MARCEL RUIJTERS (b. July 1966), studies at the Art Academy in Maastricht and starts self-publishing his comics in 1988. On these first creations, with titles like Onbegrijpelijke Verhalen, Mandragoora, Pegleg, Schnucki & Otzi and Thank God It's Ugly, he cooperates with several other artists (Matthias Giessen, Chris Crielaard, Jakob Klemencic...). His work has been published in several magazines all over the world. He has had many exhibitions, from Haarlem to Milano... Besides comics, he makes paintings and sculptures as well. Of his extensive oeuvre his latest Troglodytes album, which like his previous Dr. Motolotow is being serialized, is starting to conquer the world!

Where did you find the inspiration to start the Troglodytes adventures? The Troglodytes stories literally came from my subconscious. There was a time when I felt a bit bored with my usual style of drawing. I had been doing Dr. Molotow for about a decade and there was no challenge to it anymore, after q or g full-length books. I had been experimenting with those murky graytones before, but just drawings only. So I sat down and without thought I drew one panel, then another...it was like I was regressing to a child, but it was liberating to do away with so many chores that come with the practice of comic art. For instance, I never touch a ruler again. My originals are small, on A4, easily photocopied pieces. I used to think in the old days that your original art should be big, just to be professional. At the same time, everything fell into place, storywise, and I found out that I was on the track of something that had more value in terms of social critique etc., than my older work.

Why are you focusing so much on the Middle Ages and on the rest of the history? The Medieval Era has become a source of inspiration for me. The Troglodytes view the outside world a bit like the common man in the Middle Ages: everything is magic outside the known world. Our world for reality is derived from "royalty". So, the land owned by your King. But the picture we have of that time has been constructed in the 19th century and it is very biased. People did not believe that the Earth was flat, for instance, to mention a common myth. It is fun to fool around with mythological material. I like the way Mack White handles different level of myths in his work.

How did the trip to the Skocjan caves in Slovenia affect your future creations? It enforced my interest in the caves, but I ha< been in the man-made caves around Maastricht (the soil is made of soft sand-stone, there) as a child already. The Proteus is an adorable creature!

Which are your primal sources of inspiration? I have read so many comics, that I have become saturated. There is not much that really excites me, except for exceptional comics like Dave Cooper's Weasel series. Most of my inspiration comes from fringe science and conspiracy literature. One of my all-time favorite books is Apocalypse Culture, edited by Adam Parfrey. I also bought Fortean Times for a few years. There is one CD that really triggered this interest, Oranur III by Schloss Tegal, an audio-exploration of the works by Wilhelm Reich (notably his encounters with UFOs).

Have you used your position of the author/creator, who h playing with his own creations, to the maximum? Is there anything like your personal ethics involved in the Troglodytes stories? I don't think I will ever be "ready". I hope there will be a continuous evolution in my work. At the moment, I am happy with my skills. For now. Although my comics are as far away from the autobiographical genre as you can get, there is a lot of my views to be found in them.

Will there be anything else going on after the death/disappearance of the Troglodytes? I might continue on the mediaeval stuff. There is also a Dr. Molotow story that has to be finished. I don't know.

How come Stigmata happened? Is Stigmata just the consequence of your attraction towards the grotesque middle age saints myths? It was inspired by that great underground philosophy of the middle ages, the Gnosis. And its surreal illustrations, of course!

Besides on your own comics you also work as the editor of the 'Thank God It's Ugly' anthology and as collaborator to the Dutch magazine Zone 5300. What makes you do this crazy work? A passion that has been with me since I was three years old.

Are you such an underground person, as are the characters from your comics, which are more or less settled under the ground? Are you afraid of the underground? I am not that shy, if that is what you think. It would be nice to have a reasonable income from my comics, but right now I am making zip. Which qualifies me as an undergrounder, according to some. To me, the term means nothing, really.

Can you predict the future of the independent author's comics scene? Honestly, I can not say...Comics are losing their ground as far as the commercial stuff goes, to computer-related forms of entertainment. The underground gets artier and might get as much support from the government as other art forms, in the future. I am one of the lucky ones in Holland that has received a major art grant, so that is a sign of change. Content-wise, I believe the autobiographical wave has lost its momentum and I am waiting to see something NEW. But then, like I said, I am already looking elsewhere for inspiration.


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