Javier Mariscal
Spain
Javier Mariscal was born in Valencia, Spain in 1950. In Valencia, at the age of 19, Mariscal started publishing the cartoons that featured his first character, El Señor del Caballito. In 1971 he moved to Barcelona to study at the Escuela Elisava. It was there that he founded El Rrollo Enmascarado, an underground comic strip that was sold on the streets. In 1977 he held his first solo exhibition Gran Hotel, where he transformed the space into a multidisciplinary hotel with painted glass, hand-knitted sweaters, papier mâché objects, editorial work and colored couches. In 1989, the same year his cartoon figure Cobi was chosen as the Olympic mascot of Barcelona 92, Mariscal produced the exhibition 100 Years with Mariscal. A gutted ship was used as a giant box to display a comprehensive view of Mariscal’s thousands of bits of work. The show revealed the outlook, the attitude that serves as a key to his creativity. At the exhibit’s end, computers were installed where people could create and print their own Mariscal. 1989 was also the year he founded Estudio Mariscal. With a small team of collaborators, Mariscal took up residence in a former leather-tanning factory dating from the "steam" period. He began working with the first Macintosh computers. Logotypes were designed, fashion bars were decorated, and 3-D investigations were conducted. By 1993 the team counted over 30 people. With Alfredo Arribas the studio designed the Acuarinto children's area inside the Huis ten Bosch park of Nagasaki (Japan). This project combines architecture, interior design, graphic images, animation, merchandising and new media techniques. In 1996 his cartoon figure Twipsy was chosen as the mascot of the Hanover 2000 World Expo. Mariscal supervised the development of its corporate and merchandising projects. In 1998 Mariscal founded Muviscal, an audiovisual production company Muviscal produced the cartoon series Twipsy, 52 episodes of 15 minutes each. Both 3D and traditional animation were used and based on scripts by Patty Marx. Twipsy is an Internet messenger who, in comparing the real world to cyberspace, visualizes contemporary issues for a very young audience. In 1999 Estudio Mariscal produced Colors This is a visual show combining an overhead projection screen, a protagonist/narrator (a robot named Dimitri), 7 gymnasts as actors, shadow-makers, dancers, stagehands, 4 singing robots, a soundtrack and a lighting installation. The show tells a humorous tale about colors. In 2000 Estudio Mariscal produced the Diseño Gráfico set published by Salvat This editorial project in 45 parts ventures into the graphic design profession uniting concepts and the different attitudes of its cutting edge designers. Javier Mariscal has never abandoned the more artistic side of his career and his work has been displayed in numerous solo and group exhibitions throughout the years. He gives conferences in different countries, and shows his work and explains his professional experience to students of various disciplines.
