A Belle Époque caricature artist named Sem

Recently I watched the delightful film, Gigi, which was created in 1958 by Vincente Minnelli.

I became enchanted with the film titles with the equally delightful artwork in the background by an artist from the Belle Époque named George Goursat, alias Sem.

Sem lived in France from 1863 - 1934. Born into wealth, he lived the high life. He also had a highly productive career as a caricaturist. He drew what he lived, and he was surrounded by high society during the turn-of-the-century France.

So his work was the perfect backdrop for the film Gigi, based on the Collette novella, about a young woman who is learning the ways of high society during the Belle Époque.

The title sequence can be viewed in it’s entirety along with the musical accompaniment here: http://annyas.com/screenshots/updates/gigi-1958-vincente-minnelli/

For more information about the artist Sem, check out this website: https://www.sem-goursat.com/

Traci Churchill
Roswell, Georgia
May 25, 2021