'Les Jades. Chinoise (Lady Jade, Chinese)'
This woodblock print depicts a Chinese 'Manchurian' woman as Jacoulet's 'Lady Jade'.  The carver and printer for this 1940 print was Maeda and Ogawa, respectively.  It was limited to 350 prints.  This impressively scarce print is sealed and signed by Jacoulet in the body of the print.   It has trimmed quarter inch margins under the mat. The print measures 15.25" x 11.5", and the frame measures 27" x 21", a regal presentation for this Manchurian 'Lady Jade'.  'Lady Jade' is Jacoulet's most popular print for the quality of the printing and the vegetable colors used. Interestingly, the model was not an aristocratic Manchurian woman as one might assume, but a servant of the artist's mother. Paul Jacoulet worked in ukiyo-e tradition, but developed his own distinct style. He is renowned for his stunningly intricate designs, his eloquently romantic subjects and his complex printing techniques. In Jacoulet’s best work, images of the most extravagantly aristocratic exoticism stand beside spare studies of the very poor. This balance of sentiment and objectivity, spiced by imagination, is the life work of an eccentric and passionate artist who was influenced by both the East and West, yet stands firmly and defiantly outside of both traditions.  Paul Jacoulet was born in Paris, but lived most of his life in Japan. His father was an ambassador, and his mother was a great supporter of his art career. During World War II, he moved to Karuizawa, where he survived in the countryside by growing vegetables and raising poultry. During the occupation, at the request of General Douglas MacArthur, he was recruited by Commandant Charles McDowell to work at the Tokyo Army College. MacArthur would join Greta Garbo, Pope Pius XII and Queen Elizabeth II, as a prominent collector of Jacoulet's work.       P70026      $1,195.00  Shipping cost will be determined by your zip code, please ask if questions.