Important example in the humor of balance between content and form

I met Boligán, international graphic humor laureate, together with Ares, Abela and others, at the end of the 80s at the Biennials organized by the Humor Museum of San Antonio de los Baños in Havana. And also in other presentations of my group La Señal del Humor de Matanzas. I remember that Boligán made us a group cartoon, a work that was distinguished in one of the Biennials. Luckily we have never lost contact. We have even coincided in international events. In addition, he has always been willing to advise me when I first ventured into graphic humor, which I really appreciate. I doubt that someone who is in or around the universe of graphic humor does not know Boligán. His career as a graphic humorist is recognized worldwide. In short, I consider myself your friend,

PELAYO: How has the evolution of your work been from your beginnings until now? Take a brief tour of all your stages as a humor creator.

BOLIGÁN: I think not very different from that of other authors of the genre, except for some details that I will try to summarize:

I am a graphic artist based on journalism. I was trained from the Plastic Arts, so in my work the form always plays an important role, accompanying the message with the subtlety, elegance or strength that the subject requires. In this regard, and aware that a cartoon is good when it has a good balance of content and form, after long years of work when it frequently achieves this, one can speak of evolution.

I briefly tell you what I consider to be my stages as a creator:

It was 1979 in my hometown, San Antonio de los Baños, Cuba, when the International Museum of Humor was inaugurated, which brought together the original work of the history of Cuban graphic humor and at the same time, the 1st International Biennial of Humor (event that is still celebrated). Then I was a teenager of about 13 years old who had lived a happy and wild childhood, where the drawing, like every child, was present on the dining room table in my moments of home leisure, outside lunch hours or when it rained. This Biennial was my first direct visual contact with the cartoon and its authors; In addition, I knew at that time that several of the most important cartoonists on the island had been born in my town, hence having been chosen for this Museum and Biennial. Since then it is known as San Antonio de los Baños,

By 1980 he was already linked to the Museo del Humor as a young fan. In 1981 at the 2nd Biennial I already participated in the collective mural together with several established authors, giving the first brushstroke as the youngest cartoonist. I can define this as my first stage of discovery and introduction in this world of strokes and humor.

In 1983 I began to publish in the Cuban national and regional press. In 1987 I graduated as Instructor Professor of Plastic Arts, and I also began to obtain some national and international recognitions. They were very active years that, along with other young cartoonists, we had a time of learning, experimentation and participation in every festival, contest, exhibition and event that was possible for us, which is why they consider us as the generation of the 80s. This is the second stage of my learning.

In 1992 I traveled to Mexico City to hold an exhibition at the Caricature Museum, and I was immediately invited to collaborate in various Mexican media, including the national newspaper El Universal, with which I have collaborated since then and in which I have had the greatest opportunities for growth as an artist, having had important spaces as an illustrator and as an opinion maker for so many years. Bringing a visual formation from Cuba and coupling it to the rhythm and rigor of the newspaper took me during the 90's to another stage of learning and growth alongside great Mexican cartoonists; this is my third stage.

From 2000 and especially 2006 until today, and thanks also to social networks, my work has had a greater presence both in Mexico and internationally. I work on current issues and news, but also on the topics and messages that interest me most as an author. I consider myself a graphic chronicler of the time we have had to live; I'm still at this stage.

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