Florence de Mèredieu's Double Book on Antonin Artaud's China and Japan

Florence de Mèredieu has published a unique double book titled 'La Chine d'Antonin Artaud' and 'Le Japon d'Antonin Artaud' with Éditions Blusson. The book is designed as a reversible volume: one side covers Artaud's engagement with China, the other with Japan, with no designated beginning or end. It features extensive illustrations including drawings, photographs, articles, and calligraphies. De Mèredieu, a professor at Université Paris I, examines Artaud's attraction to both countries within the orientalist context of his era, noting that his knowledge of the East was partly bookish and shaped by contemporary atmosphere. She analyzes how China and Japan influenced his poetics, particularly in theatrical revolution, spirituality, and observations on body and medicine, drawing comparisons with figures like Dullin, Segalen, and Claudel.