Cartoonist Angeli Reflects on 40-Year Career Ahead of Itaú Cultural Retrospective

Arnaldo Angeli Filho, the influential Brazilian cartoonist, discussed his life and work in a candid interview. With over 30,000 published works across a 40-year career, Angeli created iconic 1980s characters like Rê Bordosa, Os Skrotinhos, Meiaoito, Nanico, Walter Ego, Mara Tara, and Osgarmo. He reflected on personal losses, including his friend Glauco, and the recent transformation of colleague Laerte. Born on August 31, 1956, to Italian immigrant parents, Angeli left school early and began his career at the extinct magazine Senhor. His big break came in 1975 when he won a prize at the 2nd Salão de Humor de Piracicaba, leading to a job at Folha de S. Paulo through the recommendation of cartoonist Hilde Weber. Angeli's work was shaped by São Paulo's underground culture, frequenting places like the Riviera bar and the free space at MASP, where he befriended poet Roberto Piva. He co-founded the influential magazine Chiclete com Banana, which at its peak sold 110,000 copies. A retrospective exhibition, Ocupação Angeli, will open at Itaú Cultural in São Paulo on March 15, 2012, running until April 29, 2012. The show will recreate his studio environment and feature over 800 works. Now 55, married to architect and graphic designer Carolina Guaycuru, and a father of two, Angeli states he is in a period of low creativity and wishes to make way for new generations of cartoonists, aiming to age with dignity.