Mid 20th Century Pair Japanese Woodblock Prints La Mariee and Le Marie by Paul Jacoulet

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An assembled pair of Japanese Woodblock print by Paul Jacoulet (French, 1896-1960) entitled La Mariee and Le Marie, Seoul Coree … Read more An assembled pair of Japanese Woodblock print by Paul Jacoulet (French, 1896-1960) entitled La Mariee and Le Marie, Seoul Coree (The Bride and The Groom). Created in 1948 and 1950, the two prints were not intentionally designed by Jacoulet as a matching pair. However, it became popular among his collectors to pair them as a couple due to the subject matter and the complimentary and symmetrical composition.
La Mariee shows a shy bride against a rather plain window like background which made her elaborate wedding gown pop. Silver and MOP mica were used both in the background and on her dress, the sash and its embroidery. It is signed in plate and marked with the Red Owl stamp. Le Marie sets the groom slightly back as a "floating figure" against a more elaborate Korean folding screen in the background. He dons a hat with tall peacock feather and holds on his lap a wooden wedding duck as a symbolic present to the bribe. Bronze mica was lavishly used on this wedding gown. Background is punctuated with silver mica spots. The print is signed in plate with a red Owl stamp as well.
The margins of both prints were folded back to accommodate previous frames. As a result, only the carver Maeda's seal and part of the printer's title visible (Uchikawa for La Mariee and Honda for Le Marie). Edition stamps are also folded back as shown. The image size is 11.75" x 15.5".
It should be noted that Jacoulet did not pulled the prints in the order of his edition number due to his complicated and eccentric numbering system.
Reference: No 91 and 110 "The Prints of Paul Jacoulet: A Complete Illustrated Catalog by Richard Miles.

An eccentric artist of his time, Paul Jacoulet was born in France but lived most his life in Japan. He is considered as one of the few western artists who have mastered the art of woodblock printing sufficiently to be recognized in Japan. Largely rooted in traditional Japanese woodblock printing techniques and ukiyo-e style, the artist developed a unique and recognizable style infused with his own aesthetic vision and technical approaches that set himself apart from Japanese artists. Nearly all portraits, Jacoulet depicted a wide range of people he encountered in his extensive travelling in the Far East as well as South Pacific. Often in their traditional outfits and surrounded by endogenous flora and props, his models often convey a more western sense of pose, with some directly confronting the viewers. Jacoulet occupies a special place in the world of ukiyo-e, the artist formed a bridge between the East and West. See less