Phili: ou, par-dela le bien et le mal: Conte moral
Artist: Umberto Brunelleschi (Italian, 1879-1949)
Publisher: Éditions de la Guirlande, [Paris?], 1921
Binder: Alfred Farez
Date: 1921
Dimensions:
Book: H: 11 1/4 in. (285 mm); W: 7 3/4 in. (197 mm); Depth: 1 3/16 in. (30 mm).
Page (partially trimmed): H: 11 in. (280 mm); W: 7 1/2 in. (190 mm).
Medium: Original prints: 12 engravings with added pochoir coloring, plus the 12 engravings without coloring on china paper.
Reproductions: 93 line block reproductions of ink drawings in black with added pochoir coloring, plus each of the vignettes repeated in hors texte groups without the coloring on china paper.
Text: letterpress in black with green (typeface: Cochin).
Paper: imperial cream japan, with suite on china laid.
Classification: Books
Credit Line: Gift of Molly and Walter Bareiss
Object number: 1984.314
Label Text:Umberto Brunelleschi, Phili: ou, par-delà le bien et le mal: Conte moral (Phili: or,
Beyond Good and Bad: a Moral Tale). Text by Abel Hermant (1921)
The young Italian artist Umberto Brunelleschi arrived in Paris in 1900. Although he hoped to be a great painter, Brunelleschi took a job with an illustrated newspaper. Before long, his elegant, witty images of harlequins and coquettes helped establish him as one of the leading illustrators and costume designers of the day.
Brunelleschi’s colorful pochoir (stencil-colored) designs adorned the pages of such high fashion magazines as Journal des Dames et des Modes, La Gazette du Bon Ton, and Harper’s Bazaar. He created influential costume and set designs for theaters, opera, and cabarets, including the costumes for the Folies-Bergères revues of the African-American entertainer Josephine Baker. He was in demand as a poster designer and book illustrator.
His pochoir illustrations for Hermant’s novel, Phili: ou, par-delà le bien et le mal, were created in 1921 at the height of his fame and talent. The novel chronicles the highs and lows of the relationship between Philippe-Egon (Phili), Grand Duke of Silberberg and the beautiful young Sophie-Charlotte. The romantic intrigues of the story provide the perfect vehicle for Brunelleschi’s colorful, playful, and at times erotic images, and exemplify the emerging Art Deco style of the 1920s.
Beyond Good and Bad: a Moral Tale). Text by Abel Hermant (1921)
The young Italian artist Umberto Brunelleschi arrived in Paris in 1900. Although he hoped to be a great painter, Brunelleschi took a job with an illustrated newspaper. Before long, his elegant, witty images of harlequins and coquettes helped establish him as one of the leading illustrators and costume designers of the day.
Brunelleschi’s colorful pochoir (stencil-colored) designs adorned the pages of such high fashion magazines as Journal des Dames et des Modes, La Gazette du Bon Ton, and Harper’s Bazaar. He created influential costume and set designs for theaters, opera, and cabarets, including the costumes for the Folies-Bergères revues of the African-American entertainer Josephine Baker. He was in demand as a poster designer and book illustrator.
His pochoir illustrations for Hermant’s novel, Phili: ou, par-delà le bien et le mal, were created in 1921 at the height of his fame and talent. The novel chronicles the highs and lows of the relationship between Philippe-Egon (Phili), Grand Duke of Silberberg and the beautiful young Sophie-Charlotte. The romantic intrigues of the story provide the perfect vehicle for Brunelleschi’s colorful, playful, and at times erotic images, and exemplify the emerging Art Deco style of the 1920s.
Not on view
In Collection(s)