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Hubert
Hubert is a solitary man who shapes his life by going to museums. He talks to few people and only about museums and art. When his neighbor downstairs, a lonely woman, tries to seduce him, he doesn't understand. He takes photos of the pictures he likes—usually of beautiful women—and paints copies of the paintings at home. There is only one real woman who fascinates him; she lives in the opposite building and he can see her balcony from his window.
One of the most beautiful graphic novels Jonathan Cape has ever published, Hubert marks the beginning of a great career.
One of the most beautiful graphic novels Jonathan Cape has ever published, Hubert marks the beginning of a great career.
88 pages, Hardcover
First published October 1, 2014
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 77 reviews
October 11, 2017
A beautiful graphic novel by Belgian Gijsemans about a man, Hubert, possibly autistic, living alone, who loves art and spends time going to art museums in Belgium and Paris. He takes photographs of some of his favorites, some of which feature women, and he paints some of these images for himself. He is more interested in women as art than as human beings. I think it was the poet Robert Creeley really who said (though I can't quite locate it) that he would rather be with a naked woman than read a poem about a naked woman, but Hubert can't relate well to people. When a neighbor attempts to seduce him, he doesn't quite get it, which makes the story sad. Much of the story is wordless, as Hubert rarely speaks, and is alone. But this becomes a melancholy reflection on the often solitary connection between art and life. I thought it was lovely.
October 30, 2016
3 stars because the artwork is stunning. The story itself went nowhere.
July 3, 2021
88 pagina's vertraagde tijd. Een heel klein verhaal van een bijna onzichtbaar leven. Hoe fragiel ziet Hubert eruit in zijn oude jas als hij helemaal opgaat in elk detail van een bemind schilderij. Teer en liefdevol getekend, zó mooi...
Deze is niet voor iedereen, erg minimalistisch en ingetogen, als je ervan houdt erg mooi. Subtiel en verfijnd.
Voor een inkijkje: https://www.instagram.com/p/CQ33xKOLiln/
Deze is niet voor iedereen, erg minimalistisch en ingetogen, als je ervan houdt erg mooi. Subtiel en verfijnd.
Voor een inkijkje: https://www.instagram.com/p/CQ33xKOLiln/
July 18, 2021
Introverti pochopí...
January 30, 2022
Хочу быть как он! Ходить в музей и пялиться на картины ❤️ ну а если уж и выбирать музей то хочу в Гуггенхайм… или в Париж, я совсем там не была в музеях…
January 23, 2022
Юбер, одинокий мужчина лет пятидесяти, больше всего на свете любит классические картины. Он ходит по музеям и часами стоит перед произведением, которым он в данный момент увлечён, а потом идёт домой и рисует его копию. Таких копий у него скопилось уже порядочно, но он их даже не вывешивает на стены, а просто складывает в стопочку. Такое ощущение, что нужны они ему только как своего рода развитие отношений с героиней картины.
По описанию комикс прям для меня, люблю таких странных ребят. Однако, автор писал не драму (она здесь есть, но совсем небольшая), а скорее эдакую визуальную поэзию (по типу "Королевства" Джона Макнота) — зарисовку из жизни, практически без сюжета, но с определённым пространством для символизма. Нарисовано, впрочем, довольно хорошо, хоть я и не понял смысла в строгом найнгриде — панели зачастую не складываются в единую сцену, а многие так и вовсе почти повторяются.
В общем, комикс во всех отношениях странный, но не без доли очарования. Автор, кстати, сам довольно молодой, 1989 года рождения, а "Юбер" — его дебютная работа 2014 года (т.е. автору было тогда 25). В книге почти нет диалогов; даже в размеренном, внимательном темпе она прочитывается где-то за час, и при стоимости в 790 рублей (на предзаказе) выходит, считай, как артбук (и неожиданно большой формат получается в тему). Прикладываю ознакомительную фотогалерею.
P.S. Забавно. Всегда думал, что Брехт Эвенс — голландец ("Бумкнига" в его книгах пишет, что перевод с нидерландского), и только благодаря "Юберу" и Бену Хейсемансу узнал, наконец, что на нидерландском (точнее, на его фламандском диалекте) разговаривают ещё и в Бельгии, причём 60% населения. Есть определённые дискуссии насчёт того, считать ли их отдельными языками (на мой взгляд, стоило бы считать, тем более что книги издаются при поддержке Фонда фламандской литературы).
