A father, mother and son make their way through a terrifying, twisted jungle. It’s not clear how long they have been walking like this. They’re heading towards some unspecified destination, but it’s not clear why. Along the way, they encounter monstrous, aggressive insects and the ubiquitous fungal spores with which the father is becoming increasingly swollen. The hardship and futility of their journey cause the conflict between the son and his parents.
This is a story about intergenerational relay, about the search for meaning.
Initial cover Design 2019
By Tomasz Leśniak
Script outline 2019
Before I wrote the script, I put down the plot ideas in the form of a story outline, accompanied by my sketches. This made it easier for me to describe this invented world to Tomek.
script 2020
Drafting and revisions 2020
In 2020, based on my sketches and script, Tomek Lesniak drew the whole comic in sketch form. Sometimes I suggested some changes in the framing and emotions of the characters, and in turn Tomek edited the dialogues and suggested different dynamics of the scenes.
Final version 2021
Only after the sketch version of the whole thing was closed, Tomek set about drawing about 440 pages of the final version of the novel.
End of works 2022
Tomek finished drawing the comic almost exactly 3 years after I wrote the script. He was doing it in the evenings, after our work together on the full-length “Diplodocus” – which we were making during the day.
Final cover 2023
a few pages from the book
The comic was published in Poland by Kultura Gniewu in January 2023.
Polish premiere
Reviews
“What Leśniak has conjured up on the pages of Fungae will make nations kneel!”
Paradoks
“This story sucks you in and doesn’t let go until the very end.”
Badloopus
“Fungae is a work with a carefully crafted structure that doesn’t take away from its expression.”
Nerdheim
“A comic that’s immersive, dark, where we can almost physically feel the tightening of both the world and the narrative.”
Betoniarka
“The story of Fungae stays with the reader long after the last page is turned.”
Stare Wilki
“Fungae is a comic that captivates with its beauty. When I write this, I’m not only thinking of Leśniak’s drawings, but also (and perhaps above all) about what Wawszczyk wants to convey. Before you is a story about family, upbringing, relationships, survival, and the purpose of it all.”
Czas na komiks
“As we immerse ourselves in the details, we feel the fear, the stench, the incoming cold.”
Melancholia codzienności
“The authors skillfully and gradually build up the tension.”
Książki WP
“The final effect is excellent, appropriately atmospheric, dramatic, and very pleasing.”
Kostnica
“It works on every level and makes an incredible impression.”
Metody marnowania czasu
“One of the most interesting and surprising premieres of the last few months.”
Książki
“Fungae can thus be read as a philosophical tale. But it’s philosophy in its purest form, close to the essence of doubt — namely, naked fear.”
Dwutygodnik
Written by
- Wojtek Wawszczyk
Illustrated by
- Tomasz Leśniak
Published by
- Kultura Gniewu 2023 (Polish edition)