PAUL BERTHON (1872-1909) SOURCES DES ROCHES. 1899. 163/4x191/2 inches. Chaix, Paris. Condition B+: minor loss in bottom margin; time-staining in margins. Paper. Berthon was a disciple of Eugene Grasset as well as being his friend and unabashed admirer. And while he adopted all the principles that he learned from the master, he executed them with his own personal flair, becoming a prominent Art Nouveau artist in his own right. One of the primary characteristics of his work is the pale pastel palette he used - his light green and yellow tones are immediately recognizable. His women, far less overtly sexual than those of Alphonse Mucha, are much warmer than those depicted by Grasset. This poster, one of his rare attempts at real commercial art, has a stylized landscape as background and forgoes his traditional vegetal decorative patterns. Arwas p. 99.
