Date: 1931

Origin: CNE Archives with files from the Star Weekly, August 26, 1933

The art for the CNE 1931 poster was created by Jules Laget.

The Artist: Jules Laget 

Jules Laget designed posters for the Canadian National Exhibition in the early 1930s. A native of Marseilles, France, Mr. Laget was the son of an art teacher and studied at the L’Ecole Beaux Arts in Paris. In 1914, he joined the French Army and went through four years of war, serving as an artilleryman and in the air force as a photographer. During this time, he was wounded several times and suffered from gas poisoning for many years to come. As reported in the Star Weekly in the early 1930s, his experience in the war precluded his ability to see any glory in war. “Ask any man,” he said “who has been through it, what war is, and he will tell you in one word — Hell.” After the war, Jules Laget emigrated to the United States. He worked in New York for five years with a well-known illustrator and later went to Detroit in the employ of a large automobile company. While in Detroit, he was determined to become a Canadian, and subsequently moved to Canada. His reasons were as follows: “I have every respect for the United States; it is a fine country. I like the people and recognize their ability, but I love Canada for its home life, it companionable way of living, its foresight, youthfulness and its wonderful future. We, here, are not – how do you say it? — keyed up to the same speed as the Americans, but we are developing safely and surely”.