Épinal is a small town located near the Vosages Mountains in northeastern France, where the local abundance of wood made the city a natural site for paper production and other related industries. Consequently, from the late 18th to early 20th century, Épinal specialized in and became famous throughout the world for printmaking. Most notably, it was known for the creation of popular imagery, which included toys, games and religious paraphernalia.
In addition to reflecting and influencing the lives of the citizens of France at the time, these images of Épinal appear to have been a great source of inspiration of the avant-garde painters of the mid- to late-19th century - artists such as Courbet, Daumier and Manet. Thus, the importance of this Épinal imagery is twofold: In addition to providing a history of French life, these crudely drawn and brightly colored prints also serve as a takeoff point for modern art. Recognizing this importance is the University's Museum of Art, which will be displaying nearly 200 works of a variety of genres, all of which come to us directly from Épinal, via Canada's Musée du Quebec.
The prints that come from Épinal are very diverse in nature, and the Museum of Art has taken great care to highlight the variety. The 173 works on display are grouped according to type, separating the children's toys from the moralizing imagery, for example. This comprehensive exhibition includes playing cards, tarot cards, wallpaper, wrapping paper, paper clock faces (these were popular because they were cheaper than enamel ones), print shop catalogues, paper soldiers, puzzles, games, comics, paper theaters and educational imagery for children.
As people walk into this exhibition, they are greeted by an astounding array of life-sized soldiers, saints and dolls. They attract and lure one into the brightly colored gallery, and serve to create an entertaining atmosphere, in keeping with a primary function of Épinal imagery, popular entertainment.
Indeed, this exhibition is highly entertaining. It is also user-friendly, interactive on many levels. At the entrance are copies of the self-guided walking tour, which gives the viewer a closer look at approximately 30 of the images on display. The guide is written by Western Art curator Annette Dixon, and research assistant and doctoral candidate in history, John Cornell.
On one side of the exhibition is a display allowing one to see the various stages of print production. In another corner are an audio device that plays French songs and a video, also French, which plays cartoons illustrated by Épinal imagery, including "Cinderella" and "Beauty and the Beast." There are puzzles that one can piece together and even a puppet theater for putting on a production of "Puss in Boots." And at the center of the exhibition is a life-sized game to play, the Game of the Goose.
Bearing in mind the historical nature of this display, there are timelines on the walls to inform the viewer of the events of the times contemporary with these images. These timelines provide an interesting perspective when considering such simple imagery as children's toys. Suddenly, sheets of toy soldiers take on a propagandizing effect for a Napoleonic Era, for example.
Related programs to this exhibition include a roundtable discussion, titled "Rereading Nineteenth-Century French Popular Imagery," moderated by Museum of Art curator Annette Dixon. Also, docent-led tours of this exhibition will be available at 2 p.m. on Dec. 1, 15 and 29. The works will be on display until Jan. 5, but I recommend going as soon, and as often, as possible. This is one of the Museum's biggest exhibitions, and one of its best.
Francois Georgin's "Hussein-Bey, Dey of Algiers" will be on display through Jan. 5.