Auguste Brouet’s etching, “Waiter in a Restaurant”, c1931

Auguste Brouet (1872–1941)

“Waiter in a Restaurant” (descriptive title only and I may be reading the scene incorrectly), c1931, possibly a proof before publication in Paris in 1931 by (variously) Editions d'Art Devam/Maitre Imprimeur R. Coulouma/Societe Nouvelle des Editions d'Art Devambez as an illustration to Joris-Karl Huysmans’ (1848–1907) “Marthe, histoire d'une fille”.

Etching on heavy buff coloured wove paper.

Size: (sheet) 32.3 x 24 cm; (plate) 19.4 x 13.9 cm.

Condition: a strong and well-printed impression with generous margins in pristine condition (i.e., there with no tears, holes, folds, abrasions, stains, foxing or signs of handling).

I am selling this seemingly simple etching showing the artist’s skill and confidence in capturing a scene with a minimal number of strokes, for AU$298 (currently US$201.14/EUR193.26/GBP169.90 at the time of posting this listing) including Express Mail (EMS) postage and handling to anywhere in the world, but not (of course) any import duties/taxes imposed by some countries.

If you are interested in purchasing this freely executed etching exemplifying the amazing draughtsmanship that excited earlier writers that Brouet might be the future Rembrandt, please contact me (oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com) and I will send you a PayPal invoice to make the payment easy.

Auguste Brouet’s etching and drypoint, “Une Matinée Avenue de Clichy”, 1922

Auguste Brouet (1872–1941)

“Une Matinée Avenue de Clichy” (A Morning on Avenue de Clichy), 1922, printed by the Chalcographie du Musée du Louvre. The plate was commissioned by Direction des Beaux-arts and deposited with the Chalcographie (inv. no. 6724) in August 1922. Note that all of Brouet’s plates were purchased by the Chalcographie (see https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/term/BIOG21033).

Auguste-brouet.org offers the following description of the portrayed scene in this print:

(transl.) “A view of the avenue de Clichy. In the foreground, a mistletoe merchant walks in front of street children and street vendors. In the background, the semi-circular sign of the Fabrique Parisienne de Toys Mécaniques, located in Impasse des Deux-Nèthes, at 32 avenue de Clichy” (http://www.auguste-brouet.org/Catalogue/Pages/257.htm).

Etching and drypoint with pale plate tone on heavy cream wove paper.

Size: (sheet) 29.5 x 37.4 cm; (plate) 23.8 x 27 cm; (image borderline) 22.4 x 25.7 cm.

Inscribed on plate at lower left corner: “A. Brouet”.

State vii (of vii) with the removal of the lower remarque images (see http://www.auguste-brouet.org/Catalogue/Pages/257.htm).  

Geffroy 252 (Gustave Geffroy, 1923, “Auguste Brouet: Catalogue de son oeuvre grave], vol. 2, Paris Gaston Boutetie); IFF 18.1, 2 and 3; Universität Osnabrück, EG 22.

See a description of this print offered by the Cleveland Museum of Art: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1925.25.

Condition: a richly inked and well-printed impression. There are a few dot stains in the margins otherwise the sheet is in very good condition with no tears, holes, folds, abrasions, significant stains or foxing.

I am selling this superb etching capturing the bustle of everyday street-life in Paris at the turn of the twentieth century, for AU$305 (currently US$232.29/EUR195.25/GBP169.47 at the time of posting this listing) including Express Mail (EMS) postage and handling to anywhere in the world, but not (of course) any import duties/taxes imposed by some countries.

If you are interested in purchasing this fine impression rich with velvety drypoint burr and exemplifying the amazing draughtsmanship that excited earlier writers that Brouet might be the future Rembrandt, please contact me (oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com) and I will send you a PayPal invoice to make the payment easy.

Auguste Brouet’s etching and aquatint, “The Grace”, c1875, after Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin

Auguste Brouet (1872–1941)

"The Grace" (aka “Saying Grace”; “The Prayer Before the Meal”; “Le Bénédicité”), c1875 (note that this is a tentative date based on the period when Brouet was making large reproductive etchings printed in colour—which this plate was later editioned), after Jean-Baptiste Siméon Chardin’s (1699–1779) famous painting(s) (c1740)—there are a few variants painted by Chardin (see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saying_Grace_(Chardin)). This is a trial-proof signed in pencil before lettering for publication—possibly in Munich by Bischoff & Höfle (fl. 1900–1909)—and its later printing in colour. According to the very interesting website, “Auguste Brouet - Le Journal”, there were trial proofs from Eugène Delâtre's stock (C. Collin, April 2007 catalog)”, but this impression does not bear the red mark of Eugène Delâtre (see http://rep.auguste-brouet.org/index.php?pages/LEs-eaux-fortes-en-couleur-de-reproduction).

