Spaightwood Galleries

Forain was one of the most important artists of the first few decades of the twentieth century, frequently compared to Rembrandt for his emotional power as an etcher. His drawings were regularly reproduced just as Daumier's had been in the mid-19th century, but Forain's not only ridicule follies but sympathisize with the poor and the unfortunate. He was one of Ambroise Vollard's stable of artists (along with Renoir, Rouault, Chagall, Dufy, and many others), and the works included in our exhibition—four lithographic figure studies—were commissioned by Vollard for a portfolio of nudes by his artists (including Renoir and Cezanne) that, like many of his other projects, never materialized. We are also including seven drawings acquired since our last exhibition.

Select bibliography: Yves Brayer & Alicia Faxon, Jean-Louis Forain: Artist, Realist, Humanist (Washington, D.C.: International Exhibitions Foundation, 1982); Jean-François Bory, Forain (Editions Henri Veyrier, 1979); Lilian Browse, Forain. The Painter. 1852-1931 (London: Paul Elek, 1978); Campbell Dodgson, Forain: Draughtsman, Lithographer, Etcher (NY: M. Knoedler / Merrymount Press, 1936); Alicia Faxon and Sinclair Hitchings, Jean-Louis Forain, 1852-1931: Works from New England Collections (Framingham, MA: Danforth Museum, 1979); Alicia Faxon, Jean-Louis Forain: Artist, Realist, Humanist (Baltimore: Garamonde/Pridemark Press for theInternational Exhibitions Foundation, 1982), Marcel Guerin, J. L. Forain Lithographe. Catalogue Raisonne of the Lithographic Work (1910; rpt. San Francisco: Alan Wofsy, 1980); Marcel Guerin, J-L Forain Aquafortiste. Catalogue Raisonne of the Engraved Work (1912; rpt. San Francisco: Alan Wofsy, 1980); Charles Kunstler, Forain (Rieder, Maîtres de l'Art Moderne, 1931), Theodore Reff and Florence Valdes. Jean-Louis Forain: The Impressionist Years (London: The Dixon Gallery and Gardens Collection, 1995);  Malcolm Salaman, Modern Masters of Etching 4: J. L. Forain (London: The Studio, 1925); Maurice Talnmeyr, Album Forain (Paris: Librairie Plon, circa 1900; a collection of satirical drawings with captions); Léandre Viallat, En écoutant Forain (Paris: Editions Flammarion, 1931).

Etude de nus, de dos (Johnson 48). Original Color lithograph, c. 1898-1902. One of four works done for a proposed Vollard porfolio of original prints by Forain, Renoir, Cezanne, and others, it was never editioned, and only a few impressions of this young woman seated and seen from the rear were printed. According to Una Johnson's Museum of Modern Art exhibition catalogue, Ambroise Vollard Editeur, only a few impressions exist. Signed in the stone. Image size: 220x160mm. Price: $2000.

Femme nue assize se peignant (Johnson 48). Original color lithograph, c. 1898-1902. This lithograph was never editioned, and only a few impressions of this young woman seated and carefully brushing her hair were printed. According to Una Johnson's Museum of Modern Art exhibition catalogue, Ambroise Vollard Editeur, only a few impressions exist. Signed in the stone. Image size: 220x160mm. Price: $2000.

Study of a nude (Johnson 48.4). Original lithograph, c. 1898. Edition unknown. Ours is numbered 17, so evidently a small edition was pulled. This print was intended for a portfolio to have been published by Ambroise Vollard. Image size: 220x160mm. Price: $1750.

Nue au faureil (Johnson 48). Original Color lithograph, c. 1898-1902. This lithograph was never editioned, and only a few impressions of this young woman seated and carefully brushing her hair were printed. According to Una Johnson's Museum of Modern Art exhibition catalogue, Ambroise Vollard Editeur, only a few impressions exist. Image size: 220x160mm. Price: $2000.