По описанию комикс прям для меня, люблю таких странных ребят. Однако, автор писал не драму (она здесь есть, но совсем небольшая), а скорее эдакую визуальную поэзию (по типу "Королевства" Джона Макнота) — зарисовку из жизни, практически без сюжета, но с определённым пространством для символизма. Нарисовано, впрочем, довольно хорошо, хоть я и не понял смысла в строгом найнгриде — панели зачастую не складываются в единую сцену, а многие так и вовсе почти повторяются.
В общем, комикс во всех отношениях странный, но не без доли очарования. Автор, кстати, сам довольно молодой, 1989 года рождения, а "Юбер" — его дебютная работа 2014 года (т.е. автору было тогда 25). В книге почти нет диалогов; даже в размеренном, внимательном темпе она прочитывается где-то за час, и при стоимости в 790 рублей (на предзаказе) выходит, считай, как артбук (и неожиданно большой формат получается в тему). Прикладываю ознакомительную фотогалерею.
P.S. Забавно. Всегда думал, что Брехт Эвенс — голландец ("Бумкнига" в его книгах пишет, что перевод с нидерландского), и только благодаря "Юберу" и Бену Хейсемансу узнал, наконец, что на нидерландском (точнее, на его фламандском диалекте) разговаривают ещё и в Бельгии, причём 60% населения. Есть определённые дискуссии насчёт того, считать ли их отдельными языками (на мой взгляд, стоило бы считать, тем более что книги издаются при поддержке Фонда фламандской литературы).
January 9, 2020
"His drawings, washed out but somehow lush, too, are so tender and telling, from the doleful curve of Hubert’s back to the workaday treads of the stairs – up and up they go – in his apartment building. The interiors make you think of Larkin’s poem Home Is So Sad (“It stays as it was left,/Shaped to the comfort of the last to go/As if to win them back”). Hubert’s tiny flat is his shell, protecting him from the world. But it’s also a mark of a certain kind of failure, what the poet called “a joyous shot at how things ought to be/ Long fallen wide”. These walls can’t talk, but they seem to judge him, all the same."Rachel Cooke's review for the Guardian says more than I can say. A delicate and heartbroken book, absolutely lovely. Beautiful art work, simple and intimate story.
December 24, 2014
Ben Gijsemans bewijst met zijn debuut (dat tevens zijn eindwerk was voor 't Sint-Lukas in Brussel) dat hij oogstrelend mooi kan tekenen, dat hij als geen ander een sfeer op papier tot leven kan brengen. Ik denk niet dat ik veel stripalbums bezit waarin er zo weinig gebeurt, die zo'n traag tempo aanhouden,... maar het werkt wonderwel. De auteur leidt de lezer naar een perfect eindpunt. Heb me gewillig ondergedompeld in dit bad van weemoed met als geluidsbehang Miles Davis' soundtrack voor 'Ascenseur pour l'échafaud'.
Gijsemans heeft in mij een bewonderaar gewonnen. Hopelijk slaagt hij erin het niveau van zijn eersteling aan te houden. De lat is hoog gelegd.
Gijsemans heeft in mij een bewonderaar gewonnen. Hopelijk slaagt hij erin het niveau van zijn eersteling aan te houden. De lat is hoog gelegd.
May 8, 2018
Stunning first half, but I felt very let down by the second half.
It became somewhat sensationalist and overdramatizing, while before we were so beautifully led to appreciate details and gave the characters such respectful amounts of space.
It became somewhat sensationalist and overdramatizing, while before we were so beautifully led to appreciate details and gave the characters such respectful amounts of space.
October 2, 2021
sad but cute ✨ best to be read on one of the autumn days, when you don’t feel like doing anything, maybe just binge-watching a tv series, maybe scrolling down your newsfeed, maybe drinking a cup of tea, maybe snuggling under a blanket, this graphic novel can be “read” in one go.
- 3 stars out of five, as it certainly isn’t groundbreaking and its not supposed to be. glad to have in my bookshelf and will surely re-read repeatadly.
- 3 stars out of five, as it certainly isn’t groundbreaking and its not supposed to be. glad to have in my bookshelf and will surely re-read repeatadly.
April 1, 2016
A few weeks ago I acquired a graphic novel being published by Jonathan Cape, by a young Belgian artist named Ben Gijsemans. It’s unintentional, but apt, that this novel is set in Brussels, which was so violently attacked a few days ago. It’s also unintentional but apt that I should have read it after reviewing Olivia Laing’s new book, The Lonely City. Hubert functions as a case study for the phenomenon that Laing describes: isolation in an urban environment, a lonely human finding solace in art but unable to connect to another human, even one as lonely as he is.
Read the rest here: http://www.litro.co.uk/2016/03/on-cul...
Read the rest here: http://www.litro.co.uk/2016/03/on-cul...
