολογικός Μετανάστης / Biological Immigrant – 2011
References
External links
Homepage of Arkasin
Lambiek Comiclopedia
{{Authority control
Living people
20th-century Greek artists
21st-century Greek artists
20th-century Greek writers
21st-century Greek writers
20th-century Greek male writers
21st-century Greek male writers
Pseudonymous artists
Greek comics artists
Greek comics writers
1958 births
20th-century pseudonymous writers
21st-century pseudonymous writers