Jean Rouppert (1887–1979) was a French artist. He was a painter, a

caricaturist A caricaturist is an artist who specializes in drawing caricatures. List of caricaturists * Abed Abdi (born 1942) * Abril Lamarque (1904–1999) * Al Hirschfeld (1903–2003) * Alex Gard (1900–1948) * Alexander Saroukhan (1898–1977) * Alfre ...

and a sculptor.

Biography

Jean Rouppert was born on 11 August 1887 in

Custines Custines () is a commune in the Meurthe-et-Moselle department in north-eastern France. History The town was called Condé until 1719. Population See also * Communes of the Meurthe-et-Moselle department The following is a list of the 591 ...

, a town which is situated in the district of

Meurthe-et-Moselle Meurthe-et-Moselle () is a '' département'' in the Grand Est region of France, named after the rivers Meurthe and Moselle. Its prefecture and largest city is Nancy and it borders the departments of Meuse to the west, Vosges to the south, ...

. Jean François Rouppert was the son of Johann Rouppert – a metal worker – and of Marie Clémence Kieffer. He lived in Lorraine until 1924 when he moved to the Rhône-Alpes region. He first lived in Lyon and from 1932 onwards he settled in the area of

Roanne Roanne (; ; ) is a commune in the Loire department, central France. It is located northwest of Lyon on the river Loire. It has an important Museum, the ''Musée des Beaux-arts et d'Archéologie Joseph-Déchelette'' (French), with many Egypt ...

. Between 1913 and 1924 he was employed as a set painter and then as an art manager for the

Emile Gallé Emile or Émile may refer to: * Émile (novel) (1827), autobiographical novel based on Émile de Girardin's early life * Emile, Canadian film made in 2003 by Carl Bessai * '' Emile: or, On Education'' (1762) by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, a treatise o ...

institutions in Nancy. Because he was initially a self-taught person, his formation at Gallé obviously left a mark on him. Afterwards he stood out as a protagonist of the

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...

movement. The

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

made much of an impact on him as he went through its entire length as a soldier. He made numerous black ink drawings that formed an uncompromising criticism of the war. In 1925 he became an independent artist and he started up a workshop of his own in

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

which he relocated in Saint-Alban-les-Eaux in 1932. During his lifetime Jean Rouppert expressed himself through drawing mainly, and also through painting. He also developed

wood sculpture Wood carving (or woodcarving) is a form of woodworking by means of a cutting tool (knife) in one hand or a chisel by two hands or with one hand on a chisel and one hand on a mallet, resulting in a wooden figure or figurine, or in the sculptural ...

, mostly from 1934 onwards. He addressed multiple themes, amongst which are mainly found

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, ...

and expressive faces, the

Great War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, naturalistic or imaginary landscapes and wildlife art. He also drew

illustrations An illustration is a decoration, interpretation, or visual explanation of a text, concept, or process, designed for integration in print and digitally published media, such as posters, flyers, magazines, books, teaching materials, animations, vi ...

which depicted a literary or historical theme. Besides, he gave shape to mythological, legendary or religious characters as well as popular figures and he designed Art Deco patterns too. As a Lorraine inhabitant, Jean Rouppert had been influenced by German art and Lorraine art from the 16th and 17th century ( Dürer, Callot) which enhanced his stroke with cogency and accuracy. The influence of Gallé and to a greater extent the

Arts and Crafts Movement The Arts and Crafts movement was an international trend in the decorative and fine arts that developed earliest and most fully in the British Isles and subsequently spread across the British Empire and to the rest of Europe and America. Initiat ...

, the

Art Nouveau Art Nouveau ( ; ; ), Jugendstil and Sezessionstil in German, is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and ...

and

Japonisme ''Japonisme'' is a French term that refers to the popularity and influence of Japanese art and design among a number of Western European artists in the nineteenth century following the Bakumatsu, forced reopening of foreign trade with Japan in 1 ...

appear in his works. This influence becomes visible through his ink drawings as much as in his water colours, his

gouache Gouache (; ), body color, or opaque watercolor is a water-medium paint consisting of natural pigment, water, a binding agent (usually gum arabic or dextrin), and sometimes additional inert material. Gouache is designed to be opaque. Gouach ...

works or his sculptures. Jean Rouppert put his art on display during the 1930s, 1940s and the 1950s. He exhibited his works in museums and galleries, including the "Salon de la Société lyonnaise des Beaux-Arts" and the "Salon des Amis des Arts à Roanne". He died on 25 August 1979 at the age of 91, following his wife by one year. Some retrospective exhibitions have been dedicated to him since 1996 in many "Musées de France".

References

* Ronald Müller, ''Jean Rouppert, un dessinateur dans la tourmente de la Grande Guerre'', L’Harmattan, 2007, 224 p., book which contains illustrations. * (fr) Ronald Müller, ''Les animaux de Jean Rouppert – Entre Japonisme et Arts Décoratifs'', Musée A.-G.Poulain, Vernon, 2012, 52 p., (). * (fr) Ronald Müller, Jean Rouppert – Plages biographiques. Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie : Édition Stéphane Archambault – Série RENCART, 2017, 48 p. (). * (fr) Samuel Provost, Les Établissements Gallé dans les années vingt : déclin et essaimage. Revue de l'art, No 199, 2018, pp. 47–54. (). * (en) Samuel Provost. Établissements Gallé and the Industriel Mold-Blown or Relief Séries of the 1920s. Corning New York : ''Journal of Glass Studies'', Vol.60, 2018, p.269-294. * (en) Samuel Provost, The Gallé signatures on glass after 1904 : a tentative chronology (part II, 1920-1936), Newsletter on Art Nouveau Craftwork & Industry, no 5, 2 January 2021

ink Ink is a gel, sol, or solution that contains at least one colorant, such as a dye or pigment, and is used to color a surface to produce an image, text, or design. Ink is used for drawing or writing with a pen, brush, reed pen, or quill. ...

* (en) Samuel Provost, Glaïeuls, a case study of a popular floral series by the Établissements Gallé, Newsletter on Art Nouveau Craftwork & Industry, no 18, 2022

* (en) Samuel Provost, "Jean Rouppert as the designer of Gallé lamps in the early 1920s." Newsletter on Art Nouveau Craftwork & Industry, no 27, 2023, (link).

External links

Jean Rouppert's official web site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rouppert, Jean 1887 births 1979 deaths French decorative artists French romantic painters Art Deco sculptors French landscape artists French caricaturists Art Nouveau painters 20th-century French painters 20th-century French male artists French male painters Art Nouveau sculptors People from Meurthe-et-Moselle 20th-century French sculptors