June 17, 2018
A Graphic novel about a guy who is a lonely painter. He is awkward and has trouble talking to other people. He loves going to Museums. There he takes pictures and then paints them when he is back home. He has a secret fascination for a neighbor who he can see from his window. His landlady tries to seduce him but he does not take the hint.
The artwork is like a painting. On the pages where the panles are lined up in a grid, many of the pages look like stills from slow motion movie. This and silence in most of the panels (there is very little dialogue in the book) is used to great effect by the author. An unique perspective and way of telling a story.
The artwork is like a painting. On the pages where the panles are lined up in a grid, many of the pages look like stills from slow motion movie. This and silence in most of the panels (there is very little dialogue in the book) is used to great effect by the author. An unique perspective and way of telling a story.
September 15, 2021
Wiem, że "Hubert" może kogoś wynudzić (a to zaledwie 85 stron i śladowe ilości tekstu), wiem, że ludzie często oczekują fabuły i przygody, a tu smutny gość, którego określają słowa: milczenie, wstyd, samotność, łazi po galeriach i myśli. Wiem, że nie każdego rusza sekwencja prawie identycznych kadrów, przy których trzeba się chwilę skupić, by wyłapać szczegóły. To być może nie jest rzecz dla każdego, ale akurat ja bardzo cenię i lubię takie komiksy. To jak Jimmy Corrigan pozbawiony historii w tle. Między kadrami jest cisza, a z kadrów pozornie wypełnionych treścią bije pustka. Ten komiks nie opowiada ciągu wydarzeń, a raczej pewien stan. Rzecz wielokrotnego użytku.
September 17, 2016
Een prachtige graphic novel over een treurig mannetje dat van schilderen en musea houdt. Heel mooi getekend door Ben Gijsemans die met dit boek een grote onderscheiding in zijn masterjaar wist te bemachtigen. Het feit dat het verhaal zich traag opbouwt maakt dat je meer op de details in de prenten gaat letten. Kijken is een must bij het lezen van 'Hubert'. Zoals The Herald terecht stelt: 'It is a graphic novel that rewards those who take their time. It is a book that asks you to look closely'.
Gekregen van mama en papa op mijn proclamatie. Dankjewel!
Gekregen van mama en papa op mijn proclamatie. Dankjewel!
January 28, 2023
More of an experience than a book to be read. The reader joins Mr Hubert’s life almost in real time. Even though much is going on: the grandest of art and seduction, he appreciates beauty yet keeps his world small and inconspicuous as he possibly can, as being noticed is hard to bear. Beautifully rendered and paced.
June 28, 2023
Piękna opowieść graficzna - głównie zachwyca obrazem, bo dialogów czy tekstu, jest w niej bardzo malutko. Niesamowita jest ta kreska.
February 21, 2017
De poëzie van het kijken vertelt in beelden van proza. Verstilling en contemplatie ontmoeten afzondering en twijfel in Hubert. Voor de kunstliefhebber, tekenaar, schilder, fotograaf of dichter die in ons verscholen zit.
October 15, 2017
Simple and sad. About a man who prefers to connect with paintings rather than people.
February 5, 2017
Reading "Hubert" is like observing a man observing things. In that, the experience feels more like being in front of a painting rather than reading a book/story. Which is pretty cool, because the main theme in the book is also arts. Hubert stays, for the most part, in front of a painting. And we kinda do the same thing, simultaneously.
June 12, 2018
Beautifully composed little story. Sepia tones and infinitesimal differences between many of the panels draw the eye forward in a way that gives an overall impression of a Zoetrope bound into a book.
August 3, 2020
um quadrinho íntimo e lento que examina a personalidade de um homem solitário enquanto nos mantém à distância. o ritmo faz com que as pequenas rupturas no cotidiano de Hubert ganhem a magnitude de uma explosão. muito bom.
February 6, 2017
Beautifully Tragic
As much art as the pictures in the panels. Sad. Not in sad events. But, some unseen tragic sadness is below the surface. Very well crafted.
As much art as the pictures in the panels. Sad. Not in sad events. But, some unseen tragic sadness is below the surface. Very well crafted.
February 20, 2017
İlk bakışta Louvre Müzesi için hazırlanan serinin bir parçası sandım. Fakat, değilmiş. Bence biraz fazla soğuk. Sadece, bir -ilk kitap- için iyi sayılır diyebilirim.
August 8, 2019
Its a short and quiet graphic novel with very few words. However, the artwork and illustrations are the driving force in the story. A beautiful and quick reading that I enjoyed.
