Videgrain, for Francois Rabelais, Pantagruel

André Derain

1943

Color woodcut (white line)

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 Gesta