Wolinski, 2012

Arnaud Baumann   Famous Artists

Georges Wolinski was born in Tunis on June 28, 1934, to a French-Italian mother and a Polish father. His routine was precisely timed: "Wake up around 7:30 am, read the press, lunch, nap, supernatural appearance of the idea around 4 or 5 pm, drawing, dinner." Routine was a good thing for this pillar of the weekly newspaper Charlie Hebdo, who arrived in France at the age of 13 and rose to prominence in 1960 after meeting François Cavanna and collaborating with Hara-Kiri. Editor-in-chief of Charlie Hebdo from 1970 to 1981, he knew its codes and the mechanisms he had helped to establish. In 2012, the BNF (National Library of France) dedicated a retrospective exhibition to him: Wolinski, 50 ans de dessin (Wolinski, 50 years of drawing), tracing his prolific career, oscillating between humorous cartoons, colorful comic strips, political fervor, and advertising posters... A true force of nature driven by a single desire: to make people laugh, and to make them think. As a press cartoonist, Georges Wolinski also had some 80 albums to his credit, including compilations of current affairs drawings and original comic books, such as the famous adventures of Paulette. In 2005, he received the Grand Prix of the 32nd Angoulême Festival. Georges Wolinski, widower of Jacqueline Saba, married Maryse in a second marriage. He was the father of three daughters, Frédérica, Natacha, and Elsa-Angela. On January 7, 2015, the cartoonist, aged 80, succumbed to his injuries during an attack at the editorial office of the newspaper Charlie Hebdo.