For Rima Abdul Malak, the cancellation of the exhibition devoted to Bastien Vivès at the Angoulême festival, today targeted by a complaint for the dissemination of child pornography images,
“raises questions”
.
In an interview granted to
Le Monde
, if the Minister of Culture
“respects the choice of the festival”
, she nevertheless deplores the lack of
“a time for debate necessary after the controversy”
.
As a reminder, the event programmed for its 50th edition, the exhibition
In the eyes of Bastien Vivès
which it had to give up in the face of the anger and the numerous threats of the detractors of the author of
Polina
taxing his work of child pornography.
In question, three works published years ago:
The Melons of Anger
(2011),
Petit Paul
(2018) and
The Mental Discharge
(2018) openly pornographic showing sexual relations between adults and minors.
Read alsoWho wants the skin of the turbulent and provocative Bastien Vivès?
"For the three incriminated comics, it is up to the courts to decide on their child pornography
," said the minister.
“No one had seen this exhibition before.
None of the drawings on which today there are complaints was included
, ”she underlines.
In a long message posted on Instagram, the author assured him: “
The exhibition
did not address these controversial subjects.
Everything had been thought out and weighed taking into account the constraints of an event like the international comic strip festival
”.
The three sulphurous albums constitute only a tiny part of the work of Bastien Vivès, who has met with success with sophisticated graphic novels like
A Sister
or
Polina
, adapted for the cinema.
“
I think there was a lack of explanation upstream: why this artist, why this carte blanche?
“, considers the minister.
Read alsoHow the Bastien Vivès affair spoils the fiftieth anniversary of the Angoulême Festival
In addition to his polemical works, his provocative and virulent words, in particular towards the feminist designer, Emma, also fueled the controversy.
“This author made unacceptable remarks, he agreed to it himself and apologized
,” recalls Rima Abdul Malak.
Remarks deemed
"disrespectful"
and
"unworthy"
by the author himself in his act of contrition published on Instagram.
Questioned by
Le Parisien
, last December, the Minister of Culture already considered that “certain past remarks” by Mr. Vivès
“are not acceptable”
, saying
“understand the excitement, because these are serious subjects”
.
Adding however that one
“cannot reduce this author to two comic strips and a few sentences said in an interview”
.
