PARIS.- On 15 November, Christie’s will conduct an exceptional auction of 50 original comic book pages by Maurice De Bevere (1923-2001), better known as Morris.

Lucky Luke – the character to whom he dedicated his life and all of his creative output – will be making its debut in an auction hall. A world premiere for the “lonesome cowboy.” With the notable exception of the major retrospective devoted to him in 2016 by the Cité Internationale de la Bande Dessinée et de l’image d’Angoulême, Lucky Lake has rarely left the pages of his albums. At a time when the Centre Pompidou is celebrating La BD à tous les étages [Comics on Every Floor], this auction is the high point of the celebrations marking Morris’s centenary, beginning in December 2023 with his retrospective at the Huberty and Breyne gallery in Brussels.

The sale of 50 original comic book pages by Morris, preceded by a public viewing at Christie’s in Brussels, Geneva and Paris, will be a unique opportunity for enthusiasts and collectors to rediscover the career of a pioneer of comic books. The event takes the form of a retrospective of the work of one of the giants of the ninth art, a term coined by Morris himself.

Estimates for each of the comic book pages vary between €20,000 to €70,000 for a total of 2.4 million to 3.4 million euros.

A WORLD PREMIERE

Of all of the pages designed by Morris between 1947 and 2001, very few have ever been seen. The public viewing and auction in Paris offer an exceptional insight into Morris’s aesthetic. To date, no work by the artist has been offered at auction. The sale on November 15 will thus be a world premiere for one of the greatest artists of the genre.

MORRIS, A HEAVYWEIGHT OF THE 9TH ART

Morris’s success is exemplary, both in terms of his talent and his tenacity. He was systematic and very rigorous and developed his own inimitable style. To see one of his original comic book pages is to admire the extraordinary flexibility of the drawing, the economical use of line for maximum effect, the precise breakdown of movements, the remarkable skill with black and white, and the uniquely expressive silhouettes. Like other authors of his generation, Morris started out by dreaming of comics, and went to live in the United States where he met René Goscinny, who would go on to write the script for almost half of his albums. All his life, he devoted himself exclusively to the development of his star comic series, becoming one of the rare authors to devote all of his energy to a single character: Lucky Luke.

THE LIFE OF LUCKY LUKE, COMIC BOOK ICON

The adventures of Lucky Luke were first published in 1946 under the title Arizona 1880. The first full-length album was published in 1947, followed by 71 others throughout Morris’s lifetime. The 50 comic book pages for sale come from almost as many different albums. They reflect the evolution of a character who has become a legend for generations of readers.