International Obituary

Damir Novak – RIP

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Alan Gardner Published: February 10, 2026 1 minute 1 comment

Croatian cartoonist Damir Novak was shot and killed by a neighbor after an alleged years-long property border dispute came to a deadly end on February 6. The neighbor committed later committed suicide. Damir was 66.

Damir’s first cartoon was published in 1982 in the weekly Međimurje. In the following years he became one of the most prominent Croatian cartoonists, an active member of the Croatian Cartoonist Society, and an organizer of 17 international cartooning exhibitions leaving his mark well beyond his Croatian borders.

Damir was also a professional firefighter. According to the Museum of Croatian Firefighting he became a fire technician in 1982 rising to senior fire officer and “held the duties of president (from 2013 to 2021) and vice-president (from 2021)” of the Mali Mihaljevec DVD.

From their memoriam:

He was a member of the Croatian Association of Cartoonists since its inception and has been elected to the Executive Board of the Society several times. He exhibited at many solo and joint exhibitions, and the most significant solo exhibitions were in: the Humor Home in Gabrov (Bulgaria), Kolašin (Montenegro), the Osten Gallery in Skopje – Macedonia, the Čakovec Cultural Center, the Nikola Zrinski Library and the Museum of Croatian Firefighting in Varaždin. He was a permanent collaborator (for more than 25 years) of the weekly magazine “Međimurje” where he published his cartoons, comics and portraits of celebrities. Occasionally he published almost all printing in Croatia, and lately in digital media. He has won the award for caricature in Croatia and Korea, China, Syria, Italy, Austria, Canada, Macedonia, Iran, Romania, Turkey, the Czech Republic, Slovakia.

Services are being held February 10.

Our condolences to his family, friends, and fans.