HENRI DE TOULOUSE-LAUTREC (1864-1901) LA REVUE BLANCHE. 1895. 49 1/2x36 inches, 125 3/4x91 1/2 cm. Edw. Ancourt, Paris. Condition A- / A: scratch in right margin; minor creases in margins. Two-sheets. Matted and framed. Misia Natanson, the wife of one of the founders of the Revue Blanche, was the muse for the artists and writers within this circle. Renowned as a brilliant, charming and beautiful woman, she was a source of inspiration for Pierre Bonnard, Jacques Villon and Felix Vallotton among others. Both Bonnard and Toulouse-Lautrec were asked to design a poster promoting the magazine and they both chose Misia, the living incarnation of the spirit of the Revue Blanche, as their subject. Lautrec's image is uncharacteristically soft and endearing, representing Misia skating. Some people have suggested that Lautrec had fallen in love with her, which would explain this rare, tender portrait. The fact that he depicts her without showing her legs lends the image a strange, unbalanced feeling, which adds to the mystery of the poster. Adriani 130, Delteil 355, Reims 788, Maitres pl. 82, DFP-II 838, Devynck p. 67, Wine Spectator 50.
