Francis Bertrand (1937-1994), who usually went by his first name only, started his long-lasting comics career in 1957, when his first comic was published in La Cité. Although he worked with various Belgian and foreign publications, most of his work was published in the legendary Belgian magazine Spirou. His comics are distinctly humorous, even absurd, and the work that brought him fame is no exception: ‘Marc Lebut et son voisin’, originally produced in collaboration with scriptwriter Maurice Tillieux, deals with the adventures of Marc Lebut, owner of a capricious Ford, and his naive neighbour Mr Goulard. The comic series ran from 1966 to 1983, and was drawn entirely, as well as scripted after Maurice Tillieux had left, by Francis.

Francis Bertrand – Francis: “Ford-T (Marc Lebut et son voisin) / Ford-T (Marc Lebut and his Neighbour)”, 1971, 35 x 44 cm