Marc Sleen

(1922-2016)

Who is Marc Sleen?

The Belgian cartoonist Marc Sleen (1922-2016) is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the most prolific cartoonist in the world. His cartoon drawings consecutively cover an area of 34 football pitches, or the height of the Eiffel Tower 12 times.

His most important creation is his anti-hero Nero – an average Flemish guy-, who experienced no fewer than 217 adventures together with his colourful group of side characters. Nero was extremely popular, not only with children but also with adults. More than 30,000 readers followed Marc Sleen when he chose to work for another daily newspaper.

The post-war Belgian kings learned Dutch by reading the Nero cartoons. It was hardly surprising therefore when King Albert II himself inaugurated the Marc Sleen Museum and awarded Marc Sleen a knighthood.

THE MARC SLEEN
ASSOCIATION

Upon the creation of the Marc Sleen Museum, the Marc Sleen Association was also founded. It manages the artistic heritage of Marc Sleen and the Marc Sleen Museum. It aims to maintain a focus on the creations of Marc Sleen among the public at large and open up his works for all to see. The Marc Sleen Association publishes texts and research, conserves and restores drawings, organises exhibitions, and manages the museum as a location where Sleen’s work is presented shoulder-to-shoulder with the work of the new generations of comic artists who follow in his footsteps.

Free Use of Creations by Marc Sleen

In the future, everyone will be allowed to work with the legendary comic characters created by cartoonist Marc Sleen during his long career. Anyone who wishes can create new stories or gags about Nero, Madam Pheip, the Lustige Kapoentjes, Bolleke, or any of the other eccentric characters Marc Sleen invented. Normally, these rights would not enter the public domain and become freely usable until 2086. However, the Marc Sleen Foundation, which manages the rights, has decided to do this now.

Starting next year, the Foundation will also allow the characters to be used for commercial purposes, provided this aligns with the spirit of the stories. New book publications can also be released without copyright during this interim period, but until January 1, 2030, permission must still be requested from the Foundation.

You can find all the information here.

The Marc Sleen Foundation launches 'The Clo-Clo Collection'

In the run-up to 100 years of Marc Sleen, the Marc Sleen Foundation has already taken the step to support and promote new comic talent. The goal is to publish two to four debut albums in the coming years in collaboration with the Brussels Region and the Marc Sleen House. The Clo-Clo Collection kicks off with the absurd and unique ‘Hotel Paradiso’ by Fin Ilsbroekx and the surprising and captivating ‘Sunflowers in ’44’ by Thomas Boydens.

More information can be found here.

New: Comic lists for secondary education

The Marc Sleen Foundation aims to make contemporary comics accessible, even in the classroom. Ten comic books that teachers in secondary education can use in class—that was the goal of the reading jury, which consisted of teachers, education specialists, and comic experts. Each selected comic title is also accompanied by a lesson plan that can be downloaded for free. “This finally provides teachers with a practical tool to use comics in the classroom.”

More information can be found here.

MUSEUM MARC SLEEN TRANSFORMS INTO MARC SLEEN HOUSE

The Marc Sleen Museum, located in the Zandstraat in Brussels, introduced the public to the rich oeuvre of cartoonist Marc Sleen, the creator of Nero and Co., for 15 years. Since 2024, it has been integrated into the Brussels Comic Strip Museum across the street and renamed the ‘Marc Sleen House.’

In 2022, the museum celebrated 100 years of Marc Sleen and 75 years of Nero, welcoming 15,000 visitors to the Marc Sleen Museum and over 50,000 visitors to the Sleen exhibition at the Comic Strip Museum. In 2020, “The Bright Yellow Cube” was launched, a studio for young authors located in the heart of the museum. This initiative gave the Marc Sleen Museum a boost in its final years. In recent years, the Foundation has focused heavily on supporting young authors, a mission that remains central to the Marc Sleen Foundation moving forward.

Since 2023, the Marc Sleen Foundation and the Brussels Comic Strip Museum have been collaborating structurally, transforming the museum into the ‘Marc Sleen House,’ ‘Maison Marc Sleen,’ or ‘Marc Sleen House.’

More information about the activities.

