Empègues are small images

stencil Stencilling produces an image or pattern on a surface, by applying pigment to a surface through an intermediate object, with designed holes in the intermediate object, to create a pattern or image on a surface, by allowing the pigment to reach ...

led on doorways in southern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. The empègue symbolizes that the household has contributed to groups of youths gathering funds for celebrations each August. The drawings are made by the youths of a village and are said to date from the early part of the twentieth century when the local male youths would be conscripted into the military.

Conscription Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day un ...

is no longer practiced in France, but the tradition continues. The images are of traditional subjects which symbolize the local area. In the

Petite Camargue Camargue (, also , , ; oc, label= Provençal, Camarga) is a region of France located south of Arles, between the Mediterranean Sea and the two arms of the Rhône delta. The eastern arm is called the ''Grand Rhône''; the western one is the ''P ...

the images frequently involve horses, flamingoes and, of, course, bulls because of the local version of bullfighting ''( Course camarguaise)''. In the version of bullfighting licensed in France, the bull is merely decorated with prizes which youths attempt to steal from the long-horned bull. The bull gets to fight another day.

Etymology

The word is said to have derived from a word in

Occitan Occitan may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania territory in parts of France, Italy, Monaco and Spain. * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania administrative region of France. * Occitan language Occitan (; o ...

, empeguar, which means ''"stick"''.Beauvoisin 2008

translation
accessed 15 August 2008 In Spanish the meaning is to mark with pitch.Spanish-English dictionary
tomisino.org, accessed 15 August 2008 Another suggestion is that it comes from Pegare - the word for paste. The original Empègues were made from a mixture of soot and paste.

Detail

The images frequently include the abbreviation V.L.J. which stands for ''Vive La Jeunesse'' and the year of creation. In this way, it is possible to date the development of the designs over many years. The samples included here date back over 40 years to 1964 (when conscription was still practiced). Many of these images are from the village of Beauvoisin, but they could have come from any of the villages in Southern France where many of the smallest villages will have their own arena for bullfighting. Groups are formed which fundraise for the season of celebrations of youth called the

aubade An aubade is a morning love song (as opposed to a serenade, intended for performance in the evening), or a song or poem about lovers separating at dawn. It has also been defined as "a song or instrumental composition concerning, accompanying, or ev ...

in August. Groups will form to support their teams, to gather funds and to place their empègues around their area and at their base.La jeunesse de la Fête Votive 2008 sera sur tous les fronts!
24 July 2008

Vergèze 24Hactive.com, accessed 15 August 2008 The purpose of the images is to record which houses have contributed to the funds for the festival. This is why the images vary from year to year and why the design is important. The Empègue is the ''brand'' of the group that collected money from you.Blasons, plis mimétiques et topologiques
Christian Besson, LesChantiersBoiteNoire.com, August 2007
translation
accessed 15 August 2008 Image:2000 - IMG 1667 b.jpg, Beauvoisin ""VLJ 2000"" This millennium image shows the bull and the runner who is trying to capture prizes from the bulls horns. Image:2001 - IMG 1647.JPG , ""VLJ 2001"" The flamingos are wild in southern France. Image:2006 - IMG 1678 b.jpg, ""VLJ 2006"" A charging bull from 2006. Image:1996 - IMG 1650.JPG, Beauvoisin ""VLJ 1996"" Image:1989_-_IMG_1670_b.jpg, Beauvoisin ""VLJ 1989"" Image:1971 - IMG 1658.JPG , Beauvoisin ""VLJ 1971"" Image:1978 vignette Aubades.jpg, ""VLJ 1978"" 1978 was another flamingo Image:1964 - IMG 1676.JPG , Beauvoisin ""VLJ 1964""

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Empegue French youth culture Culture of France Graffiti in France

Etymology

Detail

See also

References