Auguste Gilbert de Voisins

Born in Paramé, near Saint-Malo, on September 7, 1877, Auguste Gilbert de Voisins was a French writer, essayist, and translator. He spent part of his childhood in Provence, moved to Paris in 1898, and began traveling widely, including journeys in Europe, North Africa, Senegal, and Dahomey.

He is especially remembered for his connection with the writer Victor Segalen. In 1909, the two traveled from Beijing on a long journey through western China, and they returned to China again in 1913 for an archaeological mission with Jean Lartigue. Those experiences fed into his travel writing as well as the curious, inward-looking tone of much of his fiction.

Gilbert de Voisins published novels, poems, and reflective prose across several decades, including works such as Le Bar de la Fourche, L'Enfant qui prit peur, Le Mirage, La Conscience dans le mal, and Les Miens. He died in Paris on December 8, 1939, leaving behind a body of work that feels both adventurous and quietly introspective.