Mid-20th Century Prints and Multiples

Benton Spruance, 'Girl with Hands to Face', two-color lithograph, 1940, edition 30, Fine and Looney 180. Signed, titled, and annotated 'Ed. 30' in pencil. A superb impression, on cr...

The timeless tale of "La Belle et la Bête" has captivated audiences for centuries, with its origins dating back to Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve's 1740 novel. In 1946, the visionary filmmaker Jean Cocteau brought this beloved story to life in his first feature film adaptation. His cinematic masterpiece enchanted viewers with its breathtaking sets, lavish costumes, and groundbreaking visual effects. The film, starring Jean Marais and Josette Day, has since become a cherished gem of French cinema, with its enduring legacy living on in both animation and live-action adaptations. In 2017, the tale was reimagined once again in a live-action format. However, in the realm of film poster art, the 1951 original second edition by Jean-Denis Malclès stands as a true work of art. Jean-Denis Malclès, an accomplished French artist, was known for his expertise in various artistic mediums. From opera set designs to book illustrations, his passion for painting shone through. His lifelong friend and renowned filmmaker, Jean Cocteau, commissioned Malclès to create a poster that would capture the essence of his fantasy romance film, "La Belle et la Bête." Malclès' foray into the world of film poster design was a departure from his usual artistic pursuits, but it resulted in a work of sheer magnificence. Malclès' poster for "La Belle et la Bête" is nothing short of magnificent. It exquisitely captures the magical and surreal imagery that defines the film. The central imagery depicts a stunning representation of Belle and the Beast, with the Beast in a regal pose as Belle gently embraces him. The use of color, shadow, and light in the poster evokes the enchanting atmosphere of the film. It is a true testament to Malclès' ability to convey complex emotions and themes with simplicity and elegance, much like the film itself. Jean-Denis Malclès' poster for "La Belle et la Bête" is widely regarded as one of the most iconic and definitive film posters of the 20th century. Its ability to capture the essence of Cocteau's cinematic masterpiece while retaining its artistic integrity is nothing short of remarkable. The poster has endured through the decades and remains a testament to the enduring power of art to evoke the magic of cinema. In conclusion, Jean-Denis Malclès' 1951 original second edition movie poster for "La Belle et la Bête" is a testament to the everlasting appeal of both the film and the story. Malclès' exceptional artistic talent was instrumental in creating a work of art that transcends the boundaries of mere film promotion...

Medium: pochoir (after the pastel). A soft and delicate impression, printed in Paris in 1948 and published in an edition of 1200 by Braun et Cie. Size: 6 1/2 x 4 1/2 inches (164 x 11...

Artist: Pablo Picasso Medium: Lithographic Poster, 1952 Dimensions: 25.5 x 18.25 in, 64.8 x 46.4 cm Our mission for over 170 years, the name Mourlot has been associated with impor...

Etching and drypoint on greenish cream wove paper, 3 1/4 x 1 15/16 inches (81 x 48 mm), full margins. Signed, dated, and inscribed "III" in pencil. Number 46 from the French Churche...

The year 1958 marked a significant moment in the artistic journey of Pablo Picasso, one of the most influential figures in 20th-century art. This was the year when Picasso, renowned ...

"The Covered Wagon" On the Oregon Trail Prairie Schooner and Cattle Facsimile in oil or silk screen Oil print by Gilbert Ross Tonge (American, 1883 - 1970...

Medium: wood engraving (after the watercolor). Printed in Paris in 1955 at the atelier Coulouma for "Mille nuits et une nuit" (1001 Nights) which was the last major portfolio by Kees...

Date: 1957 Lithograph Edition of 6000 Size: 9 x 15.25 in. (22.86 x 38.74 cm) Frame Size: 15.5 x 22 inches Printer: Mourlot Paris Publisher: Maeght, Paris 1957 Reference: Cramer 34: M...

Lithograph on vélin d'Arches paper. Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as issued. Good condition. Notes: From the folio, Divertissement, 1943. Published by Tériade, éditeur, Édit...

Alessandro Mastro-Valerio, 'Morning Paper', 1941, mezzotint, edition 350. Signed in pencil. A superb, richly-inked, luminous impression, on cream, wove paper, with wide margins (1 9/16 to 1 13/16 inches), in excellent condition. Matted to museum standards; unframed. 32nd Presentation Print of the Chicago Society of Etchers, 1941, with the Chicago Society of Etchers blindstamp in the bottom, left margin. ABOUT THE ARTIST Painter and printmaker Mastro-Valerio was educated at the Salvador Rosa Institute in Naples, Italy (1906-1912), and came to the United States in 1913. He settled in Chicago and after a brief period as a commercial artist, established a reputation as a portrait painter. Among his patrons were the industrialists Harvey S. Firestone and Anheuser Busch. Mastro-Valerio was also the owner and editor of the progressive magazine 'La Tribuna Transatlantica'. He wrote and published articles supporting the cause of Italian immigrants. He helped form the Giordano Bruno...

