Vrouwen en kinderen op straat in Algiers, Algerije before 1893

This book illustration of women and children in Algiers, Algeria, was created by Jules Gervais-Courtellemont, sometime before 1931. The sepia tones and the book’s open, two-page layout create a symmetrical composition. On the left, the artist uses contrasting shapes: vertical lines of tall, thin plants against the broad, serrated leaves in the midground. This arrangement is mirrored on the right page with looping lines of ivy, which serve to frame the rigid text. Both images point towards the book’s center crease, where a pale rendering of women and children are gathered on a street in Algiers. This composition explores how constructed environments interact with the natural world, and contrasts European printmaking with exotic North African scenes. The book, as an object, is no longer simply a carrier of information but embodies the themes within its pages.