Adrien Barrère

Biography

• 1874 – Born November 13 in the 11th arrondissement of Paris (birth name: Adrien Baneux).
• 1890s – Studied law and medicine before transitioning to art and caricature.
• Early 1900s – Began producing theatrical posters for music halls and venues such as the Grand-Guignol.
• 1904 – Created the famous caricature lithograph of the Paris Medical Faculty (Faculté de Médecine de Paris) featuring 84 professors; distributed widely among students.
• 1908 – Designed several posters for Pathé Frères including the iconic “Tous y mènent leurs enfants.”
• 1912 – Recognized as a major illustrator in cinema and theatrical poster production.
• 1914-1918 active during the War as an artist at the front and produced ‘L’Album du Poilus‘ containing 125 drawings
• 1923 – Published Le cirque de Paris, highlighting Parisian nightlife and personalities.
• 1930 – Completed a caricature of filmmaker Abel Gance.
• 1931 – Died May 19 in the 14th arrondissement of Paris, aged 56.

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Medical Caricatures

Barrère produced a series of lithographs of the Professors in the Faculties of Medicine and the Law, four of the former and two of the latter. These were printed by Barrère himself and sometimes col­oured by hand. They were produced in the Latin Quarter of Paris and he sold 420,000 over a period of twenty-five years. A seventh medical plate was created, but he decided against publishing it.

The caricatures are faithful and at the time deemed to be a fair depiction of each physician or professor, most associated with some insignia of his particular discipline. Above all they are accurate as Barrère had first hand acquaintance in the lecture-room or operating theatres.

A detailed description of each of the lithographs can be found on their respective pages from the link in their title below

A vivid grouping (1903)

The naked lady (1906)

12 Professors of Pathology (1910)

A Cluster of Surgeons (1910)

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Barrère and the Great War

Barrère was fascinated by medicine and the doctors and nurses he met. He aptly recorded war medicine, and the avant-garde and innovative techniques which evolved during the war such as blood transfusion, IV infusions, radiography, psychiatry, etc.

Barrère sketched quickly, capturing a snapshot on the battlefields, in the trenches, in field hospitals and on airfields. The faces are drawn with striking realism: they are serious, tortured by both physical and psychological pain that cannot leave anyone indifferent to the suffering.

The sketches are an exceptional testimony to the daily life of the soldiers, the living conditions, and equipment, with a particular focus on medical care, which evolved a lot during the war. The sense of synthesis and observation of the artist brings a striking realism to the whole and encourages us to the duty of memory.

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Major Publications

• Barrère A. Quelques silhouettes médicales. 1900
• Barrère A. Fifteen French doctors wearing aprons and holding various instruments. Colour lithograph, from the Open: Wellcome Collection. 1903
• Barrère A. Les professeurs de la Faculté de médecine de Paris. 1904
• Barrère A. Sixteen French doctors with attributes of their specialties. Colour lithograph, from the Open: Wellcome Collection. 1906
• Barrère A. Twelve doctors standing in test tubes. Colour lithograph, Colour lithograph, from the Open: Wellcome Collection. 1910.
• Barrère A. Twelve French surgeons portrayed as pathological specimens in glass jars. Colour lithograph, from the Open: Wellcome Collection. 1910.
• Barrère A. L’Album des poilus. Leurs souvenirs de guerre (1914-1918). PDF book
• Barrère A. Les croquis de guerre 1914-1918. Tome II, Tome III

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References

Biography

• Acremant A. Salon des humoristes. La Vie artistique, May 1911
• Landler H. Les croquis de guerre d’Adrien Barrère. 2015
• Lambert E, Benoist D. Adrien Barrère, caricaturiste. la BIU Santé 2013
• Adrien Barrère (1874-1931), Data BNF
• Portrait. Adrien Barrère. maisons-champagne

LITFL Lithograph series

1. Peschanski N, Cadogan M. A vivid grouping (1903). LITFL
2. Peschanski N, Cadogan M. Sixteen French doctors (1906). LITFL
3. Peschanski N, Cadogan M. Twelve Professors of Pathology (1910). LITFL
4. Peschanski N, Cadogan M. A Cluster of Surgeons (1910). LITFL

Eponymous terms

• Le Vay D. Adrien Barrère. A French medical caricaturist. Practitioner. 1971 Jul;207(237):106-13
• Le Vay D. Adrien Barrère. A French medical caricaturist. 2. Practitioner. 1971 Aug;207(238):239-43
• Knisely WH. Adrien Barrère and his caricatures of the medical faculty of the University of Paris: “A Vivid Grouping”. J Child Neurol. 1988 Apr;3(2):124
• Knisely WH. Adrien Barrère and his caricatures of the medical faculty of the University of Paris: “The Professorss” J Child Neurol. 1988 Jan;3(1):52
• Knisely WH. Adrien Barrère and his caricatures of the medical faculty of the University of Paris:. “Surgeons and Gynecologists”: J Child Neurol. 1988 Jan;3(1):29.