Belle epoque: the French idylls of an artist’s youth – in pictures

Graphic artist Jean Jullien is best known for his black-line illustrations of everyday life in publications such as the New Yorker, but his personal artworks show a more romantic worldview.

In his new monograph (Jean Jullien, published by Phaidon, £45), the French beaches and countryside where he grew up are lush with nature and nostalgia. Jullien’s mother opened his eyes to the importance of the natural world. “That idea has never been more relevant, connected as it is with ecology. Today all that feels very real.”