Joaquín Salvador Lavado, who called himself Quino, was born to Andalucian Spanish immigrants in the city of Mendoza, Argentina in 1932. In 1945, he enrolled at the School of Fine Arts in Mendoza, which he left four years later to become a graphic humorist and artist. In the early fifties, Quino sold his first strip and tried his luck in Buenos Aires, before going into military service in 1953. A year later, he settled in Buenos Aires and saw his work published in the newspaper Esto Es. This was the beginning of a prolific career in newspaper comics and cartoons. Quino's work was published in numerous South American and European newspapers and magazines.


In 1960, Quino got married and met several colleagues and publishers on his honeymoon to Brazil. Still doing advertising work, Quino was asked to create a campaign to advertise the launch of a line of home appliances in 1963. This was the birth of the character 'Mafalda'. The campaign never ran, but Quino used Mafalda for a comic strip a year later, and she became a great success. Several books have been published all over the world, and there was even an animated 'Mafalda' film made.

In 1982, Quino was chosen "Cartoonist of the Year" by his colleagues around the world, and he chaired the jury of the International Exhibition of Humor in Montreal, Canada. He received the KONEX Platinum Award for Visual Arts - Graphic Humor, the first of many awards and prizes for his work, which, besides 'Mafalda', includes 'Mundo Quino' and 'A Mi No Me Grite'.
www.quino.com.ar