Poèmes de Charles d'Orléans
One of the most spontaneous and joyous of Matisse's printed works, this book is a visual and typographical ode to medieval French poetry. The publication combines Matisse's handwritten texts with over 100 original coloured lithographs, including 54 original works done with coloured pencils and crayons. Printed by Mourlot Frères under the artist's supervision, this work is a beautiful example of Matisse's work as a book artist in the 1950s. The publication also includes five full-page portraits, which are particularly attractive. Considered one of the most richly illustrated in his series, this book is a highlight of his late oeuvre.
Quantity
Matisse, Henri
Poèmes de Charles d'Orléans
1950 | Paris | Tériade
A highlight of Matisse's late oeuvre and a masterpiece of modern book art.
One of the most spontaneous and joyous of Matisse's printed works, this book is a visual and typographical ode to medieval French poetry. The publication combines Matisse's handwritten texts with over 100 original coloured lithographs, including 54 original works done with coloured pencils and crayons. Printed by Mourlot Frères under the artist's supervision, this work is a beautiful example of Matisse's work as a book artist in the 1950s. The publication also includes five full-page portraits, which are particularly attractive. Considered one of the most richly illustrated in his series, this book is a highlight of his late oeuvre.
Contact for Price
Condition Report:
In-Depth Study
References & Bibliography
Format
In-folio (Folio) approx. 30 × 40 cm
Edition Particulars
One of 1200 numbered copies. The impressum is signed by the artist.
Print Run
1200
Copy Number
258
Paper
vélin d'Arches
Inscription
Signed by the Illustrator
Product DETAIL
The book is a tribute to the fifteenth-century poetry of Charles d'Orléans. The poet, who was a nephew of King Louis XI, spent 25 years in English captivity. During this period, he wrote the poems for which he is famous, including rondeaux, chansons, and ballads. Matisse's interpretation of these works, conceived during the German occupation of France, is a fascinating dialogue between the present and the past. The choice of an imprisoned historical figure can be seen as a silent protest and a reassertion of French cultural tradition in an uncertain time. The book explores themes of captivity, freedom, and national identity.
Michaux, Henri · Bettencourt, Pierre
Arriver à se réveiller
A rare first edition of Arriver à se réveiller, written by Henri Michaux in the tremulous post-war years. The text unfolds as an inward journey toward lucidity, where sleep and waking mirror each other. Printed and published by Pierre Bettencourt in his own workshop, the edition’s small run preserves the work’s intimacy. The title-page vignette, a linocut by Bettencourt, sets a spare, rhythmic visual key that amplifies Michaux’s vigilant, vulnerable tone. This copy is handsomely bound in brown morocco with balsa boards by Miguet, a tactile nod to lightness under tension. For bibliophiles, it is an exemplary union of poetry, craft, and experiment. The volume embodies the independence of the post-war small press and Michaux’s radical sensitivity.
Illustrated Book
€680
Éluard, Paul
Au rendez-vous allemand
Au rendez-vous allemand is one of the emblematic collections of Éluard’s wartime poetry. The book appeared in 1944 from Les Éditions de Minuit, the publishing house that, under the Occupation, became a moral landmark of the French literary Resistance. The volume gathers poems in which love, mourning, revolt and hope appear not as abstractions but as immediate necessities under German rule. The frontispiece, a portrait of the poet after Picasso, gives the book a powerful artistic signature: two voices of modern France, poet and artist, stand here in the same struggle. This is an ordinary, unnumbered copy, but signed by Éluard on the first page. That signature makes the book more than a Resistance document: it becomes a tangible witness to literary presence in a historically charged year. For the collector, it unites the clandestine aura of Minuit, Picasso’s name and Éluard’s own hand.
Illustrated Book
€350
Derain, André
Amis & Amille. Mystère du XIVe siècle.
This sumptuously bound book brings a medieval mystery to life through a rare collaboration between ancient literature and modern illustration. The geometric box design on garnet morocco provides striking contrast. André Derain’s 22 color lithographs – including one double and three full-page – enhance the narrative with expressive visual force. Printed on Rives vellum in an edition of 180 numbered copies, this copy (No. 72) was made for Baroness Vaxelaire and includes a suite on fine Japanese paper. The binding by Lucie Weill exemplifies artisanal excellence. A harmonious blend of narrative tradition and graphic daring.