Tailor- Made Book
Bohdan Butenko was the author of illustrations, posters, scenography, satirical drawings, and films. He created his first works when he was in high school. From the very beginning, he engaged in a dialogue with the surrounding reality in his work, which he wrote for readers of all ages.
He made illustration for more than 200 books, the first of which was Nikolai Leskov's "The Tale of Cross-Eyed Lefty from Tula and the Steel Flea." He worked on the book as part of his diploma at the Academy of Fine Arts, where in 1955 the artist obtained his master's degree in the studio of Jan Marcin Szancer. Shortly after graduation, in 1956, Butenko started cooperating with the editorial office of "Nasza Księgarnia," where he worked as an artistic editor. He cooperated with many publishers and magazines for children and youth, among others, "Miś", "Płomyczek", "Płomyk," or "Świerszczyk". Butenko's illustrations are characterized by lightheartedness and a sense of humor, he was an extremely conscious creator who elevated printing to the rank of art.
His aesthetic sense and attention to detail made Butenko's books artistic objects, in which all the elements used – bookbinding, typography, drawing, photography – co-create a multi-level artistic narrative. The character of Gapiszon created by Butenka in 1958 was particularly appreciated. He was a preschooler in a characteristic hat with a pompom (initially it was a beret with an antenna). After seven years of broadcasting on television (Butenko drew Gapiszon "live" on the air of the TV program), Gapiszon found its way to the magazine "Miś."
In addition to the column in the children's magazine, seven separate books featuring the humorous preschooler's adventures were released between 1970 and 2001. "Miś" was the first children's magazine to appear after the Second World War. The first issue appeared on February 15, 1957. “Miś" was created by Czesław Janczarski, who was later its editor-in-chief. For the needs of his magazine, Janczarski began to write short stories about Floppy Bear (PL: Miś Uszatek) and Zbigniew Rychlicki (who was also responsible for the graphic design of the magazine "Miś") drew the character of Floppy Bear.
Later, this friendly bear created by Mr. Janczarski was moved to the Se-ma-for Studio where his adventures were broadcasted for 10 minutes in a weekly bedtime cartoon. "Miś" also featured the characters of Gapiszon and Mr. Hipopopo who always tried to make the children reader laugh.