Georges Rouault aquatint Descent from the Cross Ambroise Vollard rare

Description: Georges Rouault (French, 1871-1958)Descent from the Cross aquatint, and copper engraving on Arches paper with Ambroise Vollard watermark, possibly an intermediate trial proof with partially worked left margin edge, unpublished plate of Miserere (Have Mercy) sheet measures approximately: 19 3/4" W x 25 1/2" H About Georges Rouault and Miserere (from Marquette University) Arguably one of the greatest religious artists of the 20th-century, Georges Rouault helped revive the relevance of Christianity in post-WWI France. As a young man, Rouault served as an apprentice restorer of stained glass at Saint-Séverin, a gothic church in the heart of Paris. He went on to study with Gustave Moreau, known for his illustrations of biblical and mythological figures. Under Moreau’s tutelage, Rouault learned to harness the power of spiritual symbols in his own artwork. Rouault’s Miserere (Mercy) series, first titled Miserere et Guerre (Mercy and War), was commissioned in 1916 by art dealer Ambroise Vollard (1865–1939). Originally planned as a two-volume book comprised of 50 prints each, Miserere was only partially realized — with 58 prints published in 1948. The series illustrates man’s cruelty to man, relates human suffering to the passion of Christ, and speaks to the redemption and salvation that can be achieved through that experience. In Miserere, Rouault makes recurring use of sacramental symbols and devotional imagery originating in the Middle Ages. By fusing early Catholic spiritual truths with his own experiences in 20th-century France, Rouault creates uniquely modern religious narratives. In an essay on Rouault's graphic works in the inaugural issue of Print Collector (Fall-Winter 1972, p. 28), F. Agustoni comments on Miserere: "Miserere et Guerre is the largest set engraved by Georges Rouault, and it includes 58 large aquatints done between 1916 and 1927 and published in 1948. The edition consist of 425 copies plus another 25 not in circulation. Other than being the most abundant as regards the number of plates engraved, the Miserere is also probably the most significant and sensitive series in the artist's graphic work." Conceived in the years in which Europe was hardest hit by the war, the set was inspired by the suffering of human beings, which often can be without any reason for those who have to endure it, which makes it even more distressing. But this reflection Rouault turns into a prayer, a prayer that, if not always founded in great serenity, is always concluded in a deep-seated resignation for all things in Christ. . . . If in the beginning the seed of rebellion often forms it is transformed every time through a laborious moral and artistic process into a consciousness of overall participation as much in guilt as in redemption. And out of this certainty hate cannot form towards anyone, but rather solidarity for all beings, to the extreme conviction that for the righteous death is not death, but a rebirth after a long period amidst earthly sorrow. "Celui qui croit en moi, fût-il mort, vivra" (Anyone who believes in me, though he were dead, shall live [John 11:25], plate 28).

Price: 5000 USD

Location: Chicago, Illinois

End Time: 2024-02-19T19:53:19.000Z

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