Lot n° 101
Estimation :
1400 - 1700
EUR
Léonard Tsuguharu Foujita (1886–1968) - Lot 101
Léonard Tsuguharu Foujita (1886–1968)
Reclining Cat, plate from *The Book of Cats*, 1929
Collotype based on the artist’s original drawing, on Japanese vellum, from the supplementary series of 20 loose plates enclosed in an envelope with copies of “A Book of Cats, being Twenty Drawings by Foujita,” with prose poems by Michael Joseph, New York, Covici Friede, 1930, limited edition of 500 copies—the series was printed in runs of no more than 500 prints per plate, many of which have not survived with the book.
Signed “Foujita” and dated 1929 on the plate, with Japanese characters, as issued; not signed by hand. Without the “Made in France” stamp, which is specific to the plates from the book on Arches paper—consistent with the series on Japanese vellum.
Dimensions:
Sheet: 23.5 × 28.5 cm (9.2 × 11.2 in.)
Image: 19.7 × 26 cm (7.8 × 10.2 in.)
Condition: Very fine condition; margins slightly reduced; unframed.
References: Buisson, II.30.127
A plate from Foujita’s famous *A Book of Cats*, considered by booksellers to be the most desirable book ever dedicated to cats—a complete copy sold for over $77,000 at auction. Each of the twenty plates depicts a named cat, accompanied by a prose poem by the British publisher and writer Michael Joseph. The supplementary series on Japanese vellum is the most sought-after edition of these images. Foujita, the “master of cats” and a major figure of the School of Paris, applies his celebrated fusion of Japanese sumi-e brushwork and Western modeling to his favorite subject: a long-haired cat at rest, front paws outstretched, its coat rendered in fluffy brushstrokes, its gaze alert and supremely feline.
Original print from the 1930 publication.
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