Néjib's Graphic Novel 'Swan: Il bevitore di assenzio' Brings 1859 Paris to Life

Néjib Belhadj Kacem, a 45-year-old Franco-Tunisian artistic director at Casterman, has released a new graphic novel titled 'Swan. Il bevitore di assenzio' (Coconino Press, Rome, 2020, €20, ISBN 9788876185267). The story follows American siblings Scottie and Swan Manderley as they arrive in Paris during the Second Empire, amid the urban transformation overseen by Napoleon III and Baron Haussmann. Their cousin Edgar Degas guides them through the art world, introducing them to historical figures such as Ingres, Delacroix, Manet, Pissarro, Courbet, Rosa Bonheur, and Baudelaire. The novel explores themes of homosexuality and gender discrimination, as Swan aspires to be a painter but faces barriers as a woman. The narrative also delves into the competitive Salon and Prix de Rome selections, as well as the bohemian underbelly of bordellos, opium dens, and criminal assaults. Néjib's style features quick brushstrokes, caricatural characterizations, and alternating chromatic solutions (bichromies and trichromies). This is the first part of a series, with the next volume announced as 'Il cantante spagnolo'.