Poster for Volker Schlöndorff’s film after Günter Grass’s novel “The Tin Drum”, which won the Palme d’Or in Cannes in 1979

The Bibliothèque Nationale, the French Public Library, has a rich fund of books, drawings, photographs and etchings and the celebration of Roland Topor’s art is a perfect example of what they know to do best : a profound exploration of one’s art through 300 of his drawings, film and illustrations.

Sans titre, 1975, drawing for the Magic lantern sequence in Casanova film by Federico Fellini

The new show of this humorous illustrator who published in Die Ziet, and the New York Times but also in Elle magazine very early on in his career, brings us back to the 70’s and 80’s when he was at the height of his fame as a political caricaturer and a tv illustrator. It is celebrating the 20 th anniversary of his death.

Sans titre, 1961, ink published in “Anthologie”

Born in Paris in 1938 from Polish jewish parents who had immigrated in 1930, Roland Topor studied at Ecole des Beaux Arts after spending the war in hiding in Savoie. Thanks to his son Nicolas, who gave most of his archives to the Library, Roland Topor lives again with his Hara Kiri illustrations of the 60’s, his drawings for Boris Vian and Marcel Aymé’s books but also his tv broadcasts such as Dim Dam Dom in 1967 or Téléchat in 1983.

Drawing for the business report of SCOR company, “Health”

Most of the works are very dark but there are enough funny ones to keep the visitor going. His style is summed up in this sentence : « Je suis paniqué mais je me marre » (I am panicked but I laugh). His range is vast, he contributed to cinema, television, commercial advertising and books of which he was a keen lover. A colleague of Cavanna, Wolinski, Cabu and Reiser at Hara Kiri magazine, he did not hesitate to draw strong caricatures of political leaders. In the 1990’s he collaborated to opera (with Georg Ligeti and Kristof Penderecki) and theatre productions with a famous « Ubu Roi » that he directed at Théâtre de Chaillot.

Roland Topor discusses his direction of “UBU Roi” on Bouillon de Culture, May 17, 1992

Artistically, he was close to Tinguely, the Swiss sculptor, Daniel Spoerri, Pierre Alechinsky and Pol Bury. He died on April 16, 1997 in Paris and his son contributed to this show.

(The show at BNF goes on until July 16 th)

Drawing for the costumes of Ubu Roi by Alfred Jerry at Theâtre de Chaillot, 1992