CHARLES DELAUNAY (1911-1983) JAZZ DE PARIS. 1941. 47 1/4x31 1/4 inches, 120x79 1/2 cm. Condition B+: repaired tears in margins; restored loss and overpainting in bottom margin; restoration along horizontal fold. Charles Delaunay was the son of the painters Robert and Sonia Delaunay. Charles played a pivotal role in the development and success of jazz in France. He co-founded a jazz society called the Hot Club de France and also Jazz Hot the first French magazine dedicated to jazz in 1935. In 1937, working with Pathé Records, he launched a jazz label, Swing, making albums with such stars as Benny Carter, Coleman Hawkins, Django Reinhardt and Alix Combelle. Combelle is depicted in this poster leading the Hot Club de France orchestra. Delaunay inherited from his parents a strong artistic sense that he used to promote his various projects. He designed the Sing label and also various posters. This poster is not only a rare and wonderful jazz document, but also an oddity that by 1941, it is surprising that the occupying German forces would have allowed a poster with the words "Jazz" and "Swing."
