Barwoel was a Dutch small press comic magazine, published from 1989 to 1995 in Rotterdam by Tonio van Vugt and his art academy friends.Joost Pollmann, "Comic magazine zone 5300," Volkskrant, 8 February 2013.Zone 5300, Lambiek Comics History, on lambiek.net. Accessed 6 September 2018. In 1995, this comic magazine evolved into the magazine Zone 5300.Judith Eiselin. "The blue period of the Smurfs." NRC Handelsblad. 30 November 1999.
Development The experimental comic zine Barwoel was created in 1989 by Tonio van Vugt and several fellow students from their time at the Willem de Kooning Academy in Rotterdam. In 1987, Van Vugt, Herman Jan Couwenberg, Henk de Bont, Finn Stapelkamp, and Rik van Schagen had first collaborated on a special "Was getekend" issue for the newspaper Het Vrije Volk.Editorial. ""Was Getekend". Het Vrije Volk: democratic-socialist daily. Rotterdam, 26-06-1987. Accessed on Delpher on 07-09-2018.
Barwoel was one of the notable new-generation amateur comic magazines in the Netherlands in the early 1990s, alongside other groundbreaking comic zines such as Iris from Nijmegen, Posse from Amsterdam, and Incognito from Zaandam.Erik Spaans, "Comic MAGAZINE Dull affair in the sky". NRC Handelsblad, 03-06-1994. Accessed on Delpher on 06-09-2018.Editorial, "Amateur comic zines have gained a big brother: Zone 5300". Trouw. Unknown, 15-10-1994. Accessed on Delpher on 06-09-2018.
The issue was copied in black and white, and was limited to a print run of 50 to 200 copies. The first issue had a circulation of 70 copies, which gradually grew.Paul van Liempt, "Rari Teiten Kabinet," Het Parool, 29-12-1994. Retrieved from Delpher on 06-09-2018. One of the regular comics, Rik van Schagen's Stripstrip, appeared daily in the newspaper Het Vrije Volk starting from July 1989.Rik van Schagen, "Strips Stripstrip RIK VAN SCHAGEN". Het vrije volk : democratisch-socialistisch dagblad, Rotterdam, 31-07-1989. Retrieved from Delpher on 07-09-2018.
Founders, artists, and writers
The founders of the magazine were Finn Stapelkamp, Herman Jan Couwenberg (Djanko), and Rik van Schagen.Willem van Helden, "A comic magazine for zappers," in: De Volkskrant, 22-10-1994. Retrieved from Delpher on 28-05-2018. Other early cartoonists and writers were Marianne Eijgendaal, Marco Faasen, Matthias Giesen, Gerrie Hondius, Joost Pollmann, Roel Seidell, Kees Torn, and Zookie.
In later issues, contributions also came from, among others, Marcel Ruijters, Gidion van de SwaluwGidion van de Swaluw on stripster.eu, June 4, 2012. Retrieved 6 September 2018. and Wasco. In addition to comics, there were also some short stories and other content from various contributors. For example, the tenth issue included a lithograph by Sjenet Tepaske.
Through Barwoel, Tonio van Vugt came into contact with Robert van der Kroft in 1992, who two years later started Zone 5300 together with him. The comic magazine Barwoel continued for some time after that.Erik Spaans. "Comic MAGAZINE: The origins of papa-ooh-mow-mow," NRC Handelsblad, 14-10-1994. Retrieved from Delpher on 06-09-2018. Others in the core group went in different directions. For example, Marianne Eijgendaal moved to an animation studio in Ireland,"Marianne Eijgendaal resume," Retrieved 6 September 2018. and Kees Torn and Gerrie Hondius started the theater program Kees & ik.
Special issues The 10th issue was a special anniversary edition, with the cover featuring an image of the first 10 Barwoels.
The 17th issue was released under the title Barwoela and contained a photo-comic written by Barry Wulisch (Gerrie Hondius) titled Barre Tijden, Woelige Tijden (Harsh Times, Turbulent Times). In the photo-comic, she played the lead role alongside seven other comic artists.
The 34th issue was presented as the first comic magazine that did not have dog-ears and that you could enjoy under the dishes. It was published in the form of a music cassette.Frits Jonker, "Barwoel," on showcase.thebluebus.nl, March 16, 2009. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
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