Minneapolis Institute of Art

Videgrain, for Francois Rabelais, Pantagruel

André Derain

Date: 1943
Medium: Color woodcut (white line)
Department: European Art
Institution: Minneapolis Institute of Art

During Word War II, while Paris was occupied by Nazi forces, André Derain prepared illustrations for an editon of the famous 16th-century French satire Pantagruel by François Rabelais (1494-1554). Videgrain, shown in this colorful woodcut, was the great grandfather of the title character. Though the illustrations have a childlike playfulness, with graphic qualities resembling playing cards, the project was patriotic and provocative, since Rabelais's work was an icon of French culture and dealt with the humiliating defeat of a foreign occupier. Derain's work drew the attention of the Nazis. His home was visited regularly by the Gestapo and for a while his woodblocks were confiscated. France, Europe

View at Minneapolis Institute of Art ↗

The authoritative record is held by Minneapolis Institute of Art. LinkedCulture surfaces this object and its connections; it does not alter institutional metadata.