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Homme à
la Pipe
Clément-Janin
67
drypoint, 1879, on heavy wove paper, the rare 2nd state (according to the annotation),
a fine velvety impression, with considerable burr, signed and dedicated in Conté crayon "à son ami Roger Miles / l'auteur / M Desboutin / 1890 2e etat"
by the artist, unfortunately rather markedly though uniformly
light-stained, with a small indentation upper center, thus in mediocre
condition, but unexamined out of the frame
P. 458x380 mm., S. 500x590 mm.
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An intimate friend of
both Manet and Degas, often working side by side with one or the
other, Desboutin was part of the first wave of impressionism,
which Degas then called the "realist movement." Resolutely
committed to its aims, Desboutin maintained an unswerving devotion
to candid and refined observation in his drypoint prints, often
annotating them "directe d'après nature"
and working them up with a masterful spontaneity, as if sketching.
Among the most moving of these are self-portraits, such as the
one presented here, reminiscent of Rembrandt.
His prints were however
very seldom editioned, and almost never steel-faced, being generally
pulled in small runs of a few proofs as he saw fit, and often
given away to his friends and acquaintances. His drypoints are
thus most often rare.
The dedication is to
Léon Roger-Milès (see close-up, right), the famous
writer and art historian.
