José Antonio Muñoz or simply Muñoz (born July 10, 1942) is an

Argentine Argentines (mistakenly translated Argentineans in the past; in Spanish (masculine) or (feminine)) are people identified with the country of Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Argentines, s ...

artist. He is most notable for his influential black-and-white artwork. His hardboiled

graphic novel A graphic novel is a long-form, fictional work of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comic scholars and industry ...

s series ''Alack Sinner'' (with writer

Carlos Sampayo Carlos Sampayo (born 17 September 1943) is an Argentine writer best known for his work in comics, particularly in collaboration with artist José Muñoz. Sampayo was born in Carmen de Patagones, but left Argentina in the early 1970s for polit ...

) is a noted source for

Frank Miller Frank Miller (born January 27, 1957) is an American comic book writer, penciller and inker, novelist, screenwriter, film director, and producer known for his comic book stories and graphic novels such as his run on Daredevil (Marvel Comics ser ...

's ''

Sin City ''Sin City'' is a series of neo-noir comics by American comic book writer-artist Frank Miller. The first story originally appeared in ''Dark Horse Presents Fifth Anniversary Special'' (April 1991), and continued in ''Dark Horse Presents'' #51� ...

'' and the artwork in

100 Bullets ''100 Bullets'' is an American comic book published by DC Comics under its Vertigo imprint. Written by Brian Azzarello and illustrated by Eduardo Risso, the comic book ran for 100 issues and won the Eisner Award and Harvey Award. Style Both ...

Eduardo Risso Eduardo Risso (born 23 November 1959) is an Argentine comics artist. In the United States he is best known for his work with writer Brian Azzarello on the Vertigo title '' 100 Bullets'', while in Argentina and Europe he is noted for his collabor ...

Biography

Muñoz was born in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

. He studied at the Escuela Panamericana de Arte under

Hugo Pratt Ugo Eugenio Prat, better known as Hugo Pratt (15 June 1927 – 20 August 1995), was an Italian comic book creator who was known for combining strong storytelling with extensive historical research on works such as ''Corto Maltese''. He was indu ...

and

Alberto Breccia Alberto Breccia (April 15, 1919 – November 10, 1993) was an Uruguayan-born Argentina, Argentine artist and cartoonist. A gifted penciller and inker, Breccia is one of the most celebrated and famous comics/Historieta creators in the world, and sp ...

, and worked as an assistant to

Francisco Solano López Francisco Solano López Carrillo (24 July 1827 – 1 March 1870) was President of Paraguay from 1862 until his death in 1870. He was the eldest son of Juana Pabla Carrillo and of President Carlos Antonio López, Francisco's predecessor. ...

. In 1972 he moved to

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 ...

and then to

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 ...

and began a collaboration with Argentine writer

which produced, among others, the detective series ''Alack Sinner'' (sometimes misspelled "Allack Sinner") and its spin-offs ''Joe's Bar'' and ''Sophie'', as well as a comics biography of

Billie Holiday Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday had an innovative influence on jazz music and pop si ...

. His style is characterised by a sharp line, heavy

chiaroscuro Chiaroscuro ( , ; ), in art, is the use of strong contrasts between light and dark, usually bold contrasts affecting a whole composition. It is also a technical term used by artists and art historians for the use of contrasts of light to achi ...

, and exaggerated, sometimes grotesque, faces and figures. His work has had a strong influence on Argentine

, his teacher. Also British artists

Dave McKean David McKean (born 29 December 1963) is an English illustrator, photographer, comic book artist, graphic designer, filmmaker and musician. His work incorporates drawing, painting, photography, collage, found objects, digital art, and sculpt ...

and

Warren Pleece Warren Pleece is a British comics artist. He is best known for his work at the DC Comics imprint Vertigo and the 2012–16 Irish novel series ''Zom-B''. Biography Warren, with his brother Gary Pleece, wrote and drew three issues of a self-publi ...

, and US artists

(for part of his ''

'' style) and

Keith Giffen Keith Ian Giffen (born November 30, 1952) is an American comics artist and writer. He is known for his work for DC Comics on their ''Legion of Super-Heroes'' and ''Justice League'' titles as well as for being the co-creator of Lobo. Biography K ...

. The cartoonist and critic

Scott McCloud Scott McCloud (born Scott McLeod; June 10, 1960) is an American cartoonist and comics theorist. He is best known for his non-fiction books about comics: ''Understanding Comics'' (1993), '' Reinventing Comics'' (2000), and ''Making Comics'' (200 ...

, in ''

Understanding Comics ''Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art'' is a 1993 non-fiction work of comics by American cartoonist Scott McCloud. It explores formal aspects of comics, the historical development of the medium, its fundamental vocabulary, and various ways in ...

'' (1993), wrote that "in José Muñoz's work, dense puddles of ink and fraying linework combine to evoke a world of depravity and morbid decay".

Awards

* 1978: Best Foreign Realistic Work at the

Angoulême International Comics Festival The Angoulême International Comics Festival (french: Festival international de la bande dessinée d'Angoulême) is the second largest comics festival in Europe after the Lucca Comics & Games in Italy, and the third biggest in the world after Lu ...

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 ...

* 1983: Best Comic Book at the Angoulême International Comics Festival * 1994:

Harvey Award The Harvey Awards are given for achievement in comic books. Named for writer-artist Harvey Kurtzman, the Harvey Awards were founded by Gary Groth in 1988, president of the publisher Fantagraphics, to be the successor to the Kirby Awards that were ...

for Best American Edition of Foreign Material * 2002: Special Prize for outstanding life’s work at the

Max & Moritz Prizes The Max & Moritz Prize is a prize for comic books, comic strips, and other similar materials which has been awarded at each of the biennial International Comics Shows of Erlangen since 1984. It is open to all material published in Germany. 1984 ...

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 ...

* 2007:

Grand Prix de la ville d'Angoulême The Grand Prix de la ville d'Angoulême is a lifetime achievement award given annually during the Angoulême International Comics Festival to a comics author. Although not a monetary award, it is considered the most prestigious award in Franco-Be ...

at the Angoulême International Comics Festival, France * 2022: Platinum

Konex Award Konex Foundation Awards, or simply Konex Awards, are cultural awards from the Konex Foundation honouring Argentine cultural personalities. History and purpose Konex Awards are granted by the Konex Foundation, created in 1980 in Argentina. The pur ...

for his work in the last decade, Konex Foundation, Argentina.

References

External links

José Muñoz official website

on Lambiek Comiclopedia

(French and English editions)
Large Muñoz illustrated bibliography
(but sorted by last-reprint dates instead of original years) *

José Muñoz 2008 on OC-TV.net ; Career-wide selected art samples (French editions) (Years from artist's signature or original publication, not later reprints)
1983 page from ''Sudor Sudaca''

1987 page from ''Joe's Bar: Friendly Stories''

1988 page from ''Alack Sinner: Nicaragua''

1988 page from ''Play of Lights''

1991 page from ''Billie Holiday''

1999 page from ''Panna Maria''

2003 page from ''Backfires''

2004 page from ''The Book''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Munoz, Jose Antonio 1942 births Living people People from Buenos Aires Argentine comics artists Grand Prix de la ville d'Angoulême winners