Etching and aquatint, trial proof before lettering, printed in brown (umber) ink on laid paper, hand signed in pencil by the artist on lower right margin.

Size: (sheet) 55.7 x 48.8 cm; (plate) 51.9 x 42.7 cm; (image borderline) 48.5 x 40.5 cm.

Condition: strong impression (trial proof) with small margins in near faultless condition (i.e. there are no tears, holes, folds, abrasions, losses, stains, foxing or significant signs of handling) apart from pencil notations by a previous collector at the lower edge of the sheet (recto and verso).

I am selling this large and rare etching with aquatint—note that I have been unable to find this print in any of the major museums—after one of the most famous paintings by Chardin for AU$498 (currently US$355.66/EUR299.68/GBP272.79 at the time of posting this listing) including Express Mail (EMS) postage and handling to anywhere in the world, but not (of course) any import duties/taxes imposed by some countries.

If you are interested in purchasing this stunning museum-quality, pencil signed, artist’s proof before the later edition when the plate was printed in colour, please contact me (oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com) and I will send you a PayPal invoice to make the payment easy.

This print has been sold

Auguste Brouet’s etching and aquatint, “The Blue Boy”, after Thomas Gainsborough

Auguste Brouet (1872–1941)

“The Blue Boy” (aka “L’enfant en bleu”), c1875 (note that this is a tentative date based on the period when Brouet was making large reproductive etchings printed in colour—which this plate was later editioned), after Thomas Gainsborough’s (1727–1788) famous painting (c1770) when it was still held in London before shifting home to the Henry E. Huntington Art Gallery, San Marino, California in 1922. This is a trial-proof signed in pencil before lettering for publication in Munich by Bischoff & Höfle (fl.1900–1909) and its later printing in colour. According to the very interesting website, “Auguste Brouet - Le Journal”, there are two editions after this trial proof: one was an edition of 175 copies before lettering that were sold at 100 Fr; the other edition was also an edition 175, but with the published lettered details that were sold at 50 Fr (see http://rep.auguste-brouet.org/index.php?pages/LEs-eaux-fortes-en-couleur-de-reproduction).

Etching and aquatint, trial proof before lettering printed in brown ink on laid paper, hand signed in pencil by the artist.

Size: (sheet) 64.2 x 44.7 cm; (plate) 60 x 41.8 cm; (image borderline) 56.3 x 39.3 cm.

Condition: strong impression (trial proof) with small margins in near faultless condition (i.e. there are no tears, holes, folds, abrasions, losses, stains, foxing or significant signs of handling) apart from pencil notations by a previous collector at the lower edge of the sheet (recto).

I am selling this large and rare etching with aquatint—note that I have been unable to find this print in any of the major museums—after one of the most famous paintings by Gainsborough for $498 (currently US$356.42/EUR303.10/GBP276.13 at the time of posting this listing) including Express Mail (EMS) postage and handling to anywhere in the world, but not (of course) any import duties/taxes imposed by some countries.

If you are interested in purchasing this stunning museum-quality, pencil signed, artist’s proof before the later edition when the plate was printed in colour, please contact me (oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com) and I will send you a PayPal invoice to make the payment easy.

Note that I have listed another etching of Gainsborough’s painting executed by Léopold Flameng which is currently still available: https://www.printsandprinciples.com/2020/03/leopold-flamengs-etching-blue-boy-1862.html. 

This print has been sold (as has the Flameng)

An Evolution in Representation (Part Two): Brown, Corot, Whistler, Brouet, Vuillard & Appian

What are some of the historical approaches used by artists to represent what they see?

