Color woodcut, 1897. 190x255 mm; 7 1/2x10 inches, full margins. Edition of 25. Signed and dated in pencil, lower margin. A superb, richly-inked impression with strong colors.
Bottini (1874-1907) was a Belle Époque French artist centered in Montmartre, known for his graphic, colorful artworks depicting scenes from cafés, bars, theatres, dance halls and brothels. Bottini initially worked as an art restorer and spent innumerable hours working with Old Master works by Goya, Rembrandt, Watteau and others. He was heavily influenced by Japanese prints and often looked to his contemporaries Constantin Guys, Manet and Degas--he also spent evenings perusing late-night haunts with Toulouse-Lautrec (who he was clearly influenced by). He was included in a group exhibition in 1899 entitled "Bals, bars, théâtres et maisons closes," which gave him some acclaim during his lifetime.
Bottini had two very close childhood friends, artist Fabien Launay and writer Gaston de Pawlowski, who considered themselves bohemians and were immersed in the nightlife of Montmartre, including the decadent Moulin Rouge. In 1907, after years of battling a syphilis infection, Bottini died in an insane asylum at the age of 33. His distinctive view of Montmartre went on to influence the works of many early modern artists, namely Pablo Picasso--especially during his formative Blue Period. Southard 17.
