This expressive masterpiece by Jean Vébert brilliantly illustrates the French idiom for financial struggle through a bold composition merging the fantastic with everyday life.
Set against an urban backdrop of sepia tones evoking post-war Parisian façades, a line of figures strains in collective effort to pull a grimacing demon. The diagonal progression of characters—from bourgeois gentleman in frock coat to laborers in smocks and women in dramatic poses—creates dynamic visual movement across the canvas.
The devil, a hybrid creature of exaggerated proportions, brandishes his pitchfork in a theatrical gesture. The chromatic palette, dominated by ochres and browns, reinforces the simultaneously grotesque and melancholic atmosphere, while the treatment of bodies—balanced between realism and caricature—demonstrates remarkable technical mastery.
Further information
- “Parisians Pulling the Devil by the Tail” by Jean Vébert, c. 1920
- 88 x 145 cm
- Musée Carnavalet – Histoire de Paris, Paris Musées
- https://www.parismuseescollections.paris.fr/fr/musee-carnavalet/oeuvres/les-parisiens-tirant-le-diable-par-la-queue
Jean Vébert (1864-1928) remains an underappreciated singular talent. Trained at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, he developed a unique style blending social realism with fantastical symbolism. His career, marked by unwavering commitment to social themes, produced numerous works that ironically critique the hardships of daily life in interwar Paris. This painting represents the pinnacle of his artistic achievement, combining technical excellence with an incisive vision of contemporary society.
