Sebas Martín

If Germany has Ralf König as a leading figure in gay-themed comics, Spain has Sebas Martín—scriptwriter, illustrator, comic artist, drawing teacher and cover designer with a long and acclaimed career in the comic world. Through his work, Sebas invites us to explore a universe of deeply human relationships: tender, funny, sometimes absurd, sometimes melancholic, intense, sexual… Stories as real as life itself, set in Barcelona and its surroundings.

He studied graphic design and began his career in the 1980s, creating erotic and pornographic comics. Since then, he has received numerous awards and collaborated with various publications. In the newspaper El Observador, he published the comic strip Mandonna, tía petarda. Later, with boundless imagination, he began to develop graphic novels that are now part of the contemporary comic landscape.

Some of his notable titles include:
Historias Guais (2000), Historias entre chicos (2000), Historias de Sitges (2000), Vacaciones en Ibiza (2003), El Kamasutra Gay (2003), Ideas de bombero (2010), Kedada (2012), Yo lo vi primero (2013), No debí enrollarme con una moderna (2018), Sobrevivir al ambiente (2018) ,El corazón entre las piernas (2019) and Todos los hombres del dibujante (2020) many of them published by La Cúpula. The list is long, as Sebas is a tireless creator of stories that speak to the human experience.

In 2005, he directed Claro que Sí, a monthly gay comic magazine—one of the first of its kind in Europe. His most recent graphic novel, Artristas y Presonajes, closes the cycle he began years ago with the character Sebas and his group of friends.

Sebas has also delved into historical storytelling with Que el fin del mundo nos encuentre bailando (2023), a graphic novel set in Barcelona during the Spanish Second Republic, portraying the romantic relationship between two men from different social backgrounds.

His work has also gained recognition in the museum world. He took part in the permanent exhibition at the Museu d’Art de Cerdanyola (Can Domènech), and the Departament de Patrimoni de la Generalitat acquired the 38 original drawings of Historias de Sitges, which will be exhibited at the Maricel Museum in Sitges. During the pandemic, he contributed to an exhibition on the male nude organized by the local museum network of the Barcelona Provincial Council, where he was in charge of the comic section.

Sebas masterfully captures the human figure—especially the male body—as seen in the naked or semi-naked men often present in his illustrations. His gay-themed art can be explicit or subtle, but it is always sensual. A unique and authentic perspective on desire, diversity, love, and life.