This is the second instalment of four posts exploring different principles used by artists to represent their vision. The last post discussed a principle employed by many Renaissance artists in which all the portrayed features of an image are rendered with the same degree of focal resolution: a type of vision that I termed for expedience, “consecutive vision,” because each portrayed feature can be examined consecutively. The following discussion examines the principle of binocular vision popularised by the Impressionists wherein the convergent focus of two eyes on a single point of interest is perceived in sharp focus while features lying away from this point in 360 degrees are seen progressively as out-of-focus. This phenomenon of optical convergence on a single point is illustrated in my drawing, The Common (shown below). By design, The Common portrays an observation during a moment of fixated gazing through a screen of trees in Townsville’s Common (a nature reserve not far from where I live) to a tree in the distance. To recreate this momentary observation, the drawing features the point of fixation of my gaze rendered in pictorial detail. The tunnel-like arcade of trees surrounding this point of fixation is depicted with an increasingly broader handling of marks signifying degenerating focal clarity.

James Brown (1953–)

The Common, 2006–12

Ink and acrylic on 300gsm Saunders watercolour paper

57 x 75.5 cm

I am selling this drawing for a total cost of $900 AUD including postage and handling to anywhere in the world. This is a large drawing and will be posted in a tube. Please contact me using the email link at the top of the page if you have any queries or click the “Buy Now” button below.

This painting has been sold

Details of The Common

There are many ways that artists employ the principle of binocular vision. For instance, whereas I used a hierarchy of mark attributes ranging from fine pen lines at the centre-of-interest to wide strokes with a brush towards the peripheral edge of the drawing, some artists rely entirely on showing variation in the quantity of detail depicted; namely, an abundance of detail at the point of focus and a lessening in the quantity of detail shown away from this point. For example, Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot’s (1796–1875) cliché-verre [a print made photographically on treated paper in the manner of a photogram using a glass plate coated with an opaque ground through which the design is scratched so as to make a transparent negative], The Woods of the Hermit (shown below), exemplifies an entire image drawn with the same thickness of line. In short, the detailing and tonal contrast of the diminutive, but distinctive, silhouette shape of a figure on a hillside makes the figure the key point of focus whereas the representation of the rest of the scene is treated with far less detailing.

Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot (1796–1875)

The Woods of the Hermit (or Shores of Lake Trasimeno)

Cliché-verre (glass plate in the British Museum) on cream wove paper

16.5 x 22.9 cm (image); 18.6 x 25.7 cm (sheet)

Melot 72; Robaut 3192   

Condition: rich impression, with margins in excellent condition.

I am selling this cliché-verre for a total cost of $780 AUD including postage and handling to anywhere in the world. Please contact me using the email link at the top of the page if you have any queries or click the “Buy Now” button below.

This print has been sold

Details of Corot’s The Woods of the Hermit

A key feature of most artworks featuring binocular vision is that they are formatted as a vignette (i.e. an image that pictorially dissolves towards the edges of the format). For instance, in James Abbott McNeill Whistler’s (1834–1903) etching, The Little Putney, No. 1 (shown below), the eye is invited to contemplate the right side of the featured bridge by virtue of the strong line work in this area before resting on the finely rendered tower beyond it. By design, Whistler uses the vignette treatment to gradually decrease the amount of portrayed detail away from the point of focus so that the outer edge of the image is light in tone.

James Abbott McNeill Whistler (1834–1903)

The Little Putney, No. 1 (1879)

From the edition of two hundred impressions published by the Fine Art Society, London (1883)

Etching on cream wove paper

13.4 x 20.8 cm (plate); 31.6 x 24.8 cm (sheet)

Kennedy 179 ii/ii

Condition: crisp, strong impression with wide margins in near pristine condition.

I am selling this print for a total cost of $1230 AUD including postage and handling to anywhere in the world. Please contact me using the email link at the top of the page if you have any queries or click the “Buy Now” button below.

This print has been sold

View of whole sheet

Detail of Whistler’s butterfly signature

Details of Whistler’s The Little Putney, No. 1

A similar vignette treatment from dark details at the image centre to lightly denoted forms at the peripheral edge of the image may also be seen in Auguste Brouet’s (1872–1941) etching, Marchand des Légumes [Vegetable Seller] (shown below). Here, the transition from velvety rich black lines depicting the artist’s focus on the market sellers to the palest hint of fine lines at the outer edge of the image is an excellent example of binocular vision.

