EXTRACTS: Illustrators issue 24 © 2018 The Book Palace (96 PAGES in Full edition)

1 Cover Image: Rojac Illustrators The Book Palace Jubilee House Bedwardine Road Crystal Palace London SE19 3AP Email: IQ@bookpalace.com Web: www.bookpalace.com Contact GW: gw@bookpalace.com Tel: 020 8768 0022 (From overseas +44 20 8768 0022 ) Publisher: Geoff West Editor & Art Director: Peter Richardson Deputy Editor & Designer: Diego Cordoba Feature writer and layouts: Diego Cordoba Consultant editors: David Ashford, Norman Boyd Website: Paul Tanner Subscriptions & Distribution: David Howarth Advertising: ads@bookpalace.com illustrators ISBN 978-1-907081-49-1 ISSN 2052-6520 Issue Number Twenty-Four Winter 2018 Copyright © 2018 by The Book Palace Ltd. All text and artwork copyright is vested with the respective creators and publishers. None of the material within these pages may be reproduced without the written consent of illustrators or the aforementioned copyright holders. The images reproduced within these pages are for research purposes and all efforts have been made to ensure their historical accuracy. illustrators is published quarterly. Back issues £20 each plus postage 4 issue subscriptions UK £55 POST FREE includes 4 free digital issues EU/USA £70 POST FREE includes 4 free digital issues ROW £75 POST FREE includes 4 free digital issues Available in the USA from budplant.com Trade Orders : IQ@bookpalace.com Printed in China by Prolong Press Ltd French Movie Poster issue CONTENTS EDITORIAL There have been many books covering movie poster art, mostly from either an American or British aspect, and some even exploring exploitation and erotic (and pornographic) cinema. But never before has there been a collection of movie posters from a particular country. This issue we are going Gallic all the way. First off we begin by telling the story behind the affiches in France, which consisted of a printed news-sheet telling the news of the day and stuck on walls, which gave way to illustrated advertisements, and would, towards the end of the nineteenth century, pave the way towards movie posters. The history of movie posters in France began almost simultaneously with the creation of cinema (indeed there was an illustrated poster that accompanied one of the first films ever, ‘The Sprinkler Sprinkled’ from 1895). Soon many painters, engravers and other artists would also make their way as movie poster illustrators for both American and French film companies, since the pay was so good. Movie poster artists in France had a very strong graphic design that differentiated them from their American or British counterparts. There were the figurative artists and those who had a stronger graphic sense of design, not to mention cartoonists who also made some memorable movie posters. To round off this issue, we finish by dedicating a separate entry to the five most important (and famous) French movie poster artists of the past century: Boris Grinsson, Clément Hurel, Jean Mascii, René Ferracci and Michel Landi. We also bring back our gallery section, this time featuring J. J. Grandville, the creator of animals behaving like humans, and, lastly, our book reviews and insider’s anecdote. Special thanks to Heritage Auctions for the images. The opinions expressed in illustrators are those of the writers, and are not necessarily those of the editor and publishers. The accuracy of the authentication of all images is the responsibility of the contributors. 2 The history of how “affiches” gave way to movie posters in France. 38 One of the early poster artists whose broadstroke art made him a perennial favourite. An artist who worked in many different graphic styles. Boris Grinsson French Movie Posters The best of the figurative artists becoming the in-demand artist for the Belmondo films. The most graphic challenging of all the French poster artists and the best art director of all. One of the last surviving grandmasters, and very prolific too. 50 58 72 84 94 Clément Hurel Jean Mascii René Ferracci Michel Landi 96 93 From The Inside The Gallery The Bookshelf Books to put under the Christmas tree. A strange visitor in the offices of a Belgian comics journal. The funny animals of Grandville.