Les Vieux Messieurs. Old Gentlemen. A Song by Yvette Guilbert. by Henri De Toulouse-Lautrec, 1864-1901

Henri De Toulouse-Lautrec, 1864-1901
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Les Vieux Messieurs. Old Gentlemen. A Song by Yvette Guilbert.

Original lithograph in black ink. 1894. Signed with the monogram in the stone. State with the lettering as a song sheet for the song sung by Yvette Guilbert to music by Donnay. Rare early impression, 1894/96, complete with the fold sheet with the song words. As issued by the Société d'Editions Musicales, Paris.
Ref: Wittrock - T-Lautrec Prints no 57, Adriani T- Lautrec no 91, Delteil 75

Excellent very rich impression of this issue. On pale cream poor quality light wove paper, as issued. Generally extremely fine condition for such a work - the extreme top of the sheet with two very short (5mm) repaired tears, the tears hardly visible. Complete with the fold sheet as is rarely the case. Printed to the full sheet size, as issued. Sheet: 10 5/8 x 6 7/8ins (270x175mm)

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Some of Lautrec?s earliest commissions for work in lithography came from the publishers of ?song sheets? such as Joubert or from Lugne-Poe for illustrated programs for his avant-garde Theatre Libre. The ?song sheets? were the equivalent of the ?pop? songs of today. When visiting a music hall it was possible to buy the music and words of the ?hit? songs. The publishers of these songs came up with the idea of illustrating the front of the folded music sheet (music and words) with an image in original lithography. Lautrec drew some of the most interesting of his early compositions for such projects. Because of the ephemeral nature of these song sheets (many got damaged or simply thrown away) original examples have become rare, especially in the complete form with the words or music.

Les Vieux Messieurs - Old Gentlemen - is one of the most famous compositions that Lautrec drew for Joubert?s series of song-sheets in 1894. The pose of the ?midinette? - the errand girl with the hatbox,- the emphasis on the expressive shape of her figure, the gleam in the expression of the old man giving her ?the eye?, and the handling of the chalk drawing itself, contrasting shading with open line, show the typical genius of Lautrec?s drawing.