Dubravko Mataković (born 20 August 1959) is a

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

n illustrator best known for his grotesque comic books. Mataković was born in Ivankovo near

Vinkovci Vinkovci () is a city in Slavonia, in the Vukovar-Syrmia County in eastern Croatia. The city settlement's population was 28,111 in the 2021 census, while the total population was 30,842, making it the largest town of the county. It is a local tr ...

, and graduated from the

Academy of Fine Arts, University of Zagreb The Academy of Fine Arts Zagreb ( or ALU) is a Croatian art school based in Zagreb. It is one of the three art academies affiliated with the University of Zagreb, along with the Academy of Dramatic Art (ADU) and the Academy of Music (MUZA). T ...

in 1983. He has published comics since 1984. His work was published in the newspapers ''

Nedjeljna Dalmacija ''Nedjeljna Dalmacija'' was a Yugoslavian regional weekly newspaper based in Split, Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It bo ...

'', ''

Jutarnji list () is a Croatian daily newspaper based in Zagreb. It was published on 6 April 1998 by EPH (Europapress holding, owned by Ninoslav Pavić), which eventually changed its name in Hanza Media after being bought by Marijan Hanžeković. The newspap ...

'', as well as children's newspapers '' Smib'' and '' Modra lasta''. He teaches at the Fine Arts Academy in Osijek. Among his most popular characters are little Ivica, his mother Veresija, Glištun Gmižić, Vitomir and Marva Škakljikavdžija, inspector Dane (visually conceived as a parody of Lee Falk's The Phantom) and the superhero Protman, a mutant crime-fighter who is able to fly, propelled by his intestinal gasses. In 2003, Mataković co-founded heavy metal/punk band called Septica, that published an eponymous album ''Septica'' for Aquarius Records in 2006. The city theatre in Vinkovci produced a play based on Mataković's strip characters, in which Mataković himself produced the scene, costumes and most of the music.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Matakovic, Dubravko 1959 births Living people 20th-century Croatian illustrators 21st-century Croatian illustrators Croatian comics artists Croatian comics writers Parodists People from Vinkovci