La Fin de la Grande Guerre (The End of the Great War),

1915

High and low art intersect in this propagandistic print published during the early stages of the war by the avant-garde book illustrator, textile designer, and painter Raoul Dufy. His enthusiasm for the tradition of French popular woodcuts, known as images d’Épinal, is evident in the stylized forms and broadly applied colors. Accompanied by an optimistic title and patriotic verses, a giant Gallic rooster crows victory over a Prussian eagle; appearing on the margins are vignettes depicting French heroes (General Joffre and Joan of Arc) and German atrocities, including the bombing of Reims Cathedral in September 1914. This print is a later and more elaborately colored version of an illustration that appeared in Le Mot, a patriotic magazine founded by the poet Jean Cocteau.