Reine de Joie (1892, Met-Objekt 805)
Original title: Reine De Joie
kurzbeschreibung
For an advertisement promoting Victor Joze's novel *Reine de Joie*, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec made a four-color lithograph in 1892, printed on machine-made wove paper. The sheet presents a familiar scene: a woman in a red top and an older man in a black suit have settled on a red couch. The print endorsed the novel of the same name.
Description
A kiss joins the short-haired woman, who wears a bracelet, to a gray-haired man in glasses. The two sit on a red couch; beside them stands a table with a green cloth, on which a bottle and a glass can be seen. In the background, another figure turns away with folded hands. A warm yellow tone lies over the background. The title *Reine de Joie* appears large in green lettering, below it smaller details such as 'par' and 'chez tous les libraires'.
Context
In 1892 the poster was created as advertising for Victor Joze's novel. It falls in a time when lithographs for theater, cabaret, and literature were printed in large numbers in Paris. Toulouse-Lautrec often devoted himself to nightlife and the marginal milieus of the city. Today the work belongs to the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and is in the public domain.
Impact
Strong colors and a lively layout immediately draw the eye to the kissing couple. The intimate scene feels seductive and at the same time ironic—a typical trait in Toulouse-Lautrec's view of Parisian society. Red, green, and yellow enter into a contrast that gives the poster a bold yet refined aura.
Technique
The lithograph, printed in four colors on machine-made wove paper, allows fine tonal gradations alongside bold areas of color—an advantage for posters of those years. At about 150 × 99.5 cm, a large-format sheet is at hand, intended for public display.
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)