Jean Loic Belom

By LatAm ARTE

Jean Loic Belhomme (Belom) was born in 1950 near Rennes. He devoured the adventures of Mickey and Tintin before trying to draw. With only a bachelor's degree, he spent a year at the Rennes School of Fine Arts before obtaining a university diploma in literary studies in psychology and then a specialization in advertising. After working in a graphic design studio, Belhomme became an art director for various advertising agencies. In 1982, encouraged by the publication of his first drawings in "Le Pèlerin", "La vie", "Djin" and "Formule 1", he gave up advertising to dedicate himself to comics. In the press, Belom's collaborations are numerous such as “Ouest-France”, “Presse-Océan”, “Circus”, “Lui, A Suivi” and “Pilote” and have earned him recognition, in particular from Jacques Glénat, who published “Çaoccup” in 1983 and “Et que ça saute” in 1984. These are the first two books in a long series that Bélom signed as designer and/or scriptwriter. He also draws for “Spirou”, “Télérama Junior”, “Fluide Glacial”, “Le Point”, “Marianne”, “Detective”, “Le Figaro Littéraire”, “J'aime J'aime” and “El equipo” . After having participated in numerous exhibitions around the world, Belom in 2018 won the First Place of the World Gallery of Cartoons and in 2017 the Second Place of the EuroKartoenale “El Alma” by Kruishoutem and in 2020 he won the ECC Award in Euro -kartoenale "The Wall". When Belom was a child, in the 1950s and 1960s, he would look for the cartoons that were published in newspapers and magazines. At that time, he still did not suspect that it could be a profession, but at that moment the desire was born and he began to copy these designers who inspired him so much, such as Bellus, Aldebert, Faizant, Chaval, Bosc, Mose, Gad and Sempé; Sempé, with all his world, and Reiser, with his expressive trait, initiated him into the world of cartoons. “And although today the “formatted” press ignores humor, the passion is still present. Using a small pencil and an eraser, I continue to trace my "big nose" with a black roller!"