La Danseuse Coreene. Coree, Seoul 1960

Paul Jacoulet produced this print, ‘La Danseuse Coreene’, in Seoul, Korea, at some point during his long stay in Asia between the 1930s and 1950s. Jacoulet was part of a longer trend of European artists who, from the late 19th century onwards, found inspiration in East Asia. He trained in traditional Japanese woodblock printing methods, and that is evident here. But, Jacoulet was clear that he was producing something new. Rather than copying Japanese styles, he wanted to bring a European sensibility to bear on what he saw around him. In this print, the theatrical pose of the dancer and the musician, along with the bright colors of their clothing, is eye-catching and a bit exotic. What did this image mean to Jacoulet, who was living as an expatriate, or to the Western buyers who purchased the image? These are questions we can ask as we investigate the social history of this work.