Enrique Badia Romero (Modesty Blaise and Axa fame) passed away 1 1

[ShallowDan]

I searched for a thread and didn't see one.  Since he was a European artist, and one who was primarily involved with strip art, I don't think the news of this spread as widely as it might have otherwise, but I just learned this morning that Enrique Romero passed away on February 15.  He was best known for his work on the British strips Modesty Blaise and Axa).

For a few years I had been trying to get my hands on some nicer examples of the Axa strip and after hitting a lot of dead ends, ended up reaching out to him directly by email.  There was a language barrier, since we were limited to my high school level of Spanish and the fact that he never picked up much English even after working with British publishers, but he enjoyed knowing that there were still fans who appreciated his work and was very cordial and generous with his time.  Although the best stuff had been long gone, I was fortunate to be able to be able to buy a handful of strips from him.  He had a knack for drawing a wide range of subjects, which the fantasy-based series Axa showed off better than Modesty Blaise, since it gave him to opportunity to draw a wider range of settings and obviously sci-fi and fantasy creatures.

Another talented artist has sadly passed.  

[grapeape]

Enrique, rest in peace.

[MyNameIsLegion]

Romero is one of the all time greats, but I might be just a little bit biased since I have arguably the best Romero collection on CAF!

Edited March 11 by MyNameIsLegion

[malvin]

On 3/11/2024 at 5:28 AM, MyNameIsLegion said:

Romero is one of the all time greats, but I might be just a little bit biased since I have arguably the best Romero collection on CAF!

And that's only on CAF! You have more right?

Malvin

[ShallowDan]

On 3/11/2024 at 8:28 AM, MyNameIsLegion said:

Romero is one of the all time greats, but I might be just a little bit biased since I have arguably the best Romero collection on CAF!

Gorgeous examples!  I was unfortunately a little late to get any of the best of them (with best being defined as Axa topless, lol), but interestingly enough after "settling" for what I could still get, I appreciated how he was one of those guys who could draw anything - dinosaurs, monsters, giant insects, cars, beautiful landscapes, etc.  

I'm still hoping to eventually get my hands on a 3-4 strip sequence of the best ones to frame up.  Whenever I'm showing off art to female guests, I'm always slightly surprised how much of a hit Axa is with them.

[delekkerste]

On 3/11/2024 at 8:28 AM, MyNameIsLegion said:

Romero is one of the all time greats, but I might be just a little bit biased since I have arguably the best Romero collection on CAF!

Translation: "I am a huge perv!"  

 

 

 

[vodou]

😁

....writes VampiGuy 😉

[The Voord]

On 3/12/2024 at 3:24 PM, vodou said:

😁

....writes VampiGuy 😉

Vampirella, and the way she influenced swimwear, has a lot to answer for . . .

 

 

[MyNameIsLegion]

On 3/12/2024 at 8:08 AM, delekkerste said:

Translation: "I am a huge perv!"  

 

 

 

I'm in good company then!

seriously, if you look through the CAF premium dashboard by most views, the top 20 pieces of all the things I have on CAF are dominated by the Romero's, but hardly a one of them has a comment or a like.  My most commented and liked pieces are a fraction of the views of anything titillating.       

[The Voord]

On 3/14/2024 at 8:04 AM, MyNameIsLegion said:

I'm in good company then!

seriously, if you look through the CAF premium dashboard by most views, the top 20 pieces of all the things I have on CAF are dominated by the Romero's, but hardly a one of them has a comment or a like.  My most commented and liked pieces are a fraction of the views of anything titillating.       

It's an interesting phenomenon.  I have something like 80+ Movie Poster original paintings, and the most viewed is this one:

It's a decent painting, but this and a few others (showing a bit of flesh) are the top hitters.

Nekkid (or semi-clothed women) seem to hit that (ahem) sweet spot for some people.  ;)

Diffedrent strokes for different folks?*

*Think I'll stop there before I 'milk' this further!

 

Edited March 15 by The Voord