Manuel “Manix” Abrera is a Filipino cartoonist based here in the Philippines and is known for his comics called “Kikomachine Komix”. He also contributes art to Philippine Daily Inquirer and News Hardcore in GMA News Online. Manix is the son of the legendary Jess Abrera, a chief cartoonist and comics editor at Philippine Daily Inquirer.
You’ll know it’s Manix style when you see one. His popular Kikomachine Komix are all around bookstores and local shops. Art enthusiasts always come to complete their copies as it was amazingly good.
The name “Kikomachine” was derived from Abrera’s band “Kiko Machine,” which was directly inspired by the character “Kiko Matsing” from the hit Filipino kids’ show, Batibot.
His works are centered on his daily living, on how he experiences things firsthand and his every day life in general. From his daily commute, to witnessing news on television, conversations with friends, encounters with strangers, and many more.
Manix makes sure that his works are relatable, purely Filipino.
He never fails to come up with fresh ideas to put in his comics. Some topics are about humanity, about social media, about social-economic crises, about manipulation, and all those things are mixed up with tones in comedy form, sarcasm, and metaphor.
Apart from Galerie Stephanie, Manix has mounted solo exhibitions at the Vargas Museum and Pablo Gallery, and has participated in group exhibitions at the Metropolitan Museum of Manila, Erehwon Center for the Arts, and Galerie Raphael.
If people, including him, were to decide about the interpretations behind is work, he will say it’s simple. It’s those things you get to see every day, the time you have to waste, and the things we are lacking to see.
Recently, Manix shares the cover and the story behind his first DC Comics cover for “Batman: The Knight.”
