'Lars' (Algemeen Dagblad, 21 June 2008). Translation: "You heard right, Lars. My band broke up again. I decided to finally earn some money with my instrument and therefore me and my guitar are in the streets." - "As a street musician?" - "Street musician? Why didn't I think of that?" - Guitar: 50 Euros."
Lectrr, a Belgian cartoonist, was born in Rumbeke but has set up his headquarters in Ghent. His absurd, hilarious cartoons can be found in magazines all over Europe. He has published his 'Hara Kiwi' cartoons in Maxim, Veronica Magazine, Mo*, Algemeen Dagblad, Stripgids and many others. Lectrr also publishes in various comic-related magazines like Myx, Ink or Zone 5300. His comic strip 'Lars' is published in Algemeen Dagblad, and was collected in the book 'Lars Attacks!'. He is the regular cartoonist for De Standaard since early 2011. In that same year he was appointed municipal artist-in-residence of the city of Turnhout for a period of two years. His cartoons have been translated in French, English, Swedish, Norwegian, German, Turkish and Afrikaans.
In 2016-2017, he was part of "The Wolfpack", a creative team of Standaard Uitgeverij assigned to come up with new ideas for spin-offs with Willy Vandersteen's classic creations, following the success of 'Amoras' and 'J.Rom Force of Gold'. The other members were storyrunner Johan De Smedt, film director Vincent Bal, comic colorist and animator Tom Metdepenningen and the Dutch/Flemish comic authors Bruno de Roover, Stedho, Romano Molenaar, Gerben Valkema and Aimée de Jongh.
On 4 February 2020, the Association of Chinese Enterprises in Belgium and Luxembourg filed an official complaint against Lectrr for making a cartoon ridiculing China and the corona virus epidemic, published a month earlier in De Standaard. The cartoon depicts the Chinese flag with its yellow stars replaced by the yellow 'danger' symbol(s). A spokesperson for the Chinese embassy stated that the cartoon was "offensive and insulted their country". They asked Lectrr and Karel Verhoeven, chief editor of The Standaard, to apologize, which both declined, citing their freedom of speech. Verhoeven clarified that the cartoon has "no negative sentiments. It is published for Flemish readers who'll easily understand the message behind the drawing: that the corona virus is a state affair in China." A day later Lectrr made a new cartoon which mocked the controversy. It depicts the "two policies of the Chinese government concerning the corona virus". The first panel shows a man wearing a mouth mask. In the second, 'Chinese policy concerning cartoons about the corona virus', the same man's mouth is bandaged shut. Earlier, on 28 January 2020, the Chinese embassy in Denmark protested in vain against a similar cartoon in Jyllands Posten by Niels Bo Bojesen, which showed the Chinese flag with yellow virus symbols.
Lectrr was one of many Belgian cartoonists to make special cartoons and comics for Gilles Dal’s book "België, Et Cetera" (Van Halewyck, 2016), a funny look at the history of Belgium. In 2020, he joined 75 Dutch & Flemish comic artists to make a graphic contribution to the free collective comic book ‘Striphelden versus Corona’ (Oogachtend, Uitgeverij L, 2020). The book is intended to support comics stores who had to close their doors for two months during the lockdown at the height of the COVID-19 virus pandemic.
He is one of several Belgian cartoonists who are a member of the collective and website The Cartoonist, established by Marec, where Belgian cartoonists make their archived and new work available to the public.
Cartoon by Lectrr.