Skip to main content

Paul César Helleu Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

French, 1859-1927
Rich impression with dramatic drypoint burr and tone no other artist epitomizes the whole atmosphere of elegance and hedonistic pleasure which pervaded Paris society at the first decade of the century as does Helleu. A close friend of Proust and the inspiration for one of the principal characters in La Recherche du Temps Perdu, Helleu’s whole life style echoed the incomparable elegance and flow of his drawing, the sheer style of his art, and his eye for the poses of the beautiful women who were his friends and his patrons. During the 1870’s, Helleu had come to know the painters of Impressionism and also artists Sargent and Whistler who became his special friends and inspiration. By the early 1880’s, he had already developed the quality of expressive sweeping line, which is the essence of his drawing, but in 1885 he was encouraged by Tissot to try working on prints in drypoint. At this time, Tissot had decided, after the death of his lover and model Kathleen Newton, to travel to the Holy Land on an artistic pilgrimage. Having decided he would no longer engrave, he gave Helleu his diamond stylus…a literal and figurative “passing of the baton”. It was in the incision and texture of drypoint that his art was to reach one of its greatest peaks. He had an innate feel for the balance between a lightly curving stroke and the deeply cut highly tonal burr of the strongest drypoint. Around the turn of the century he started to combine drypoint with multi-inking in colors, the areas of color restricted to such touches as the bows on the hats, the hair color or the red of the lips. The plate was drawn at a single sitting, and then the color inks were brushed onto it. The results are some of the most splendid and decorative of all Belle Époque prints.
(Biography provided by Triad Art Group, Inc.)
to
4
1
3
1
2
2
Overall Height
to
Overall Width
to
3
1
1
1
1
4
1
1
23
772
326
196
132
3
1
1
1
Artist: Paul César Helleu
Original Drawing "Jeune Femme Assise" by Paul Cesar Helleu, c. 1910
By Paul César Helleu
Located in Hinsdale, IL
HELLEU, PAUL CÉSAR (1859 -1927) "JEUNE FEMME ASSISE" (Young Woman Seated) Original Drawing in sanguine, white and black chalks, c. 1910 Signed in pencil by artist, lower right Full M...
Category

Early 20th Century Impressionist Paul César Helleu Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Chalk, Carbon Pencil

Untitled (Young woman seen from the back)
By Paul César Helleu
Located in Fairlawn, OH
Untitled (Young woman seen from the back) Sanguine crayon, charcola and watercolor on paper, c. 1910 Signed with the estate stamp, Lugt 5169 lower left corner Provenance: Estate of ...
Category

Early 1900s Impressionist Paul César Helleu Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Charcoal

Tea at the Ritz, New York
By Paul César Helleu
Located in Fairlawn, OH
Tea at the Ritz, New York Colored chalk, 1912 Signed with the estate stamp verso. (see photo) Authenticated by the artist's daughter, Mme Paulette Johnston. Image size: 10 5/8 x 10 1...
Category

1920s Art Nouveau Paul César Helleu Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Chalk

Original Drawing "Jeune Femme Assise" by Paul Cesar Helleu, c. 1910
By Paul César Helleu
Located in Hinsdale, IL
HELLEU, PAUL CÉSAR (1859 -1927) "JEUNE FEMME ASSISE" (Young Woman Seated) Original Drawing in sanguine, white and black chalks, c. 1910 Signed in pencil by artist, lower right Full Margins on cream wove paperImage size: 17.5” x 11.02” Paul César Helleu...
Category

Early 20th Century Impressionist Paul César Helleu Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Chalk

Related Items
"The Artists Wife" Realistic Nude Woman in Conté on Paper by Garth Benton
Located in Soquel, CA
"The Artists Wife" Realistic Nude Woman in Conté on Paper by Garth Benton Detailed nude drawing by Paul "Garth" Garfield Benton (American, 1940-2012). Portrait of Christine Rosamond...
Category

1980s American Impressionist Paul César Helleu Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Conté

Theophile Alexandre Steinlen (1859-1923) Men at the Pont du Carrousel, drawing
By Théophile Alexandre Steinlen
Located in Paris, FR
Theophile Alexandre Steinlen (1859-1923) Men at the Pont du Carrousel, Signed "St" on the lower right pencil on paper 9 x 15 cm framed : 24,5 x 30 cm In good condition, slightly ye...
Category

