Milko Bambič (26 April 1905 – 20 May 1991)
also known by the nicknames Cvetanov and Banetov,
was a prolific
illustrator
An illustrator is an artist who specializes in enhancing writing or elucidating concepts by providing a visual representation that corresponds to the content of the associated text or idea. The illustration may be intended to clarify complicat ...
,
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 an ...
,
caricaturist
A caricaturist is an artist who specializes in drawing caricatures.
List of caricaturists
* Abed Abdi (born 1942)
* Al Hirschfeld (1903–2003)
* Alex Gard (1900–1948)
* Alexander Saroukhan (1898–1977)
* Alfred Grévin (1827–1892)
* ...
, inventor,
children's writer
Children's literature or juvenile literature includes stories, books, magazines, and poems that are created for children. Modern children's literature is classified in two different ways: genre or the intended age of the reader.
Children's ...
,
publicist
A publicist is a person whose job is to generate and manage publicity for a company, a brand, or public figure – especially a celebrity – or for a work such as a book, film, or album. Publicists are public relations specialists w ...
, and
painter
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ...
from the
Slovene minority in Italy (1920-1947)
Slovene minority in Italy ( it, Minoranza slovena in Italia, sl, Slovenska manjšina v Italiji), also known as Slovenes in Italy ( it, Sloveni in Italia, sl, Slovenci v Italiji) is the name given to Italy, Italian citizens who belong to the aut ...
.
He is regarded as one of the most versatile Slovene artists and a prominent Italian
Futurist
Futurists (also known as futurologists, prospectivists, foresight practitioners and horizon scanners) are people whose specialty or interest is futurology or the attempt to systematically explore predictions and possibilities abou ...
painter.
He published in both
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 ...
and
Slovene.
He is known for the first
Slovene comic strip ''
Little Negro Bu-ci-bu
''Little Negro Bu-ci-bu'' ( sl, Zamorček Bu-ci-bu), also mentioned as ''Buci-Bu'', was the first Slovenes, Slovene comic strip. It was created by Milko Bambič and published in 1927 in the children's column of the monthly ''Naš glas'' (Our Voice) ...
'',
an allegory of
Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until Fall of the Fascist re ...
's career,
and as the creator of the ''Three Hearts'' () brand, still used today by
Radenska
Radenska is a Slovenia-based worldwide known brand of mineral water, trademark of Radenska d.o.o. company. It is one of the oldest Slovenian brands.
Brand history
Development of the mineral water company started at Radenci in 1869, when Karl ...
.
Life
Bambič was born in
Trieste
Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into pr ...
, where he attended the elementary
Cyril and Methodius School with Slovene language as language of instruction, located in
Sveti Ivan, Trieste.
Then, he was a pupil at the one-year
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
**Ger ...
preparatory school and in the first class of the German technical high school in Trieste.
In 1919, he attended the brothers
Rendićs's private school, and then the
Idrija Technical High School, where he got acquainted with
modern art
Modern art includes artistic work produced during the period extending roughly from the 1860s to the 1970s, and denotes the styles and philosophies of the art produced during that era. The term is usually associated with art in which the tradi ...
movements by the
Lojze Spazzapan
Luis Spazzapan, ( sl, Lojze Špacapan, it, Luigi Spazzapan) (Gradisca d'Isonzo, 18 April 1889 - Turin, 18 February 1958) was a Slovenian painter from the Slovene community in Italy, considered one of the most important postwar Italian exponents ...
, a Slovene-Italian modernist painter, who at the time served in
Idrija
Idrija (, in older sources ''Zgornja Idrija''; german: (Ober)idria, it, Idria) is a town in western Slovenia. It is the seat of the Municipality of Idrija. It is located in the traditional region of Inner Carniola and is in the Gorizia Statis ...
as a math and drawing teacher.
Babič became the leading illustrator of Slovene press in Trieste.
He was prevented by the
fascists
Fascism is a far-right, Authoritarianism, authoritarian, ultranationalism, ultra-nationalist political Political ideology, ideology and Political movement, movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and pol ...
to enter the
Accademia di Belle Arti in
Venice
Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 bridges. The isla ...
in late 1920s.
In 1927, he participated in an underground exhibition of Slovene Trieste artists, forbidden by the Italian Fascist government.
