The Simpson Chain - Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec

Gift of the Gecht Family

"The Simpson Chain" by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (1896) Color brush and spatter lithograph (poster) on tan wove paper with lettering by another hand.

Commentary

"The Simpson Chain" by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (1896) 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. The mes to notice include print. 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. The work is cataloged within a France cultural context. How to look at this work: It is cataloged as print, which gives a clue to how the museum frames the object. Its medium (Color brush and spatter lithograph (poster) on tan wove paper with lettering by another hand) affects texture, durability, and how detail reads at different distances. Its listed dimensions (Image: 81.5 × 119 cm (32 1/8 × 46 7/8 in.); Sheet, sight: 85.2 × 123 cm (33 9/16 × 48 7/16 in.)) suggest how intimate or monumental it may feel in person. Subject cues from the catalog include print. Compare this reading with the museum record at the source collection: https://www.artic.edu/artworks/180664

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