stripnieuws (comic news)

In Stripnieuws number 76 a wonderful interview with Mariken Swildens, according to Jan Kruis “The nice stepmother of Libelle’s Jan, Jans en de kinderen (comic Jack, Jacky and the juniors).” The article gives a nice glimpse behind the scenes of the nearly 50-year history of the comic, which also focuses on Michael Barnaart’s work for Jan, Jans en de kinderen.

“… I have another draftsman who is not from the cartoon world and is a fan of the work of Jan Kruis, fashion designer Michael Barnaart. He has a boutique in The Hague and makes very nice comics. They are in the latest albums, number 61 and 62. I am very charmed by his work, he comes very close by the style of Jan Kruis. (…) They were a very trendy family, they looked nice with their fur coats, Jans always wore nice heels, good jackets. Over the years that has faded into the background. Now he is paying a lot of attention to it. He has made a series of illustrations of Jans and given her a whole new wardrobe … ”