1890s Impressionist Paul César Helleu Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Carbon Pencil

G. A. Rochegrosse (1859-1938) A zither player, small signed drawingdrawing
By Georges Antoine Rochegrosse
Located in Paris, FR
Georges Antoine Rochegrosse (1859-1938) A zither player carbon pencil on thin paper 8.5 x 3.3 cm In good condition Framed : 35 x 24 cm Provenance: Estate of the artist and by Inher...
Category

1910s Symbolist Paul César Helleu Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Carbon Pencil

Gaston La Touche (1854-1913) "Nymph in the Forest" Watercolor
By Gaston La Touche
Located in Pistoia, IT
"Nymph in the Forest" watercolor on paper signed Gaston La Touche. Gaston de La Touche (1854-1913), also known as Gaston La Touche, was a French painter, engraver, illustrator and s...
Category

Early 20th Century Art Nouveau Paul César Helleu Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Watercolor

Academic Drawing. Figure Study of Young Sitting Nude Man. 19th Century.
Located in Firenze, IT
Charcoal drawing on light gray-blue colored paper. The drawing depicts a young man sitting with the hand on forehead. the position is probably meant to express the feeling of regret,...
Category

19th Century Academic Paul César Helleu Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Steel

Mid Century Nude Figure Study of a Black Woman
By Raul Anguiano
Located in Soquel, CA
Compelling mid century nude figure study of a black woman reclining by Raul Anguiano (Mexican/American, 1915-2006), 1968. Signed and dated lower left hand corner "R. Anguiano." Presented in wood frame under plexiglass. Image size: 25"H x 34"W. Framed size: 35"H x 43.75"W. Raúl Anguiano was born in Guadalajara, Jalisco, on February 26th, 1915. He started drawing cubist pictures at the age of 5, taking as his first models movie stars, as Mary Pickford, Pola Negri and Charlie Chaplin. Anguiano first artistic influence or aesthetic emotion came from the Holy Family by Rafael Sanzio. At the age of 12, Anguiano attended Guadalajara's Free School of Painting under the tuition of Ixca Farias. From 1928 to 1933, he studied with the Master painter José Vizcarra, the disciple of Santiago Rebull and José Salomé Piña, and organised the group "Young Painters of Jalisco" with other artists. During this period, Anguiano worked with different kinds of models: workmen, employees and a few intellectuals like Pita Amor. In 1934 Anguiano moved to Mexico City. He began teaching in primary schools and taught drawing and painting at La Esmeralda academy and the UNAM School of Art. Anguiano was a member of the Mexican Artistic Renaissance movement which was started in the 1920's by the Mexican School of Art in which he belonged. This renaissance began with the San Carlos Academy movement -- among whose leaders were Ignacio Asúnsolo and Jose Clemente Orozco -- and which emerged out of the students' and teachers' discontent with the traditional paintings methods (academicism), and the close contact that the young artists had with the problems of Mexico and its people, explaining the marked critical realism to the painters of the time, including Anguiano himself. The same year, Anguiano received a commission to paint his first mural, Socialist Education, a 70 meters fresco located at A. Carrillo School in Mexico City. Other works followed, including Mayan rituals (oils on canvas and wood), for the Mayan Hall in the National Museum of Anthropology, and Trilogy of Nationality (acrylic on canvas and wood), for the Attorney General's Office. In 1936 he moved into his surrealist period, which lasted almost a decade. He painted circus performers and prostitutes. The most notable among his works of the time are: The Madame (gouche, 1936), The Clown's Daughter (oil, 1940), the Pink Circus Artist and the Grey Circus Artist (oil, 1941). Also during this period, Anguiano produced a series of drawings based on his dreams, with cold tones and silver-greys predominating. In 1937 Anguiano joined the Revolutionary Writers and Artists League. Together, with Alfredo Zalce and Pablo O'Higgins, he was also a founding member of the Popular Graphics Workshop, where artists practised a graphic style based on Mexico's folk traditions. This was due to the powerful influence of the recently discovered Jose Guadalupe Posada and Goya. Raúl Anguiano belonged to the so-called "Third Generation" of post-revolutionary painters, along with Juan O'Gorman, Jorge González Camarena...
Category

