Ahlam Mosteghanem

È il 2000 quando Paul Arezzo, celebre pittore che sta affrontando una profonda crisi creativa, lascia Parigi e arriva nell'arcipelago di Kerkennah, in Tunisia. Il contatto con la vita semplice e con la bellezza delle isole gli restituiscono la voglia di dipingere. A Kerkennah nasce anche un'amicizia importante, con il pescatore Fahrat e la sua famiglia, la moglie Nora e i figli Issam e Ahlam. Paul riconosce l'enorme talento dei due ragazzi: insegna a dipingere a Issam, a suonare il piano alla bellissima Ahlam, e a entrambi a creare, in una sorta di simbiosi, un nuovo linguaggio fatto di musica e immagini…

NES can't be tied down to a specific location. Their music is between traditional Arabic and world music, jazz and pop. These three superb musicians originally met in Valencia in Spain. Percussionist David Gadea is from the region, and was already touring with Flamenco greats such as Ximo Tébar and Josemi Carmona; Matthieu Saglio is a French cellist “with a thousand tone colours” who has performed in more than 30 countries; the singer/cellist Nesrine Belmokh had worked with legendary conductors such as Lorin Maazel and Daniel Barenboim, and performed with Cirque du Soleil on international tours. Placido Domingo has called Nesrine “an exceptional artist, a wonderful voice.”

NES can't be tied down to a specific location. Their music is between traditional Arabic and world music, jazz and pop. These three superb musicians originally met in Valencia in Spain. Percussionist David Gadea is from the region, and was already touring with Flamenco greats such as Ximo Tébar and Josemi Carmona; Matthieu Saglio is a French cellist “with a thousand tone colours” who has performed in more than 30 countries; the singer/cellist Nesrine Belmokh had worked with legendary conductors such as Lorin Maazel and Daniel Barenboim, and performed with Cirque du Soleil on international tours. Placido Domingo has called Nesrine “an exceptional artist, a wonderful voice.”Russafa, the area around the station in Valencia, Spain, is famous for its market, which offers every imaginable Mediterranean delicacy. This was once a working-class…

"Je ne sais pas si l'on peut dire que la bande dessinée est un art, je serais plutôt sceptique… Je me considère plus comme un bon artisan. Les artistes peuvent eux s'accorder plus de liberté. Nous devons respecter une foule de contraintes, des règles précises, c'est un travail terriblement sérieux. Un artiste dessinant un avion pourra l'idéaliser, nous non. Certes, on peut l'interpréter, mais quoi qu'il en soit son dessin doit rester de la bande dessinée. Toute entorse à la réalité normée doit avoir sa justification. Ce qui est important dans notre travail, c'est d'arriver à sa propre marque de fabrique, être personnel et identifiable. Tout cela est bien plus difficile qu'il n'y parait. Moi-même je n'y suis arrivé que sur le tard." Sergio Toppi