September 6, 2020
Museums and galleries are paradoxical places: public spheres filled with private artefacts; spaces to look but not touch, yet be touched by looking; solitary spaces that nonetheless provide solidarity, a silent unanimity. And it is in this space that Hubert, the antisocial protagonist of Gijsemans' first book, finds his anchor in the world - a place, and a time, to keep silence. Or at least that's how it first appears...
I've read lots of reviews complaining that Hubert lacks plot or incident, but even the two full conversations he has felt like almost transgressive intrusions into the delicate routine of his private world. Gijsemans will spend 12 or 20 panels just moving Hubert from kitchen to easel, or eating a bowl of soup - at one point there's a whole page dedicated to the climax of Chaplin's The Gold Rush, which Hubert watches on TV. His art style is muted but softly, sensually textured - this is a world of fabric, marble, paint, paper, and wood. You want to reach out and touch each panel, so tactile is the environment. To spend time here, drifting across the pages at our own pace, is to be fully absorbed not only in a story and a place, but in the same kind of activity that Hubert himself enjoys. There's a friction in this kind of intimacy, a kind of woolly static shock that tickles the skin, and a way of being implicated in Hubert's perspective. And that's what allows Gijsemans to keep the narrative so minimal.
But those two conversations - and a third, unspoken interaction - are crucial, as they show a world outside of Hubert, a world inviting him out, inviting him into a deeper, responsive tangle of intimacy rather than the entirely solitary, scopophilic subjectivity he currently enjoys. Rather than reinforcing his world view, they interrogate him. And his reactions form enough of a dramatic spine for so much of this short book to be spent in time, simply looking. I loved just spending time in the panels, in Hubert's POV, zooming in on particular curves or textures in the artwork, and then taking in the macro view, the whole beautiful canvas, and the narrative of that other piece of art- stories within stories within stories. I think there's a lot of ambiguity too, in why Hubert wants to recreate these artworks in his own time; personally - potential spoiler! - I felt he was trying to bring the world of the museum even closer, into his own home, so he wouldn't ever have to go out, even to that solitary space, that time of silence. And I think that's what he's trying to do with the other photograph too, the one he shouldn't have taken - he's trying to remove the need to look outside, to risk himself, his physical self, to be vulnerable.
Hubert is one of the best graphic novels I've ever read, a subtle and moving story told in small, granular detail. It's been six years since Gijsemans published this book in the original Dutch, and I'm very keen to see what he's been working on since.
I've read lots of reviews complaining that Hubert lacks plot or incident, but even the two full conversations he has felt like almost transgressive intrusions into the delicate routine of his private world. Gijsemans will spend 12 or 20 panels just moving Hubert from kitchen to easel, or eating a bowl of soup - at one point there's a whole page dedicated to the climax of Chaplin's The Gold Rush, which Hubert watches on TV. His art style is muted but softly, sensually textured - this is a world of fabric, marble, paint, paper, and wood. You want to reach out and touch each panel, so tactile is the environment. To spend time here, drifting across the pages at our own pace, is to be fully absorbed not only in a story and a place, but in the same kind of activity that Hubert himself enjoys. There's a friction in this kind of intimacy, a kind of woolly static shock that tickles the skin, and a way of being implicated in Hubert's perspective. And that's what allows Gijsemans to keep the narrative so minimal.
But those two conversations - and a third, unspoken interaction - are crucial, as they show a world outside of Hubert, a world inviting him out, inviting him into a deeper, responsive tangle of intimacy rather than the entirely solitary, scopophilic subjectivity he currently enjoys. Rather than reinforcing his world view, they interrogate him. And his reactions form enough of a dramatic spine for so much of this short book to be spent in time, simply looking. I loved just spending time in the panels, in Hubert's POV, zooming in on particular curves or textures in the artwork, and then taking in the macro view, the whole beautiful canvas, and the narrative of that other piece of art- stories within stories within stories. I think there's a lot of ambiguity too, in why Hubert wants to recreate these artworks in his own time; personally - potential spoiler! - I felt he was trying to bring the world of the museum even closer, into his own home, so he wouldn't ever have to go out, even to that solitary space, that time of silence. And I think that's what he's trying to do with the other photograph too, the one he shouldn't have taken - he's trying to remove the need to look outside, to risk himself, his physical self, to be vulnerable.
Hubert is one of the best graphic novels I've ever read, a subtle and moving story told in small, granular detail. It's been six years since Gijsemans published this book in the original Dutch, and I'm very keen to see what he's been working on since.
June 27, 2021
The illustrations in this book are as good as it gets, they are expressive and simple, elegant and precise... However, the storyline is what makes me give this book 3/5 stars.