Bambič published his children's story on Buci-Bu, a black king who with his false wisdom leads his people to ruin. Because the
Italian Fascist authorities recognised the message as politically motivated, Bambič had to leave Trieste for Yugoslavia to avoid arrest. In that year, he moved to
Ljubljana
Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center.
During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the a ...
, where he undertook the study of architecture, but did not finish it.
In 1929, he moved to
Zagreb
Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital and largest city of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb stands near the international border between Croatia and Sl ...
, where he ran a graphics company and published an art review.
In 1931, he designed the ''Three Hearts'' ( sl, Tri srca) brand for Radenska. In 1932, he attended
art history
Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today, ...
courses in Ljubljana.
In 1935, the
Mladinska matica publishing house awarded his youth picture book ''King Honolulu'' (Slovene: ).
He returned to Trieste in 1943, after the
capitulation of Italy
The Armistice of Cassibile was an armistice signed on 3 September 1943 and made public on 8 September between the Kingdom of Italy and the Allies during World War II.
It was signed by Major General Walter Bedell Smith for the Allies and Briga ...
, and lived there until his death.
Only in 1959, he created his second comic.
He was bestowed with the
Marcello Mascherini Award in 1975, and in 1978 held an exhibition in the
Sežana
Sežana (; it, Sesana) is a town in the Slovenian Littoral region of Slovenia, near the border with Italy. It is the seat of the Municipality of Sežana. Sežana is located on the Karst Plateau, from Trieste, Italy, and from Ljubljana, the c ...
library that raised interest in him in Slovene circles. In 1980, he had a retrospective exhibition in
Villa Opicina
Opicina (formerly Poggioreale del Carso in Italian), ( sl, Opčine, Triestine: ''Opcina''), is a town in northeastern Italy, close to the Slovenian border at Fernetti ( sl, Fernetiči). Opicina is a '' frazione'' of the '' comune'' of Trieste ...
, and a large exhibition in Trieste in 1985.
Work
Overall, Bambič illustrated over 70 books, among them the poem collection ''Tičistan'' by
Aleš Debeljak. In addition to his comic strips and caricatures, he also produced the first Slovene youth book in colour
lithography
Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone ( lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by the German ...
, ''St. Nicholas's Night'', written by
Josip Ribičič.
He spoke nine languages and translated poems, for example by Russian poet
Alexander Blok
Alexander Alexandrovich Blok ( rus, Алекса́ндр Алекса́ндрович Бло́к, p=ɐlʲɪˈksandr ɐlʲɪˈksandrəvʲɪtɕ ˈblok, a=Ru-Alyeksandr Alyeksandrovich Blok.oga; 7 August 1921) was a Russian lyrical poet, writer, publ ...
and Italian poet Michelle Chaunier, with some work published.
He held seven
patent
A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an sufficiency of disclosure, enabling disclo ...
s in different European countries.
For the major part of his life, he was very connected with his home town of Trieste, where he was the leading Slovene illustrator.
He also wrote and illustrated children's literature.
His painting was based on
Vienna Secession
The Vienna Secession (german: Wiener Secession; also known as ''the Union of Austrian Artists'', or ''Vereinigung Bildender Künstler Österreichs'') is an art movement, closely related to Art Nouveau, that was formed in 1897 by a group of Austri ...
and
Slovene Impressionism.
His caricatures and illustrations have been described as light, innovative, humorous and anecdotal.
In the Italian press, he was a valued
art critic
An art critic is a person who is specialized in analyzing, interpreting, and evaluating art. Their written critiques or reviews contribute to art criticism and they are published in newspapers, magazines, books, exhibition brochures, and catalogu ...
and also published articles about art, education, technology, national issues and other topics.
On the hundredth anniversary of his birth, a conference and three exhibitions of his work were organised.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bambic, Milko
1905 births
1991 deaths
Slovenian cartoonists
Slovenian printmakers
Slovenian illustrators
Slovenian inventors
Slovenian art critics
Slovenian journalists
Slovenian children's writers
Artists from Trieste
Italian Slovenes
Italian art critics
20th-century Italian inventors
Italian male journalists
Italian Futurist painters
Slovene artists
Slovenian painters
Slovenian male painters
Slovenian translators
20th-century translators
20th-century Italian journalists
20th-century Italian male writers