
Bernard Willem Holtrop (born 2 April 1941,
Ermelo) is a Dutch
cartoonist
A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comics illustrators/artists in that they produce both the litera ...
living in
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
since 1968, who publishes under the
pen name
A pen name or nom-de-plume is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name.
A pen name may be used to make the author's na ...
Willem. He is renowned for his sometimes provocative cartoons featuring violent and sexual imagery on political topics. In 1968 two of his cartoons led to court cases, where he was, among others, accused of
lèse-majesté
''Lèse-majesté'' or ''lese-majesty'' ( , ) is an offence or defamation against the dignity of a ruling head of state (traditionally a monarch but now more often a president) or of the state itself. The English name for this crime is a mod ...
for depicting queen
Juliana of The Netherlands
Juliana (; Juliana Louise Emma Marie Wilhelmina; 30 April 1909 – 20 March 2004) was Queen of the Netherlands from 1948 until her abdication in 1980.
Juliana was the only child of Queen Wilhelmina and Duke Henry of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. Sh ...
as a prostitute. In the end he was only sentenced for a cartoon criticizing police brutality by comparing it with
Nazism
Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During Hitler's rise to power, it was fre ...
. The events motivated Willem to move to France, where he still lives to this day. His work attacks religion, the monarchy, the far-right, the far-left, terrorism and war policies.
He is the winner of the 2000
Stripschapprijs
The Stripschapprijs is a Dutch prize awarded to List of comic creators, comic creators for their entire body of work. It is awarded annually by the ''Stripschap'', the Dutch Society of comics fans, since 1974. The prize is non-pecuniary, but is con ...
and of the 2013
Grand Prix de la ville d'Angoulême.
Willem has drawn in many newspapers: ', ''
Hara-Kiri
, also known as , is a form of Japanese ritualistic suicide by disembowelment. It was originally reserved for samurai in their code of honor, but was also practiced by other Japanese people during the Shōwa era (particularly officers near t ...
'', ''
Charlie Hebdo
''Charlie Hebdo'' (; ) is a French satirical weekly magazine, featuring cartoons, reports, polemics, and jokes. The publication has been described as anti-racist, sceptical, secular, libertarian, and within the tradition of left-wing radicalism ...
'', ''
Charlie Mensuel
''Charlie Mensuel'' (or simply ''Charlie'', "mensuel" being a French term for a monthly periodical) was a French monthly comics magazine. Its publication began in February 1969, and ceased in February 1986.
Tagged "The newspaper full of humour a ...
'', ''
Libération
(), popularly known as ''Libé'' (), is a daily newspaper in France, founded in Paris by Jean-Paul Sartre and Serge July in 1973 in the wake of the protest movements of May 1968 in France, May 1968. Initially positioned on the far left of Fr ...
'', '.
References
1941 births
Living people
Dutch editorial cartoonists
Dutch magazine cartoonists
Dutch humorists
Dutch satirists
Dutch caricaturists
Dutch illustrators
Dutch comics artists
Dutch satirical comics artists
Dutch satirical comics writers
Dutch political artists
Dutch erotic artists
Dutch republicans
Dutch critics of religions
Cartoon controversies
People from Ermelo, Netherlands
Grand Prix de la ville d'Angoulême winners
Charlie Hebdo people
French male non-fiction writers
Winners of the Stripschapsprijs
Lèse-majesté
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