Sometimes, I wished I lived in Switzerland… many of Cosey’s works (apart from his comics, of course) are published in local/regional magazines, advertisings or posters. A few weeks ago, however, I found out that the flemish magazine ‘Stripgids’ had published an interview with Cosey – so here we have this rare dutch language publication! The magazine was published in February, but I only managed to get a copy two weeks ago (sometimes, Belgium seems so far…).
The interview is written by Toon Horsten, and it is a nice interview indeed, with very nice photos by Bart van der Moeren. For Cosey-watchers not so much news – mainly because Cosey is so very consistent in his interviews over the past years.
But in the interview Cosey teaches us, ‘close Cosey-readers’ a nice little lesson in modesty… Take your album of ‘ELLE’ and look at the title page: ‘What is this?’ Cosey asks the interviewer. The interviewer: ‘I don’t know’.
Cosey: ‘Damn! Ai. This is bizarre. I am afraid I have to face the truth: sometimes I overestimate my readers. (turns to the last page of the album). I will give you the answer. Look: here – in the fifth message Jonathan writes to Cosey – he talks about a little handiwork paper lantern. This is what is drawn on the title page. For your defence, I can tell you that the reader is not used to seeking answers to a certain question on a title page. Therefore, I like to put an image from Jonathan’s youth on the title page. It is outside the story, but still, it refers to the story. I hoped the reader would make the connection between the title page and the story, after reading the album and leafing through it another time’.
Well, did you?