| Joaquín Salvador Lavado | |
|---|---|
Quino in Paris in 2004. |
|
| Born | July 17, 1932 Guaymallén, Argentina |
| Nationality | Argentine |
| Area(s) | Cartoonist |
| Pseudonym(s) | Quino |
| Notable works | Mafalda |
Joaquín Salvador Lavado, better known by his pen name Quino (born 17 July 1932) is an Argentine cartoonist. His comic strip Mafalda (which ran from 1964 to 1973) is very popular in Latin America and many parts of Europe.
Contents |
Quino was born in Guaymallén, Mendoza Province to Spanish parents.
He attended the Escuela de Bellas Artes in Mendoza, hoping to work for the Argentine comic Rico Tipo, but left the school in 1945.[1] In 1950, he sold his first cartoon to a silk shop, but found no success when he visited Buenos Aires for three weeks. When he finished his obligatory military service, he returned to Buenos Aires in 1954, hoping to make living as a graphic artist. Esto Es was the first periodical to publish Quino's work, which was later picked up by many other Buenos Aires-based newspapers and magazines.
Some of his cartoons and editorials were then picked up by North American and European periodicals, leading to some international success.[1] In 1963, Quino found a publisher for his first book, a collection of silent comics titled Mundo Quino.
Quino's daily newspaper strip Mafalda was his most successful cartooning venture. Mafalda ran from 1964 to 1973. The comic was translated into more than 30 languages.[2] However, it never received much of an audience in the English-speaking world, perhaps because, as Quino put it, the strip was "too Latin American."[3] In 1976, the character Mafalda was chosen by UNICEF to be a spokesperson for the Convention on the Rights of the Child.[4] Mafalda is still translated in book collections. Argentine director Daniel Mallo translated 260 Mafalda strips into 90-second cartoons that aired in Argentina, starting in 1972.
While Mafalda continued to be used for human rights campaigns in Argentina and abroad, Quino dedicated himself to writing other editorial-style comics. The comics were published in Argentina and abroad. Since 1982, the Argentine newspaper Clarín has published his cartoons weekly.
After visiting Cuban cartoon director Juan Padrón, the two produced a series of cartoons. Between 1986 and 1988, they made six Quinoscopio cartoons through the Instituto Cubano del Arte e Industrias Cinematográficos, none of which were longer than six minutes.[5] In addition, the pair worked on 104 short Mafalda cartoons in 1994.
While Mafalda concentrated on children and their innocent, realistic view of the world, his later comics featured ordinary people with ordinary feelings. The humor is characteristically cynical, often poking fun of real-life situations, such as marriage, technology, authority and food. Collected in numerous volumes by Argentine publisher Ediciones de la Flor, these comics are readily available.
Quino's mother died when he was 13 years old and his father died three years later while Quino was attending the Escuela de Bellas Artes in Mendoza. In 1960, he married Alicia Colombo, but the couple never had children.[1] Starting in 1976, Quino and his wife lived in Milan, Italy for several years before returning to Argentina.
Quino is an atheist.[3]
Quino has won many international prizes and honors throughout his career. In 1982, Quino was chosen Cartoonist of the Year by fellow cartoonists around the world, and has won twice the Konex Platinum Prize for Visual Arts. In 1988, he was named an "Illustrious Citizen" of Mendoza. In 2000 he received the second Quevedos Prize for graphical humor.
Additionally, Buenos Aires' Colegiales neighborhood named their plaza "Plaza Mafalda."[1]