FRANCE HAPPY HOLIDAYS JEAN COLIN POSTER

With this stone lithograph, famed graphic designer Jean Colin issued a lovely invitation to tourists to spend their holidays in France.  But he didn’t just issue an invitation; he sent flowers as well. 

Red, white and blue posies (the colors of the French flag) bloom from the top of the Eiffel Tower, with the shape of the tower sketched as the stems of the flowers (or perhaps as a vase holding the flowers). A lovely ribbon tied with a bow creates the bouquet, and a butterfly casting a shadow lingers on this ribbon.  A light blue background, the color of the sky on a cloudless day, promises sunshine.  What tourist could resist this invitation? 

The text at the top of the poster, printed in black, simply reads “France.”  Beneath that, in light purple script resembling a handwritten invitation, are the words “Happy Holidays.”  The artist's signature appears in the plate on the left side. At the bottom, in smaller print, are the words, “With the trains and the motor coaches of the French National Railroads.”

This 1950s poster, aimed at English-speaking tourists, was designed for France's state-owned railway company by Jean Colin (1912-1982), a French graphic designer who created over three hundred posters during his career. Characterized by clever designs often incorporating understated humor, Colin's work appealed to a wide audience and has been compared to that of famed French poster artist Raymond Savignac. 

This same poster design was used in other tourism posters (in differing languages) promoting the French railway.

Visit France all over again with this wonderful reminder of great holidays past and its promise of wonderful French holidays yet to come.

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