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The wash house
“In my mind, it takes place around Gençay or Poitiers, but there are no clues that would make the reader think that. It could very well take place in the little town next door.”
Nob, the creator of Mamette
As he explained to Marion Valière Loudiyi in an interview for the website Comixtrip, the town of Gençay had a great influence on the setting of the village of Marinette’s grandparents, alias Mamette. If she is not named as such in the albums, many clues suggest it. With the covered halls or the old dairy of the old castle, the wash house of the commune is visible in the boxes of the Souvenirs de Mamette. Kneeling women wash and rinse the laundry of the houses of the small village. Before the 1930s, this was the only way to clean clothes and other garments; the washing machine did not yet exist.
Along the Clouère, this washhouse was nevertheless graphically modified by Nob, the author of the comic book series.
Nob’s grandmother, Arlette Chevrier, was one of the author’s inspirations for Mamette. A mixture of “those I could meet everywhere, even in Barcelona where I lived. She is a bit like everyone’s grandmother”. Many of the characters are avatars of his family members: “Mamette’s husband also left my grandfather Jacques, and then her son looks like my father… There is a big family inspiration that serves as the skeleton of the series.” As for the Souvenirs de Mamette, as he continues to relate to the reporter: “I started with what Grandma Arlette told me about her youth and the family stories I knew and mixed that with elements from my maternal grandmother’s house.
It is in 2006 that the first album of Mamette is born. The three albums of Souvenirs de Mamette are published between 2009 and 2013.
8 Rte de Couhé
It is at 8 route de Couhé in Gençay that one of the two wash houses of the commune is located.
Located in the department of Vienne, the commune of Gençay is 24 km from Poitiers.
Twinned with Breckerfeld in Germany, its population was 1746 in 2019.
In addition to a ruined castle classified as a historical monument in 1840, Gençay is home to the castle of Galmoisin, the partly Gothic church of Notre-Dame.
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BARCELONA map of the 100 most famous places (French edition)
The Barcelona Fantrippers map, an original way to discover the city of Gaudí! Through 100 places of pop culture, walk its streets from another angle. Movies, TV shows, music, comics and novels, will allow you to spend a pleasant moment in the capital of Catalonia. With a folded format of 10 x 18 cm and an unfolded format of 60 x 54 cm, it can easily be put in your pocket or bag for consultation.
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Discover all the places Les souvenirs de Mamette on our map
By Damien Canteau
Passionné par l'Histoire, les animés, les Arts et la bande dessinée en particulier, Damien est le rédacteur en chef du site spécialisé dans le 9e art, Comixtrip.