Marjane Satrapi: The Illustrator of Iranian Hopes and Tragedies

The news shocked the artistic community, particularly Iranian artists in exile, on Thursday, June 4.

French media, quoting the family of Iranian-French author and director Marjane Satrapi, reported that she passed away at her personal residence at the age of 56. "Dying of grief" was the phrase raised in reports as the reason for this loss. Marjane Satrapi was one of the chroniclers of the oppression of Iranian women in the contemporary era, and one of the few artists who succeeded in introducing Iran's contemporary history to the international community through personal narratives.

A year ago, Marjane Satrapi lost her 30-year life partner, author and director Mattia Ripa, to an illness, and now her close friends say that she died of "love".

Marjane Satrapi: From Persepolis to Woman, Life, Freedom

Many Iranians first heard Marjane Satrapi's name when the animated film Persepolis was released.

An autobiography, it illustrated the narrative of political oppression during the Pahlavi era, as well as the dark and painful years of the early Islamic Republic. Throughout all her years of activity, she remained a serious critic of the Islamic Republic, even taking a step further during the "Woman, Life, Freedom" movement by taking an explicit and clear stance against the French government's policy of appeasement toward the Islamic Republic.

Mana Neyestani, a cartoonist residing in France, is one of the artists who collaborated with her on creating the book Woman, Life, Freedom.

The well-known cartoonist tells IranWire: "My collaboration with Marjane Satrapi was never face-to-face or up close, even though we were both in Paris at least. I came to Paris in 2011. Maybe I saw Marjane once in those early years on a three-person panel about migrant literature alongside Atiq Rahimi. She was closer friends with Touka (Mana Neyestani's older brother); Touka had visited her work studio in Paris. However, in late January 2023, I received an email from Marjane, who very politely and kindly invited me to participate in creating the book Woman, Life, Freedom under her own direction."

According to Mana Neyestani, several Iranian and non-Iranian artists participated in this project, and he gladly accepted Satrapi's proposal: "Satrapi was an important artist. She was someone who, single-handedly, managed to open a difficult path in the European comic publishing industry, win the trust of European publishers, and make them realize that we, too, have talents and stories to tell."

Mana Neyestani still considers the illustrated autobiography Persepolis to be a significant work created by Marjane Satrapi, saying: "At a time when there were no resources regarding the conditions of life under the flag of the Islamic Republic, she presented her illustrated autobiography, Persepolis. The cultural officials of the Islamic Republic always leveled the label 'anti-Iranian' against Satrapi's book because it exposed part of the socio-political filth of their sacred regime. The memories she shared were mostly the collective memory of Iranian teenagers and youths of the 1980s and 1990s. Satrapi recorded and immortalized this collective memory in her personal narrative, not just for the non-Iranian audience, but for future generations of Iranians."

Regarding the experience of collaborating with Marjane Satrapi on the book Woman, Life, Freedom, Mana Neyestani says: "The structure of the book was designed by Marjane and two other journalists. The chapters and concepts were clear, and I decided to choose the two chapters, 'Prison' and 'Psychological Warfare,' from among the specified content to work on."

According to the cartoonist, Satrapi trusted him completely: "And so I did my work. The book generated a lot of discussion and criticism among Iranian audiences; it wasn't a flawless work, and it had information deficits or mistakes in some parts, but it played an important role in introducing many of the political and social details and nuances of Iranians to a non-Iranian audience."

Mana Neyestani says that after the book's publication, a French friend of his would point to the chapters related to the Aghazadehs (nepotistic elite children) and the "Rich Kids," whom they had never heard of before:

"The book received immense attention from the European audience for the foundational information it provided, and it had a high circulation. Later, during one of the reprints, they wanted me to work on an additional chapter. I accepted, and in that section, I gave the 'Axis of Resistance' and its connection to the Iranian regime a piece of my mind. It was around that same time that the publisher informed me that Satrapi's husband had passed away, leaving her deeply depressed and grieving a grief that drove her into seclusion."

For years, Marjane Satrapi maintained a distinct code of conduct in opposition to the Islamic Republic and the dictatorship ruling Iran. Referring to Satrapi's rejection of the Légion d'honneur, Mana Neyestani says: "She was an important and well-known person. She didn't need to be seen through graphic novels at all; she had been drawn into cinema and was directing. After the killing of Mahsa (Jina) Amini, she returned to the world of comics to use her fame to draw the attention of Westerners toward the developments in Iran. She also rejected the Légion d'honneur medal because of the French government's hypocrisy in dealing with countries like Iran."

In 2024, Marjane Satrapi refused to accept the Légion d'honneur, the French government's highest order of merit, citing the French government's "hypocritical policy" toward Iran as the reason.

In response to the question of what sufferings an artist who takes a political stance endures, Mana Neyestani says: "Marjane was an artist who held a political outlook and was at the center of attention. Naturally, people said a lot about her, both good and bad; she was highly praised and also targeted for attacks. One can just watch in silence and pass through smoothly and without trouble. When you express an opinion, naturally, you will not please everyone, and if your pen draws attention, you will get insulted too. It is the nature of this path."

Life in Exile and Illustrating Suffering

Marjane Satrapi was an outspoken critic of the Iranian government for years. Following her arrival in France in 1994 and the publication of the comic book and film Persepolis, she achieved global fame. A graphic novel, it narrates the story of her childhood and adolescence in Tehran, an era filled with restrictions imposed in Iran after the Islamic Revolution; sufferings that led Marjane's parents to send her to Europe during her youth.

In 2007, this graphic novel succeeded in winning the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival, and in 2008, it won the César Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.

Numerous works remain from Marjane Satrapi. She was mainly known for the books and films Persepolis, Chicken with Plums (Khorešt-e Ālū bā Morḡ), and Embroideries (Gol-dūzīhā), yet Persepolis still played the most significant role in introducing her to the world. In addition to winning numerous awards, it was translated into 20 languages, and its global sales surpassed 1.2 million copies.

The graphic novel Woman, Life, Freedom is also the first illustrated work published by the L'Iconoclaste publishing house in France. An illustrated book created in collaboration with more than 20 Iranian and non-Iranian illustrators, it was published in both French and Persian editions, featuring a short overview of women's struggles and referring to the background of patriarchy and misogyny in Iranian history.

Marjane Satrapi was born in 1969 in Rasht but grew up in Tehran. Her mother was a descendant of Naser al-Din Shah Qajar. At the age of fourteen, she was sent to Austria to continue her education. After finishing high school, she returned to Iran and entered university.

She subsequently moved to France, where she began painting and creating graphic novels.

Reactions to the Death of Marjane Satrapi

On Thursday, June 4, French President Emmanuel Macron described Marjane Satrapi in a message as "a great artist" who "turned her childhood into a universal myth."

Macron added that the artist, "with her childhood perspective, her humor, her kindness, and her inner demons, created a dazzling global author in whom readers found themselves."

The famous French artist Joann Sfar also wrote on Instagram: "You changed the world with comics, and you didn't care about comics yourself. I have lost my twin sister."

Riad Sattouf, the French-Syrian author of the famous book The Arab of the Future, wrote: "Her work opened a path that many followed, and first and foremost, myself."