Jean Cocteau, drawing for Querelle de Brest (Jean Genet)
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DEATH AND STATUES
During the war, in October 1941, the pro-Nazi Vichy government decreed that statues "without artistic or historical importance" could be torn to pieces by the Germans in order to reuse the metal.
In December, the photographer Pierre Jahan, taking considerable risks, photographed them, piled up in a courtyard in Paris, in the 12th arrondissement, ready to leave for the foundries.
Jean Cocteau was so enthusiastic about those photographs that he decided to publish them in a book, writing the text himself.
Just over a hundred pages, the illustrated volume was published at the end of the war, in 1946, and republished several times. It is one of the most beautiful, saddest and most engaging photographic books ever made, just look at the photos of the dying alligators or the discouragement of the young orphan of the other statues of his family. I don't think it has ever been published in other countries. It can be found online at decent prices. There is also a first edition with a dedication by Cocteau for 1,200 euros.
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The Orphic Trilogy dir. Jean Cocteau:
Testament of Orpheus (1960)
Orpheus (1950)
The Blood of a Poet (1930)
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Jean Cocteau sculpting his own head in wire 1925
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I have sea foam in my veins, I understand the language of waves.
Jean Cocteau, Le testament d’Orphée
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Jean Cocteau (1889-1963) — Orpheus Mirror [gilt bronze, ca. 1950]
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Jean Cocteau and Jean Marais (c.1940's) photographed by Cecil Beaton.
Cocteau and Marais met in 1937 and were partners, both professionally and personally, until 1947. Marais was considered to be Cocteaus muse and starred in plays and movies written and/or directed by Cocteau. After they ended their romantic relationship, they remained life long friends.
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Christopher Smith, Untitled (Cocteau Ceiling), 2021
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