Pessima, plate three from Yvette Guilbert - Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec

Gift of Walter S. Brewster

"Pessima, plate three from Yvette Guilbert" by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (1898, printed 1930) Lithograph (crayon) in purple or violet on cream wove paper hinged at top corners to gray-brown wove paper.

Commentary

"Pessima, plate three from Yvette Guilbert" by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (1898, printed 1930) invites a close look at how form and feeling work together. The print-based method rewards close viewing, where line, texture, and contrast do most of the expressive work. Themes to noti ce include lithograph. This piece is held in the source collection's Prints and Drawings collection. Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec is the artist behind this work. A useful anchor for reading the piece: Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (French, 1864-1901) printed by Westminster Press (English, 20th century) published by the Ernest Brown & Phillips (English, 20th century). The work is cataloged within a France cultural context. How to look at this work: It is cataloged as lithograph, which gives a clue to how the museum frames the object. Its medium (Lithograph (crayon) in purple or violet on cream wove paper hinged at top corners to gray-brown wove paper) affects texture, durability, and how detail reads at different distances. Its listed dimensions (Image: 29.7 × 24.2 cm (11 3/4 × 9 9/16 in.); Primary support: 34.9 × 26.8 cm (13 3/4 × 10 9/16 in.); Secondary support: 49.7 × 37.1 cm (19 5/8 × 14 5/8 in.)) suggest how intimate or monumental it may feel in person. Subject cues from the catalog include lithograph. Compare this reading with the museum record at the source collection: https://www.artic.edu/artworks/6158

Sources: Art Institute of Chicago; Art Institute of Chicago / Public Records; Art Institute of Chicago Collection Data