Emmanuel Poiré (6 November 1858 – 25 February 1909), known by the
pseudonym
A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true meaning ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's o ...
Caran d'Ache (), was a 19th-century Russian-French
satirist
This is an incomplete list of writers, cartoonists and others known for involvement in satire – humorous social criticism. They are grouped by era and listed by year of birth. Included is a list of modern satires.
Early satirical authors
*Aes ...
Napoleonic era
The Napoleonic era is a period in the history of France and history of Europe, Europe. It is generally classified as including the fourth and final stage of the French Revolution, the first being the National Assembly (French Revoluti ...
, he went on to create "stories without words" and as a contributor to newspapers such as the ''
Le Figaro
() is a French daily morning newspaper founded in 1826. It was named after Figaro, a character in several plays by polymath Pierre Beaumarchais, Beaumarchais (1732–1799): ''Le Barbier de Séville'', ''The Guilty Mother, La Mère coupable'', ...
'', he is sometimes hailed as one of the precursors of
comic strips
A comic strip is a Comics, sequence of cartoons, arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often Serial (literature), serialized, with text in Speech balloon, balloons and Glossary of comics terminology#Captio ...
.
Name
Emmanuel Poiré initially published his illustrations with military themes under the name Caporal Poiré, but later adopted the pseudonym Caran d'Ache, and it was under this name that his work became well known in France. The pseudonym comes from the
Russian
Russian(s) may refer to:
*Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*A citizen of Russia
*Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages
*''The Russians'', a b ...
word () meaning 'pencil', which, attested in Russian from the 16th–17th centuries, is in turn a borrowing from a
Turkic language
The Turkic languages are a language family of more than 35 documented languages, spoken by the Turkic peoples of Eurasia from Eastern Europe and Southern Europe to Central Asia, East Asia, North Asia (Siberia), and West Asia. The Turkic langua ...
.
When the stationery company Fabrique Genevoise de Crayons Ecridor came under new management in 1924, the company was renamed Caran d'Ache, after Poiré, with a nod to the pseudonym's etymological roots.
Biography
Born in
Moscow
Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
on 6 November 1858, d'Ache was the grandson of an Officer-
Grenadier
A grenadier ( , ; derived from the word ''grenade'') was historically an assault-specialist soldier who threw hand grenades in siege operation battles. The distinct combat function of the grenadier was established in the mid-17th century, when ...
in
Napoleon
Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...
's
Grande Armée
The (; ) was the primary field army of the French Imperial Army (1804–1815), French Imperial Army during the Napoleonic Wars. Commanded by Napoleon, from 1804 to 1808 it won a series of military victories that allowed the First French Empi ...
who, wounded during the
Battle of Borodino
The Battle of Borodino ( ) or Battle of Moscow (), in popular literature also known as the Battle of the Generals, took place on the outskirts of Moscow near the village of Borodino on 7 September 1812 during Napoleon's invasion of Russia. ...
, had stayed behind in Russia. After his grandfather's death, he was adopted by a Polish family whose daughter he later married. His younger sister, Maria Poiret, became a famous dancer and actress.
In 1877, he emigrated to France where he gained French citizenship and joined the
Army
An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...
for five years, where he was assigned to design uniforms for the ministry of war. He also contributed to their journal ''La Vie militaire'' with satirical illustrations, among them some
caricatures
A caricature is a rendered image showing the features of its subject in a simplified or exaggerated way through sketching, pencil strokes, or other artistic drawings (compare to: cartoon). Caricatures can be either insulting or complimentary, ...
of the German army.
In 1898 he co-founded the satirical, anti- Dreyfusard weekly magazine ''Psst... !'' along with fellow artist and designer
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 m ...
. The magazine lasted 85 issues and was made up entirely of editorial cartoons by Caran d'Ache and Forain, caricaturing society and its scandals from an
antisemitic
Antisemitism or Jew-hatred is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who harbours it is called an antisemite. Whether antisemitism is considered a form of racism depends on the school of thought. Antisemi ...
, pro-Army viewpoint., quoting from
He died in Paris on 25 February 1909 at the age of 50.
Le Chat Noir
(; French for "The Black Cat") was a 19th century entertainment establishment in the Montmartre district of Paris. It was opened on 18 November 1881 at 84 Boulevard de Rochechouart by impresario Rodolphe Salis, and closed in 1897 not long ...
''. He also issued various albums of sketches and posters, some listed below. and illustrated a good many books, notably Benardaky's ''Prince Kozakokoff''.
*1880: His first drawings of military caricatures were published in ''La Chronique Parisienne''.
*1892: Caran d'Ache published ''Carnet de Chèques'' ("Checkbook") on the Panama Canal Affair.
*1895: He started publishing editorial cartoons (every Monday) in the daily ''
Le Figaro
() is a French daily morning newspaper founded in 1826. It was named after Figaro, a character in several plays by polymath Pierre Beaumarchais, Beaumarchais (1732–1799): ''Le Barbier de Séville'', ''The Guilty Mother, La Mère coupable'', ...
'', and soon thereafter for the popular weekly '' Le Rire''.
* A poster for an «Exposition Russe» in Paris was published in
Les Maîtres de l'Affiche
''Maîtres de l'Affiche'' (Masters of the Poster) refers to 256 color lithographic plates used to create an art publication during the Belle Époque in Paris, France. The collection, reproduced from the original works of ninety-seven artists in a ...
.
*1898: Caran d'Ache published the cartoon ("A Family Dinner"), highlighting the intense disagreements in French society regarding the Dreyfus Affair. It appeared a month after Émile Zola's famous ''
J'Accuse
"''J'Accuse...!''" (; "I Accuse...!") is an open letter, written by Émile Zola in response to the events of the Dreyfus affair, that was published on 13 January 1898 in the newspaper ''L'Aurore''. Zola addressed the president of France, Félix ...
'', which inflamed and hardened opinion on both sides.