Jean Oberlé (13 January 1900, Brest - 2 March 1961, Paris) was a French painter who became a member of the

French Resistance The French Resistance (french: La Résistance) was a collection of organisations that fought the German occupation of France during World War II, Nazi occupation of France and the Collaborationism, collaborationist Vichy France, Vichy régim ...

. Born in

Brest Brest may refer to: Places *Brest, Belarus **Brest Region **Brest Airport **Brest Fortress *Brest, Kyustendil Province, Bulgaria *Břest, Czech Republic *Brest, France **Arrondissement of Brest **Brest Bretagne Airport ** Château de Brest *Brest, ...

in 1900, he illustrated a number of contemporary books and worked for different Parisian newspapers and magazines, of which le Crapouillot was the most important. He won the

Prix Blumenthal The Prix Blumenthal (or ''Blumenthal Prize'') was a grant or stipend awarded through the philanthropy of Florence Meyer Blumenthal (1875–1930) – and the foundation she created, ''Fondation franco-américaine Florence Blumenthal (Franco-Amer ...

in 1934. In 1940, he was at the BBC's

Broadcasting House Broadcasting House is the headquarters of the BBC, in Portland Place and Langham Place, London. The first radio broadcast from the building was made on 15 March 1932, and the building was officially opened two months later, on 15 May. The main ...

with Jean Marin when

General de Gaulle Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (; ; (commonly abbreviated as CDG) 22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French army officer and statesman who led Free France against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government ...

made his famous speech on 18 June 1940 calling on the French to resist. During the Second World War, he became one of the main French speakers on

Radio Londres ''Radio Londres'' (, French for "Radio London") was a radio station broadcast from 1940 to 1944 by the BBC in London to German occupation of France during World War II, Nazi-occupied France. It was entirely in French Language, French and was o ...

, the Free French broadcasts of the BBC. He created many of the famous slogans of the BBC Free French broadcast, in particular: «

Radio Paris Radio Paris was a French radio broadcasting company best known for its Axis propaganda broadcasts in Vichy France during World War II. Radio Paris evolved from the first private radio station in France, called Radiola, founded by pioneering Frenc ...

ment, Radio Paris ment, Radio Paris est allemand» ("Radio Paris is lying, Radio Paris is lying, Radio Paris is German"this slogan is sometimes wrongly accredited to Pierre Dac who sang it on the radio

E. L. T. Mesens Édouard Léon Théodore Mesens (27 November 1903 – 13 May 1971) was a Belgian artist and writer associated with the Belgian Surrealist movement. Biography Mesens was born in Brussels, Belgium. He started his artistic career as a musician inf ...

ou Maurice Van Moppès.).

Publications

Books

*''Images anglaises, ou l'Angleterre occupée'', Hachette, 1942; *''"Jean Oberlé vous parle ... ", souvenirs de cinq années à Londres'', avec sept dessins de l'auteur, La Jeune Parque, 1945; *''Pages choisies de Pierre Bourdan'', introduction de Jean Oberlé, Magnard, 1951; *''Utrillo Montmartre'', Hazan, 1956; *''La vie d'artiste (souvenirs)"'', illustrations de l'auteur, Denoel, 1956.

Illustrations

*''Lewis & Irène'', de

Paul Morand Paul Morand (13 March 1888 – 24 July 1976) was a French author whose short stories and novellas were lauded for their style, wit and descriptive power. His most productive literary period was the interwar period of the 1920s and 1930s. He was mu ...

, Eaux fortes hors texte en couleurs de Jean Oberlé, tirées par Roger Lacourière (Editions Emile-Paul Frères, 1925.); * ''Les Nuits de Walpurgis'', de

Maurice Dekobra Maurice Dekobra (26 May 1885, Paris – 1 June 1973, Paris) was a French writer. His real name was Ernest-Maurice Tessier.

, avec 12 eaux-fortes de Jean Oberlé (Editions Baudinière, 1926); * ''La Touraine'', de René Boylesve, frontispice de Jean Oberlé (Editions Emile-Paul Frères, Portrait de la France n°4, 1926); * ''La Pucelle de Belleville'', de

Paul de Kock Charles Paul de Kock (May 21, 1793 in Passy, Paris – April 27, 1871 in Paris) was a French novelist. Although one of the most popular writers of his day in terms of book sales, he acquired a literary reputation for low-brow output in poor tast ...

(MP. Trémois, Paris, 1927); * ''Amour, amour,…'', de Pierre Veber (Les arts et le livre, 1928); * ''La Vie de garçon'', de Jean Galtier, avec 8 eaux-fortes et des illustrations de Jean Oberlé (Mornay, 1929); * ''La Belle Amour'', de Jean Galtier (Librairie Gund, 1945); * ''Traversée de Paris'', de

Marcel Aymé Marcel Aymé (29 March 1902 – 14 October 1967) was a French novelist and playwright, who also wrote screenplays and works for children. Biography Marcel André Aymé was born in Joigny, in the Burgundy region of France, the youngest of si ...

, avec des gravures de Jean Oberlé (Édition de la Gallerie Charpentier, Paris, 1946) * ''Le Capitaine Conan'', de Roger Vercel (Monte-Carlo, Editions du Livre, 1946); * ''Les Linottes'', de

Georges Courteline Georges Courteline born Georges Victor Marcel Moinaux (25 June 1858 – 25 June 1929) was a French dramatist and novelist, a satirist notable for his sharp wit and cynical humor. Biography His family moved from Tours in Indre-et-Loire to Pari ...

(Nouvelle Librairie de France, 1948); * Couverture du n° de juin 1932 de Vanity Fair, représentant

Paul von Hindenburg Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg (; abbreviated ; 2 October 1847 – 2 August 1934) was a German field marshal and statesman who led the Imperial German Army during World War I and later became President of Germany fro ...

Paintings

*''Portrait du Général de Montsabert'' (huile sur toile, musée des beaux-arts de Bordeaux); *''Le port de Saint-Guénolé'' (huile sur

Isorel Masonite is a type of hardboard, a kind of engineered wood, which is made of steam-cooked and pressure-molded wood fibers in a process patented by William H. Mason. It is also called Quartrboard, Isorel, hernit, karlit, torex, treetex, and ...

, musée des beaux-arts de Nantes); *''Marine en Bretagne'' (huile sur

, musée des beaux-arts de Quimper); *''Portrait de Max Jacob'' (plume sur papier, musée des beaux-arts de Quimper).

Notes and references

External links