Hermann Huppen (17 July 1938 – 22 March 2026), better known by the pen-name Hermann, was a Belgian comic book creator. He is most famous for his post-apocalyptic comic Jeremiah which was made into a television series.
Life and career
Hermann was born on 17 July 1938 in Bévercé (now a part of Malmedy) in Liège Province. After studying to become a furniture maker and working as interior architect, Hermann made his debut as comic book artist in 1964 in the Franco-Belgian comics magazine Spirou with a four-page story. Greg noticed his talent and offered him to work for his studio. In 1966, he began illustrating the Bernard Prince series written by Greg, published in Tintin magazine. In 1969, also in collaboration with Greg, he began the western series Comanche. This appeared at the same time as other western series such as Blueberry.
He began writing his own stories in 1977, starting the post-apocalyptic Jeremiah series, which is still produced today. In the same period, he also made three albums of Nick, inspired by Little Nemo in Slumberland, for Spirou.
Hermann died on 22 March 2026, at the age of 87.
Style and artistic philosophy
Throughout his career, Hermann remained fiercely dedicated to traditional comic book craftsmanship, creating his works using physical mediums such as pencils, ink, and direct coloring. He expressed strong skepticism toward the digitalization of the comic book industry and the widespread use of computer graphics, arguing that digital art often strips illustrations of their unique character, human imperfection, and the organic "dirt" that defined his signature style.
In both his historical series (such as The Towers of Bois-Maury) and post-apocalyptic narratives (like Jeremiah), Hermann rejected the idealization of protagonists and contemporary political correctness. Instead, his storytelling focused on a gritty, uncompromising realism, frequently exploring the dark, primal, and brutal aspects of human nature under extreme duress or in survival scenarios.
Awards
- 1973: Prix Saint-Michel, Belgium
- 1980: Prix Saint-Michel
- 1992: Best Long Comic Strip at the Haxtur Awards, Spain
:: - nominated for Best Drawing at the Haxtur Awards
- 1998: U Giancu's Prize, International Cartoonists Exhibition
- 1999: nominated for Best Drawing and Best Cover at the Haxtur Awards
- 2001: Best Drawing at the Haxtur Awards
:: - nominated for Best Short Comic Strip and Best Script at the Haxtur Awards
- 2002: Grand Prix Saint-Michel
:: - nominated for Best Short Comic Strip and Best Drawing at the Haxtur Awards
- 2003: nominated for the Audience Award and the Artwork Award at the Angoulême International Comics Festival, France
- 2005: nominated for the Audience Award at the Angoulême International Comics Festival
- 2006: nominated for Best Comic (French language) at the Prix Saint-Michel
- 2010: nominated for Best Artwork at the Prix Saint-Michel
Selected bibliography
All of these comics have been published in French, Dutch and German: other translations are noted in the "remarks" column.
{| class="wikitable" id="noveltable" border="1"
!Series
!Years
!Volumes
!Written by
!Editor
!Remarks
|- align="left"
|Bernard Prince
|1969–1980,
2010
|14
|Greg and
Yves H. (Vol. 18)
|Le Lombard and Dargaud
|Translated into German; Translated into Danish; Translated into Serbian; Translated into Swedish; Translated into Tamil by Lion Comics; Translated into Polish.
Volumes 1-13 (Greg/Hermann), volumes 14-15 (Greg/Danny), volumes 16-17 (Greg/Aidan), volume 18 (Hermann/Yves H.)
|-
|Comanche
|1972–1983
|10
|Greg
|Le Lombard and Dargaud
|Continued by Rouge for five more stories; Translated into Serbian; Translated into Tamil by Lion Comics; Translated into Polish
|-
|Jugurtha
|1975–1977
|2
|Vernal
|RTP, Le Lombard and Dargaud
|
|-
|Jeremiah
|1979–?
|39
|Hermann
|Fleurus, Edi-3, Novedi, Hachette, and Dupuis
|Translated into Serbian; translated into Polish; volumes 1 & 4 translated into English and published by Fantagraphics in 1983 under the titles The Survivors: Talons of Blood and The Survivors: The Eyes That Burned; Jeremiah 13: Strike published by Catalan Communications in 1990. Jeremiah: Gun in the Water and Jeremiah: Mercenaries published by Strip Art Features (SAF) in 2002 and 2003. A new series began in March 2012, collecting 3 of the original French language tomes in each hardcover edition; the series is being simultaneously published in English (as The Jeremiah Omnibus by SAF and Dark Horse Comics), German (as Jeremiah Integrale by Kult Editionen), Italian (as Jeremiah. Ediz. integrale by Linea Chiara), and Spanish (as Jeremiah Integral by Planeta DeAgostini Cómics).
|-
|Alerte aux pirates
|1980
|1
|Yves Duval and Step
|Bédéscope
|
|-
|Les Dalton
|1980
|1
|Yves Duval
|Bédéscope
|
|-
|Hey, Nick! Are you dreaming
|1981–1983
|3
|Morphée
|Dupuis
|Translated into English by SAF Comics 2003
|-
|Les Tours de Bois-Maury (The Towers of Bois-Maury)
|1984–2021
|16
|Hermann (vols 12-15 written by Yves H.)
|Glénat
|Translated into Danish, Serbocroatian and Polish, published in English by Titan Books
|-
|Le diable des sept mers
|2008–2009
|2
|Yves H.
|Dupuis
|
|-
|Une nuit de pleine lune
|2011
|1
|Yves H.
|Glénat
|-
|Retour au Congo
|2013
|1
|Yves H.
|Glénat
|
|-
|Station 16
|2014
|1
|Yves H.
|Le Lombard
|Translated into Polish.
|-
|Sans pardon
|2015
|1
|Yves H.
|Le Lombard
|Translated into Polish.
|-
|Old Pa Anderson
|2016
|1
|Yves H.
|Le Lombard
|
|-
|Le Passeur
|2016
|1
|Yves H.
|Dupuis
||.
|-
|Duke
|2017-
|7
|Yves H.
|Le Lombard
|
|}
References
Sources
- Béra, Michel; Denni, Michel; and Mellot, Philippe (2002): "Trésors de la Bande Dessinée 2003-2004". Paris, Les éditions de l'amateur.
- Hermann publications in Spirou, Belgian Tintin, French Tintin, Circus / Vécu , BoDoï BDoubliées
- Frosztęga, Radosław (2024). "Wywiad z Hermann Huppen" (Interview with Hermann Huppen). POPKulturowy Kociołek.
External links
- Hermann Huppen official site
- Hermann biography on Lambiek Comiclopedia
- Hermann fan site