Auguste Brouet (1872–1941)

Marchand des Légumes [Vegetable Seller]

Etching on cream wove paper

12.1 x 18.5 cm (plate); 22.7 x 27.9 cm (sheet)

19/100, signed in pencil

Boutitié 189

Condition: superb impression with wide margins in good condition. There are collector’s notations on the top left and along the bottom margins (recto) and a collector’s ink stamp and signature (verso).

I am selling this print for a total cost of $142 AUD including postage and handling to anywhere in the world. Please contact me using the email link at the top of the page if you have any queries or click the “Buy Now” button below.

This print has been sold

Details of Brouet’s Marchand des Légumes

The concept of using a vignette treatment for representing binocular vision does not mean that the portrayed subject must fade to the colour of the paper. For instance, Edouard Vuillard’s (1868–1940) etching, Interieur au Canape ou Soir (1930) (shown below) and Adolphe Appian’s (1818–98) Village de Villeneuve (1869) (shown further below) demonstrate how artists can fade their portrayed subject into darkness at the periphery of the format.

Edouard Vuillard (1868–1940)

Interieur au Canape ou Soir (1930)

From the publication Le Tombeau d’Edouard Vuillard (this is not a restrike but an original impression)

Signed in the plate with the initials “E V” (lower left)

Etching on laid paper with 2.6 cm chain lines

9.8 x 15 cm (plate); 23.7 x 33.2 cm (sheet)

iii/iii

Claude Roger-Marx 62

Condition: fine impression in excellent condition (this is not a restrike impression printed on wove paper). There are remnants of archival mounting tape (verso).

I am selling this print for a total cost of $268 AUD including postage and handling to anywhere in the world. Please contact me using the email link at the top of the page if you have any queries or click the “Buy Now” button below.

This print has been sold

View of whole sheet

Edouard Vuillard’s initials

Details of Vuillard’s Interieur au Canape ou Soir

Adolphe Appian (1818–98)

Avant La Pluie, Village de Villeneuve [Before the Rain, Village of Villeneuve] (1869)

Etching on cream wove paper

16 x 23.9 cm (plate); 19.8 x 28.3 cm (sheet)

Signed and dated in the plate (upper left)

Inscribed “Appian sc.” (lower left); “AVANT LA PLUIE/Village de Villeneuve./Paris. CADAET & LUCE. Editeurs Imprimeurs. Rue Nve des Mathurina. 58” (lower centre)

Condition: crisp and strong impression in good condition. There is toning to the image and light abrasions.

I am selling this print for a total cost of $138 AUD including postage and handling to anywhere in the world. Please contact me using the email link at the top of the page if you have any queries or click the “Buy Now” button below.

This print has been sold

View of whole sheet

Details of Appian’s Avant La Pluie, Village de Villeneuve

From a very different perspective, the idea of directing an audience’s attention to a specific point of interest is not limited to visual representation. I mention this as I recently attended a chamber music performance and I was struck by how the orchestration of the music focussed my attention on a particular instrument and musical line. Arguably, the principle employed in capturing my attention is the same as used by artists to draw attention to the centre-of-interest in an image: namely, contrast between the treatment of the centre-of-interest and the treatment of its immediate surroundings. In terms of music, this contrast may be between a clear and captivating melody line played on a clarinet and ambient sounds of massed violins. But, of course, this type of contrast in music and the visual arts is seldom simple and usually involves a network of relationships to sustain interest and project meaning. This is because the focus of two eyes or two ears on a point of interest undergoes constant shifting and revaluation for meaning to be negotiated. To explain the complexities involved, I wish to rely on Tolstoy’s famous description of a collapsing tree from Three Deaths, as his account guides the reader through shifts of visual and auditory focus and subtle comparisons in creating a word-picture of the tree’s demise—a sequence of contemplating a point of fixation before moving to the next:

The sound of the axe at the bottom grew duller and duller. Sappy white chips flew onto the dewy grass and a slight creaking could be heard above the sound of the blows. The tree, shuddering from top to toe, bent over and quickly straightened up, shaking with fear on its roots. For an instant all was still, but then the tree bent again, another crack sound came from its trunk, and with its branches breaking and its bough hanging down it fell crown-first onto the damp earth. (Tolstoy, Leo [trans. Louise & Aylmer Maude] 1933, Nine Stories by Leo Tolstoy [Tolstoy Centenary Edition], London, p. 307)