Marjane Satrapi

Marjane Satrapi was born 22 November 1969 in Rasht (Iran), she spent much of her childhood in her native country and lived during the Islamic revolution that ended the reign of the Shah of Persia. But in 1984, at the start of the war between Iran and Iraq, her parents were sent to Vienna with a dual purpose; continue her education and be safe from the war, which at that time they were confronted with the most radical members of the new Iranian government. During the five years that the war lasted, Marjane studied at the French Institute in Vienna, although she acknowledges she never felt comfortable there. After the war, she returned home to continue her studies at the Institute of Fine Arts of Tehran. Unfortunately due to her liberal ideas, she suffered the same repression as other women in Iran and eventually the author was forced into self-exile, but this time her destination was France. And it was here Marjane began to carve out a future in the world of comics, as well as finding a better way to understand the country and its culture. Her entry into the world of comics came through the Atelier des Vosges where she met artists such as Christophe Blain, David B, Joann Sfar and Emmanuel Guibert, who both influenced her and introduced her to the world comics for children.

Later, Marjane Satrapi, encouraged by her peers, began work on the series of four volumes, Persepolis. An autobiographical story denouncing bigotry Islam, among others, she would win the Grand Prize of the Festival of Angoulême (2002) and the 1st Prize of Peace Fernando Buesa (2003) and the Harvey Prize for the Best Foreign work (2004) and other awards and nominations, including an Eisner nomination. Persepolis, Satrapi's most personal work has been published in several countries and has garnered huge critical success and sales. Persepolis combines the publication of albums dedicated to children, as well as several works for magazines. Satrapi also has also offered a more intimate work, Embroidery, in which, through a series of conversations over a cup of tea, immerses us deep into the lives of Iranian women. Her latest work is Chicken with Plums, a narrative focusing on a man who no longer feels like living. The critics and the public have enthusiastically embraced the work, which has received the Award for Best Album in 2005. Angoulême Satrapi has also received wide recognition with the film adaptation of Persepolis, an animated film by co-directed with Vincent Paronnaud.