Francisque Poulbot (6 February 1879, in Saint-Denis – 16 September 1946, in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

) was a French (literally, "poster designer"), draughtsman and illustrator.

Biography

He was born in a family of teachers with parents who were lecturers. Francisque Poulbot, the oldest of seven children, was a gifted draughtsman who shied away from the

École des Beaux-Arts École des Beaux-Arts (; ) refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The term is associated with the Beaux-Arts style in architecture and city planning that thrived in France and other countries during the late nineteenth century ...

. Following 1900, his drawings started to appear in the press. He moved to

Montmartre Montmartre ( , ) is a large hill in Paris's northern 18th arrondissement. It is high and gives its name to the surrounding district, part of the Right Bank. The historic district established by the City of Paris in 1995 is bordered by Rue Ca ...

where, in February 1914, he married Léona Ondernard, before leaving for the Front; he was however sent back the following year. During the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, his patriotic posters and postcards led him to house arrest under the

German occupation of France during World War II The Military Administration in France (german: Militärverwaltung in Frankreich; french: Occupation de la France par l'Allemagne) was an interim occupation authority established by Nazi Germany during World War II to administer the occupied zo ...

. Between 1920 and 1921, Poulbot became involved with the creation of the together with his friends

Adolphe Willette Adolphe Léon Willette (30 July 1857, Châlons-sur-Marne4 February 1926, Paris) was a French Painting, painter, illustrator, caricaturist, and lithographer, as well as an architect of the famous Moulin Rouge cabaret. Willette ran as an "antisem ...

Jean-Louis Forain Jean-Louis Forain (23 October 1852 – 11 July 1931) was a French Impressionist painter and printmaker, working in media including oils, watercolour, pastel, etching and lithograph. Compared to many of his Impressionist colleagues, he was mo ...

and Maurice Neumont. In 1923, he opened a dispensary on

Rue Lepic Rue Lepic is an ancient road in the commune of Montmartre, in the 18th arrondissement of Paris, climbing the hill of Montmartre from the boulevard de Clichy to the place Jean-Baptiste-Clément It is an ancient road resulting of rectification an ...

to help needy children of Montmartre. He died in Paris on 16 September 1946 and was buried in

Montmartre Cemetery The Cemetery of Montmartre (french: link=no, Cimetière de Montmartre) is a cemetery in the 18th arrondissement of Paris, France, that dates to the early 19th century. Officially known as the Cimetière du Nord, it is the third largest necropolis ...

Descendants

Poulbot probably brought up his brother Paul's daughter Paulette, known as Zozo, who lost her mother before she was three years old. She is often described as his adopted daughter. Paulette married the artist Jean Cheval, the son of Adrien Cheval, one of Poulbot's friends. Among other collaborations there is a postcard series by Poulbot and Cheval.

"Poulbots"

The French

neologism A neologism Greek νέο- ''néo''(="new") and λόγος /''lógos'' meaning "speech, utterance"] is a relatively recent or isolated term, word, or phrase that may be in the process of entering common use, but that has not been fully accepted int ...

refers to illustrations representing Parisian "":

street children Street children are poor or homeless children who live on the streets of a city, town, or village. Homeless youth are often called street kids or street child; the definition of street children is contested, but many practitioners and policym ...

. A perfect example is an illustration of

Gavroche Gavroche () is a fictional character in the 1862 novel ''Les Misérables'' by Victor Hugo. He is a boy who lives on the streets of Paris. His name has become a synonym for an urchin or street child. Gavroche plays a short yet significant role i ...

, the famous character from the novel ''

Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' ( , ) is a French historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published in 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. In the English-speaking world, the novel is usually referred to by its original ...

'' by

Victor Hugo Victor-Marie Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romantic writer and politician. During a literary career that spanned more than sixty years, he wrote in a variety of genres and forms. He is considered to be one of the great ...

External links

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Collection of postcards by Poulbot
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23 December 1911 illustration by Poulbot in ''Hommes du jour - Réjane''
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29 July 1911 illustration by Adolphe Willette entitled ''à Poulbot alité suite à la suite d'un accident'' ("To Poulbot bedridden after an accident")
{{DEFAULTSORT:Poulbot, Francisque 1879 births 1946 deaths People from Saint-Denis, Seine-Saint-Denis French draughtsmen French illustrators French poster artists Burials at Montmartre Cemetery People of Montmartre