Wimmelbuch creator Ali Mitgutsch dies
Ali Mitgutsch in his Munich studio in June 2010
Those: pa / Maik Kern
Almost every child and probably most adults in Germany should be familiar with his Wimmel Books: Ali Mitgutsch has created his own genre with his works. Now the artist died in Munich at the age of 86.
Dhe illustrator and artist Ali Mitgutsch is dead. The Wimmelbuch creator died on Monday evening at the age of 86 in Munich, his friend and biographer Ingmar Gregorzewski told the German Press Agency on Tuesday, citing the family of the deceased.
The Ravensburger Verlag had previously reported on Mitgutsch’s death, citing Gregorzewski and literary agent Oliver Brauer. “Cheeky, funny, loving – Ali Mitgutsch’s view of the world, of the magic of everyday life, was unique, has inspired generations of children and adults and made him the ‘father of hidden objects'”, Ravensburger shared in one Appreciation With. The publisher bow “to his friend and long-time author”.
Ali Mitgutsch received the Cross of Merit on Ribbon for his extraordinary artistic achievements in 2018
Source: pa / dpa / Anja Köhler
Mitgutsch’s Wimmel Books have been telling wonderful everyday stories for decades without words and in a colorful way – from the swimming pool, the farm, the mountains or the city. “He was a Schwabinger through and through, looked curiously and with a keen eye for details and curiosities at the world around him,” said Ravensburger. “The humorous and often unmasking look at mishaps, absurdities and the comic in everyday life and relationships flowed into his ‘self-telling storybooks’, as he called his hidden worlds.”
Ali Mitgutsch was born in Munich on August 21, 1935. He began his career as a graphic designer, as Ravensburger announced. In 1968 his first Wimmel book “All around in my city” was published by the publisher. More than 70 books, posters and puzzles have appeared with his figures and drawings.
Mitgutsch got food for his pictures on forays through the city. “I always have a small pad and a pen with me and quickly draw sketches that I will work with later,” he once said in an interview with the German Press Agency.
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