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Estimate: $ 5,000 - $ 7,500
CLAUDEL, PAUL. L'homme et son désir. Maquette. Handmade leporello of 7 double-sided panels, containing mounted panels of handwritten text by Claudel and cut-out designs by Audrey Parr of nude and clothed dancers, with blue ink ornamental additions. Large 4to, 295x238 mm; 11 1/2x9 3/8 inches when closed; 1677 mm; 56 7/8 inches when fully extended, stiff cream paper hand-cut to expose backing of heavy royal blue pochoir stock, mounted on bristol board, panels connected beneath backing with linen hinges. Verso of leporello is a bright semi-abstract collage by (famed photographer and wife of Henri Hoppenot) Hélène Hoppenot, of black collage figures with sashes and musical instruments in gold foil appliqués, set against printed commercial music staves, with geometricized hand-cut black musical notes forming the score for the work, by Darius Milhaud (as stated by Claudel in handwritten statement at end of text); handmade chemise in blue pochoir paper covers, rubbed and chipped, with gold and black foil panels on inside covers, with white, gold, and black ties (white ties missing); handwritten colophon mounted opposite title. [Pétropolis/ and Paris (Nouvelle Revue Française), circa 1917]
"exemplaire no. xiv" of an unspecified limited edition, presumed to be fifty (according to Claudel bibliographers Benoist-Méchin and Georges Blaizot). Milhaud became secretary under Claudel when he was named French minister to Brazil in 1917 where they spent two blissful years. It was while there that they conceived L'homme et son désir, having been influenced by a performance in Rio of The Ballets Russes, one of Nijinksky's last appearances with the troupe. Claudel devised the choreography while Milhaud created the score, working on it in the home of their friend Audrey Parr who designed the scenery, creating a little miniature theatre on a table. They then cut the characters in little figures 15 centimeters high out of colored papers. It was performed in 1921 in Paris by the Swedish Ballet and later in Vienna and in Dresden by the École de Hellerau. A wonderful celebration of modernist literature, music, dance, and graphic art. Benoist-Méchin & Blaizot, Georges: Bibliographie des oeuvres de Paul Claudel (Paris, 1931), no.26; Correspondance Paul Claudel - Darius Milhaud, 1912-1953. Préface de Henri Hoppenot, introduction et notes de Jacques Petit. Paris,1961.
