← Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec

At the Curtain (Au Rideau), from "L'Estampe Originale"

Original title: At the Curtain (Au Rideau), from "L'Estampe Originale"

Artist

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec

Date

1895

Medium

Crayon, brush, and spatter lithograph printed in two colors; only state

Dimensions

Image: 23 1/8 × 43 13/16 in. (58.7 × 111.3 cm) Sheet: 23 3/4 × 33 9/16 in. (60.3 × 85.2 cm)

Credit line

Rogers Fund, 1922

kurzbeschreibung

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec made the two-color lithograph "Am Vorhang (Au Rideau)" in 1895. Two women sit on a bench in the foreground, while behind them a theater stage opens up with a stylized horse and a half-drawn curtain.

Description

Two women have settled on a bench. The one on the left wraps her arm around her companion's shoulders and looks back, while the one on the right keeps her head lowered. Behind them lies a stage where a large horse appears mid-leap. On the right, two figures pull a cord to move the half-open curtain. The layout feels asymmetrical, with figures rendered in flowing, almost impressionistic lines.

Context

This print was created for the art journal "L'Estampe Originale," which published original prints by contemporary artists from 1893 to 1895. Toulouse-Lautrec often turned to Parisian nightlife, especially theaters and cabarets. During those years, he worked increasingly on lithographs for posters and illustrations.

Impact

Muted grays and even lighting give the image a calm, familiar mood. The contrast between the private group in the foreground and the theatrical stage behind creates a quiet tension of closeness and distance.

Technique

The work was executed as a crayon, brush, and spatter lithograph in two colors, printed in a single state. Crayon and brush leave a light texture and fluid stroke, while the spatter technique adds fine accents.

AI-generated description text

Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)