Les Graines De Camelia. Oshima, Izu 1957

Paul Jacoulet made this print of women picking camelia seeds on Oshima Island, probably sometime in the mid-20th century. Looking at it, I’m thinking about the artist, Jacoulet, and the decisions he made. The flattening of the figures is so interesting, and I wonder, was he looking at Matisse, or Japanese Ukiyo-e prints, or both? The composition has a playful, graphic feel, with these women arranged in a kind of pattern against the landscape. I’m drawn to the way Jacoulet uses color to define the forms. The women’s clothing and headscarves become these vibrant, almost abstract shapes, with each color carefully chosen and placed. It must have been a bit of a puzzle, working out how each color would interact and how to print them all in the right order. It makes me think about how every artist is always in conversation with artists of the past. We take their ideas, mix them up with our own experiences, and create something new.