Previous expo's

CONGO COMICS

In 2022 it will be 100 years since Marc Sleen was born and 75 years since his most famous comic strip Nero first appeared. On the occasion of this anniversary the Marc Sleen Foundation confronts the postcolonial work of Marc Sleen with the self-conscious comics of nine black cartoonists from the African continent and from the diaspora living in Europe: Al’Mata – Barly Baruti – Didier Kassaï – Fifi Mukuna – Gilson Kitoko – Jeanpy Lupapa – Judith Kaluaji – Santa Kakese – Thembo Kash

Comic incubator The bright Yellow Cube

The Knalgele Kubus Trofee (Bright Yellow Cube Trophy) is a competition for recent art college graduates, offering the opportunity to enter their final project to be in with a chance of winning a cash prize, a crystal cube and a paid residency at the Marc Sleen Museum.

A jury made up of comic book artist Kim Duchateau, scriptwriter Zidrou, Foundation chair Catharina Kochuyt and Knalgele Kubus co-ordinator Johan Stuyck selected five entries to make up the shortlist, including one winner of the 2021 Knalgele Kubus Trofee. Excerpts from their work have been included in the eponymous book and are available to be admired at the temporary exhibition held at the museum. The 2021 winner is Anneka Robeyns.

EXPO

The city speaks

In countless stories – whether it is a movie, a novel or a comic strip – the city provides the background setting against which the action will take place. However, at times the city is more than just a static backdrop and it becomes almost human. The city centre is the throbbing heart. The streets and alleys are the cardiovascular system and the cars and trams are the blood that flows smoothly or becomes blocked causing a heart attack. The people are the blood cells and meet each other at random, resulting into unexpected adventures and conflicts but also ending in passionate affairs.

Some cities are immediately identifiable and therefore a basic premise for what could happen. In London, the fog will conceal a crime just in the nick of time, New York is hectic and sufficiently big enough to enable you to remain anonymous and to get lost or to find yourself again, while Paris is known for its promise of romance.

In the very heart of Brussels, take a guided walk along some world cities that are portrayed by twelve authors, each in their very own style. Cities for which they have great affinity and which they love dearly, perhaps one day more than another. They live in these cities or they are drawn to them time and time again. Their city is like a childhood sweetheart or a very demanding lover. It is either exotic and impenetrable or familiar and predictable. Or all of this rolled into one.

digital
expo

expo sleen versus severin

In 2018, Alec Severin made a retro version of Spirou & Fantasio (Robbedoes en Kwabbernoot) with four short stories in the style of the Grand Masters Jijé and André Franquin. Severin, who left school aged sixteen to become a comic illustrator, had already drawn praise with his comics Lisette and Harry. But 2018 was memorable for another reason too; from 17 November 2018 until the corona crisis in March 2020, Severin worked as a receptionist in the Marc Sleen Museum. And not just a receptionist, but an ‘artist in residence’ who could showcase his work ‘live’ to an audience. Severin took good care of Marc Sleen’s figures by applying his characteristic style to pay tribute to Sleen’s creation Nero. The result is a dazzling blend of drawings, sketches and interpretations, a selection of which can be seen in this exhibition, side-by-side with the work of Grand Master Sleen himself.

Visit the workshop Marc Sleen

You can visit the place where Nero and his friends came to life. On the occasion of Nero’s 70th anniversary, the workshop of the late Sir Marc Sleen was reconstructed in the Marc Sleen Museum. In his workshop, Marc Sleen spent 12 hours a day, often also on Saturdays and Sundays. For decades, he worked not only on his Nero stories but at one point on no less than nine series simultaneously.
His workshop overlooked the Sonian Forest, and the perfect lighting created ideal conditions for creativity. Nothing has been altered; all objects and documentation books remain in the exact same place as when the workshop was still located in Marc Sleen’s house in Hoeilaart. It feels as though the grandmaster could walk in at any moment and take his place at his drawing table once again.

“The Treasure of Hoeilaart,” Marc Sleen’s former workshop, will be preserved in the museum’s basement for the future. It can be visited with a guide and during special events.

Request a visit.

The 'le peuple' building

In 1905, architect Richard Pringiers (1869-1937) designed the building on Zandstraat, Brussels, where the newspaper Le Peuple quickly took up residence. In 1931, the building was renovated by architects Fernand and Maxime Brunfaut. Marc Sleen drew at the Zandstraat offices from 1947 for the newspaper De Nieuwe Gids and several magazines. In 1989, the Belgian Comics Art Museum was opened at that location, on the other side of the street. In June 2009, on the initiative of the Brussels Region, the Marc Sleen Museum opened in the former building of Le Peuple.