My name is Julian Jordan and I’m Illustrator from Barcelona, Catalonia. Along my career I’ve drawn all kind of characters aimed to kids market. I take the opportunity that this awesome site offers me for explaining my experience with Pingu.
Was in 1994 when I received an offer from Comicon Agency. The commission was as follows: the German publisher Egmont Verlag wanted to do a magazine about Pingu. The drawing style could be similar to other magazines about Pingu that already existed in United kingdom but publisher allowed us to be free moving Pingu in a more “rubber” way. The client happily accepted first rough layouts and drawings I did and that was the beginning of a four years enjoyable collaboration doing Pingu Magazin.
The magazine consisted of 26 pages (36 when it was “Extra” for example at Christmas) with pastimes, handcrafts, wonderful stories, posters and crafts geared toward children ages 3 to 5 (or more), and their parents.
I also was the one who was responsible for writing the story scripts and activities.
I enjoyed a lot because I told myself: “The magazine is mine!” I was free!
I’ve usually worked in licensing characters under strict licensor’s rules and Pingu was an excellent opportunity that allowed me give free reign to imagination.
In these scripts I had to be respectful with Pingu world but stories must had be absolutely different to TV episodes. I had to invent secondary characters like crabs or shrimps! I did this work when my two children were young and they sometimes helped me to write Pingu scripts. They were Pingu TV fans and it was very funny to discover their ideas drawn by daddy and after published in a real magazine.
The creative workflow steps: 1) Drawn rough-layout of all magazine pages including texts of activities and story scripts. 2) Once layouts were approved, pencil work could be done. 3) Handmade inking with brush and ink directly done over pencil page.
4) Colouring: Each page was composed of 3 parts:
- Consistent sheet of transparent acetate paper with black line
- Transparent acetate with text
- Page done in handmade acrylic colour.
That was the way things were done in those days. We worked as a team with my collaborators. Luis José Tran did step 3, M. Montero did step 4 and I did steps 1 & 2.
Egmont Verlag published Pingu Magazin in Germany (Austria, Switzerland and Italy too) from 1994 to 1997.
It was a pleasure for my team and me working with Pingu all these years!
I love Pingu!
For more information don’t hesitate to contact me. Even if someone were interested in original art we can talk about it. Thank you very much to Pingu Wiki for allowing this opportunity to share with Pingu Fans this brief memory.
All the best!
Julian Jordan
Jordan Studio Barcelona
Segle xx 34
08041 Barcelona / Catalonia
http://julianjordan. barcelona
http://julianjordanstudio. blogspot.com
