[2][3] He was born on 16 December 1894 in Condé-sur-Noireau in Calvados, where his father was a minister, and educated at the Corneille school in Rouen.

In 1914 he published his humorous cartoons in L'Humanité, Floréal and La Guerre Sociale and became editor of Le Mot, the review produced by Paul Iribe.

After getting married he went to Paris to learn typography, and in 1926 was awarded the Prix Blumenthal, worth 20,000 Francs, for a series of 24 book covers.

During the Second World War, he worked as a department head for the Ministry of Information while continuing his editorial activities.

[4] In 1952 he moved to Lurs to live in a house he called Monodière and founded Rencontres internationales de Lure.