1960s American Impressionist Paul César Helleu Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Conté, Charcoal

Nude Woman from Behind in Charcoal on Paper
Located in Soquel, CA
Nude Woman from Behind in Charcoal on Paper Nude woman laying down by Santa Cruz and San Francisco artist Heather Speck (American, b. 1978). The model is on her side, facing away fr...
Category

Early 2000s American Impressionist Paul César Helleu Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Charcoal, Paper

Running Men
Located in London, GB
Graphite and coloured pencil on paper, signed and dated (lower right), 36cm x 44cm, (45cm x 53cm framed). The picture is behind museum quality non-reflective UV glass. Throughout h...
Category

1990s Contemporary Paul César Helleu Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Carbon Pencil, Color Pencil

Running Men
Running Men
H 17.72 in W 20.87 in D 0.79 in
"Mighty Resignation" Black and White Contemporary Drawing by Mac Mechem
Located in Pasadena, CA
This Mac Mechem's drawing features a seated nude man draped in a small loincloth. Sitting in a wood-crafted chair, his gaze fixed downward as though he were brooding over some bad news. Despite the defeatist posture, his physique radiates a stark contrast—the sculpted body exudes strength and athleticism through pronounced abdominal lines, robust thighs, and defined biceps. Both hands rest passively on his knees, amplifying the sense of resignation portrayed in the artwork. The artist signed in the lower right part of the artwork. Mac Mechem, a figurative contemporary painter...
Category

Late 20th Century Contemporary Paul César Helleu Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Carbon Pencil

Jules Cheret (1836-1932) La Confidence, 1909, drawing signed
By Jules Chéret
Located in Paris, FR
Jules Cheret (1836-1932) La Confidence (The confidence) 1909 signed and dated in the lower right Charcoal and heightenings of white chalk 22.7 x 22.7 cm Framed under glass : 33.8 x...
Category

Early 1900s Art Nouveau Paul César Helleu Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Chalk, Charcoal

Seated Male Nude in Charcoal on Paper
Located in Soquel, CA
Seated Male Nude in Charcoal on Paper Figurative piece with a nude male by Santa Cruz and San Francisco artist Heather Speck (American, b. 1978). The...
Category

Early 2000s American Impressionist Paul César Helleu Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Charcoal, Paper

Cavaliers by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec - Figurative work on paper
By Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec
Located in London, GB
Cavaliers by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (1864-1901) Pencil on paper 15.7 x 25.4 cm (6 ¹/₈ x 10 inches) Inscribed with intials lower right, TL This work on paper is characteristic of ...
Category

19th Century Impressionist Paul César Helleu Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Pencil

Previously Available Items
Nu Endormi; Reclining Nude drawing
By Paul César Helleu
Located in Greenwich, CT
This is a rare. large and elegant nude by one of the most noted of the Belle Epoque French artists. Helleu was primarily a works on paper artist who preferred drawing to painting. ...
Category

1890s French School Paul César Helleu Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Conté, Archival Paper, Graphite

Le Duet
By Paul César Helleu
Located in Los Angeles, CA
PAUL CÉSAR HELLEU Le Duet. Color chalks and pencil on tan wove paper, circa 1900. 653x500 mm; 25 3/4x19 3/4 inches. Signed in pencil, lower right recto. Framed size: 36.5 x 31 x 1....
Category

Early 20th Century Expressionist Paul César Helleu Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Pencil, Chalk

Le Duet
Le Duet
H 36.5 in W 31 in D 1.5 in

Paul César Helleu figurative drawings and watercolors for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Paul César Helleu figurative drawings and watercolors available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Paul César Helleu in chalk, charcoal, pencil and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 20th century and is mostly associated with the Impressionist style. Not every interior allows for large Paul César Helleu figurative drawings and watercolors, so small editions measuring 11 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Camille Pissarro, John Singer Sargent, and Les Anderson. Paul César Helleu figurative drawings and watercolors prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $7,500 and tops out at $39,500, while the average work can sell for $21,250.

Recently Viewed

View All