La Baleine

With just a few strokes of paint, Michel Quarez tells the story of the fathomless depths of the swimming pool for the little swimmer. The choice of perspective, looking up from below, means that the little legs and trunks reinforce the sheer mass of the water. Quarez began his career in advertising, but later moved on to design solely for the social and cultural sector. For a brief period in 1976, he was a member of Grapus, the communist-oriented design collective. His left-wing politics play an important part in his work. Quarez lives in the Parisian suburb of St. Denis, where his subjects, involving social and political issues, are there for the taking. La Baleine (The Whale) is a swimming pool in his neighbourhood. It takes its name from the shape of the roof, which looks like a whale’s back. Quarez belongs among the ranks of great French poster designers who have used paint to create their images, including Toulouse Lautrec, Charles Loupot and Cassandre. His posters stand out in the urban landscape with their dramatic use of colour.