Georges, Braque, The Poet, 1958
1958
Original lithograph in color on Japon nacré paper for the cover of the original edition of Cinq poésies en hommage à Georges Braque by René Char, Genève, Edwin Engelberts éditeur, 1958
55 x 70.5 cm
Numbered in pencil lower left of 75, signed by the artist in pencil lower right
Tirage Mourlot, Paris
Catalogue raisonné : Vallier 131
This original color lithograph forms the cover of the book Cinq poésies en hommage à Georges Braque with text by René Char. For the book, the paper margins are folded inside. The friendship between René Char and Georges Braque began in 1945, as evidenced by the many illustrated books they produced together. The right-hand side of the subject shows a Greek-inspired profile of a man, while on the left a bird seems to be joining him.
About the author
Georges Braque (1882-1963)
The creator of Cubism with Pablo Picasso around 1907, after the First World War he adopted a more traditional aesthetic with a fairly dark color palette. Still lifes and landscapes are bathed in a calm, silent atmosphere. Georges Braque was also a painter of birds, which figured prominently in his late work. In 1953, they were given pride of place on the ceiling of the Salle Henri II at the Louvre. A close friend of poets such as René Char, Francis Ponge and Pierre Reverdy, Georges Braque illustrated numerous texts.
