War Illustrator José Simont

Barcelona-born José Simont Guillén (1875–1968) was an internationally admired magazine illustrator during the first half of the 20th century. The Great War found him in Paris, where he produced many drawings of French soldiers, almost always highly sympathetic and sometimes quite sentimental. A sampling is shown here; all were signed with the abbreviated version of his name, J. Simont.

Relaxing and Chatting Behind the Front

Poilu Returning to His Old Factory

He was later awarded the Legion of Honor for his war work. After spending time in the interwar period in New York working for Collier's magazine, he found himself in Paris again during the Second World War. He drew much criticism, however, for his idealized portrayals of Marshal Pétain, of whom he was a great admirer from the earlier war. In 1947 he returned to Spain and eventually made his way to Venezuela, where he died in 1968.

Wounded Soldiers in Paris Having Their Boots Cleaned

Prisoner of War Returning Home

Images from Tony Langley's Collection and Wikipedia