Mr Hubert is a lonely man, obsessed with female beauty: that of the women portrayed in art and also that of his young neighbour. It is when he takes a surprise photograph of this young girl through his window, without her consent, that remorse starts to consume his days.
He stops painting, he doesn't enjoy his visits to the museum as much and even gives into his landlady's continous efforts to flirt with him and invite him over for drinks.
The part that bothered me about the book is that Hubert doesn't learn a lesson. His remorse is vanished once he decides to connect his camera to his computer and sees the picture of the beautiful girl... And starts painting her in a canvas.
As a young female this struck me the wrong way... Pity and loneliness don't cover up for the lack of accountability and inappropriate behavior of Hubert.
The overall feeling I felt while reading this book was discomfort... Almost every character made me feel that way.
Mr Hubert is a lonely man, obsessed with female beauty: that of the women portrayed in art and also that of his young neighbour. It is when he takes a surprise photograph of this young girl through his window, without her consent, that remorse starts to consume his days.
He stops painting, he doesn't enjoy his visits to the museum as much and even gives into his landlady's continous efforts to flirt with him and invite him over for drinks.
The part that bothered me about the book is that Hubert doesn't learn a lesson. His remorse is vanished once he decides to connect his camera to his computer and sees the picture of the beautiful girl... And starts painting her in a canvas.
As a young female this struck me the wrong way... Pity and loneliness don't cover up for the lack of accountability and inappropriate behavior of Hubert.
The overall feeling I felt while reading this book was discomfort... Almost every character made me feel that way.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 28, 2023
This is in a very similar vein to Ben Gijsemans's more recent comic, Aaron. Both are very quiet, slow-paced works about troubled loners who use art as a form of escape, and both employ lovely cartooning with appealing matte colours. They also both share the same approach to storytelling – reminiscent of Chris Ware and Nick Drnaso – whereby there's minimal dialogue and much of the page count is dedicated to the protagonist just going about his dull everyday life. In fact, “Hubert” is even more understated than “Aaron”, with even fewer words and almost no conflict at all, only the subtlest hints of tension. Whereas “Aaron” is ultimately a head-on exploration of a very dark topic, “Hubert” is basically just a study of a sadsack character.
As far as its premise goes, “Hubert” is very accomplished – a thoughtful examination of a socially inept art lover. That said, in comparison to “Aaron”, it feels a bit like an embryonic prototype, without as much ambition and confidence.
As far as its premise goes, “Hubert” is very accomplished – a thoughtful examination of a socially inept art lover. That said, in comparison to “Aaron”, it feels a bit like an embryonic prototype, without as much ambition and confidence.
August 17, 2021
I am over in Belgium, catching up with my sister and Belgian bro-in-law who owns the third largest comic book collection in Belgium. He bought me this as a welcome present and I just loved it. A tender story, beautifully drawn, about Hubert who lives alone and is very much alone, a slave to his routine and to his art. When he is confronted by an alternative, he quickly retreats to the womb that is his apartment. This is where he creates and reflects on what he has seen throughout the day. I don't read enough graphic novels and this book reminded me how much I love them when I do. I was struck by the silence, the meditative tone of the story. In fact, I think reading this book is a form of meditation thanks to how Gijemans perfectly captured the solitary life. At one point, I found myself 'reading' the creases in Hubert's shirt over the course of a page and not missing sentences or dialogue. It really is the most beautiful book.
December 24, 2017
Hubert is a wonderful little book. It first caught my eye a couple of years ago when I saw it in a small comic book shop in the city centre of Vienna. I didn’t buy it then, but only leafed through it for a few minutes, but the emotional state it puts the reader in stayed with me. So when I finally saw it in my hometown bookstore I had to add it to my bookshelf.
First of all, Hubert is a singularly beautiful book. It has little dialogue and is really a very quick read, but the artwork will make you pick it up off the shelf every time you walk past it.
It portrays so well the passions of a painter and the fixations of an introverted mind. I fund it is one of the rare works of art that perhaps succeeds in illustrating for a non-artist mind how a painter looks at works of art... or the rest of the world for that matter. The ending of this book resonates with me powerfully.
First of all, Hubert is a singularly beautiful book. It has little dialogue and is really a very quick read, but the artwork will make you pick it up off the shelf every time you walk past it.
It portrays so well the passions of a painter and the fixations of an introverted mind. I fund it is one of the rare works of art that perhaps succeeds in illustrating for a non-artist mind how a painter looks at works of art... or the rest of the world for that matter. The ending of this book resonates with me powerfully.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 77 reviews