“BD at the gates of the Cévennes”, a festival to cultivate the imagination

“Baba”, parrain et auteur d’une affiche qui rend hommage aux chiens de la bande dessinée. MIDI LIBRE – SEBASTIEN GONZALEZ

With the theme “The Grand Banquet”, the 2024 edition of this festival organized in La Grand-Combe, north of Gard, opened this Saturday, February 3. And will continue this Sunday…

Without worrying about its attendance record, the “BD festival at the Portes des Cévennes”, in La Grand-Combe, this Saturday, February 3, for its first day of opening (*), had enough arguments to attract both the region's comic fans, knowledgeable and grateful, and a family audience, who came to discover the talents of around thirty authors, equipped with felt-tip pens, pencils and erasers, suitable for the game of dedication.

Baptiste Delieutraz, a godfather who has a dog

Expected, Baptiste Delieutraz, alias “Baba”, designer, godfather and honorary president of this edition, was, logically, offered a place of choice at the tables of this & ;ldquo;Grand banquet”. With a smile, the artist, who presents, among others, "Squish Game", says "the chance to be invited every year" in the Denis-Aigon room, transformed for a weekend, into the den of the ninth art. It’is in fact “Baba” that the praise on the poster illustrating this 8th edition returns, the festival-goers not failing to appreciate it at its fair value: "I discovered that the posters of the festival follow one another, giving a clue to the theme of the following year. I wasn't very inspired at first for this Grand Banquet, then came the idea of ​​making the link between "Good dog!" and all the cartoon dogs, to pay homage to them." Around twenty of man’s most faithful friends, iconic, who recall, if necessary, the&rsquo ;importance of comics in popular culture in recent decades.

An art that the godfather defends in the field, proclaiming his satisfaction at taking part in shows like this: "This is where we meet, with the public or the authors. In my region of Haute-Savoie, I don’t come across that many! We talk, we spend time together, it’s interesting."

Open up, too, to others

“BD at the Portes des Cévennes” is not limited to speech balloons, leaving room for young associations to complete the festival-goers' visit. With “La P’tite Brique”, thousands of Lego® are investing in this 2024 edition, Noémie and Lucas having set about building an all-brick menu on a festive table for the occasion. Whatever the genre, it is indeed the expression of the passions that drive the participants, making the charm of the event which cultivates a good-natured, family side, where one can raise one's imagination is the only watchword.

(*): this Sunday, February 4, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (free entry). Signings: from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Complete list of authors on the website www.bdauxportesdescevennes.fr. I subscribe to read more