Apprenons Cela dés l'École...
1958
Artist
Marie-Claire Lefort
Artist
Marie-Francine Oppeneau
DIMENSIONS
23 3/4 x 17 1/2 in. (60.3 x 44.5 cm)
OBJECT NUMBER
PH.7653
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN
France
CREDIT LINE
Poster House Permanent Collection
KEYWORDS
Alcohol, Children, Health and Safety, White

This poster is based on a drawing by Jeanne Guégan, a student at the Noyal-Pontivy school, from the Health-Sobriety poster competition. It was finessed into a final composition by Lefor-Openo. The Health-Sobriety campaign focused on issues of individual health, social hygiene, and family morality, often promoting new scientific data that pointed to the various health complications arising from increased alcohol consumption as well as the propensity for domestic violence. In 1956, a year after the campaign began, France outlawed the drinking of alcohol in school for children under the age of 14. Before this legislation, all students had been permitted to bring up to half a liter of wine, beer, or cider to class with them, often mixed with water. Students over the age of 14 could bring alcohol to school until 1981 when it was finally banned. This poster attempts to reinforce this new law, reminding the viewer that at school “neither wine, nor fortified beverages; no alcohol for children.” Culturally, this law was met with some resistance, especially in rural regions where up to 72 percent of homes still did not have running water, making wine one of the most readily available and shelf-stable options. Many did not view wine as “real” alcohol (as opposed to stronger beverages like cognac).

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