Broadway Parade Lithograph, 1934-1935 Signed, titled and editoned in pencil (see photos) Printer: George Miller, New York Edition: 100, plus trial proofs Printed on cine collee Creat...

Artist: Ellsworth Kelly (American, 1923-2015) Title: "Galerie Maeght" Year: 1964 Medium: Original Lithograph, Exhibition Poster on light wove paper Limited edition: Unknown Printer...

'Sealyham and Setter' Cecil Aldin dog lithograph, 1935. Cecil Aldin was a British artist and illustrator best known for his paintings and sketches of...

Lithograph, 1958 Handsigned by the artist in pencil Edition : 125 + 10 EA Publisher : L'Oeuvre Gravée (Zurich) Printer : Mourlot (Paris) Catalog : Prudhomme 27 51.00 cm. x 67.00 cm....

'Melancholic Muses', one of a poignant set of six signed artist proof lithographs by the celebrated Spanish artist from Barcelona, Vicenç Caraltó (circa 1960s). This collection of li...

A handsome 1930s Rockwell Kent lithograph on paper, titled "Canterbury Tales". Nicely matted and framed in a gold-toned frame. Image size: ...

Original vintage poster. Tennis Club Bray Dunes Mounted on acid-free archival linen. Condition: Grade A- with 1/16" left top edge wear. Clos Fleuri Tel: 47 2 Courts couverts (2 c...

Lithograph on vélin pur fil paper. Inscription: Signed in the plate and unnumbered, as issued. Good condition. Notes: From the folio, Henri Matisse, Dessins, Thèmes et Variations, 19...

Chrysanthemums Color woodcut, c. 1950's Signed lower right (see photo) Publisher: Uchida (see photo of red seal) Note: Chrysanthemums, a symbol of the sun, the Japanese consider the ...

Juan Reus (1912-2003) Original Vintage Bullfighting Poster September 1942 107cm x 53cm Juan Reus was born in 1912 in Valencia, where he became a well-known...

Signed lower right, 'Keiko Minami' (Japanese, 1911-2004) and inscribed, lower left, with number and limitation, '26/50'. Japanese painter and printmaker, Keiko Minami became well kn...

LEOPOLDO MENDEZ (1902 – 1969) THE MAKING OF TORTILLAS 1954 Linocut. Edition unknown. This example signed in pencil and dated 1957. 14” x 47 3/8” ...

Medium: lithograph (after the drawing). This impression in violet ink was printed in France in 1944 for the rare "Correspondances" portfolio, published by Teriade in a limited editio...

Lithograph on vélin du Marais paper. Inscription: unsigned and unnumbered, as issued. Good condition with centerfold, as issued. Notes: From the volume, Éloge de André Lhote, 1960. P...

Héliogravure on brown-toned paper, no signature. Héliogravure  on bot sheets, recto and verso. Edition of 6500 unsigned copies. Printed by Mourlot and published by Tériade on the A...

Etching and aquatint realized by Lam in 1967. Hand signed in pencil. Artist proof printed by Giorgio Upiglio. Very good condition.

Lithograph in Colours on Vélin d'Arches paper. Edition: 350, plus proofs. Signed in the plate by the artist; hand signed in pencil by the printer, Fernand Mourlot. Good Condition; ne...

Karl Kasten, American (1916 - 2010) - Reliquary L'Abbe, Year: circa 1968, Medium: Lithograph on Arches, signed and numbered in pencil, Edition: 6/20, Size: 30 x 22 in. (76.2 x 55...

Artist: Henri Matisse (after) Title: La Perruch et la Sirene Portfolio: The Last Works of Henri Matisse Medium: Lithograph Date: 1958 Edition: 2000 Frame Siz...

Edition 37 of 50 prints, numbered and hand signed. Image dimensions: 43x58 cm. Wonderful proof on vélin in full margins, numbered lower left and signed lower right in pencil. Realize...

This rare original poster by Pierre Alechinsky is a powerful artistic and historical document from the May 1968 Paris student protests. Printed on billboard paper using a home press,...

Original Soccer vintage sports poster. Linen backed in very good condition, ready to frame. Printed by Ortega Company in Valencia. This type of untitled vintage poster was commonly printed and the date of an upcoming game and team would be added at the bottom of the poster. Soccer games were played quite often, allowing the local team to advertise their events without reprinting a new poster for each game or event. This poster was printed as a full lithograph, so it was expensive to produce. There is no specific designation of which two teams are being shown here in this antique poster The poster has a nickname of ‘heads-up,” as two of the players are in the air as they position themselves to control the soccer ball. Valencia two main clubs, FC València and Levante UD, attract hordes of fans to their matches. Both clubs play in the First Division of La Liga...

Lithograph and stencil on papier a la cuve du moulin Richard de Bas paper, spécialement filigrané pour cette édition. Unsigned and unnumbered, as issued. Good condition. Notes: From ...

"Rush Hour" British Modern Mid 20th Century Vorticist European Vorticism Woman Sybil Andrews CPE (British/Canadian, 1898-1992) Rush Hour (Coppel SA 11) Linocut printed in Chinese orange, Chinese blue and black, 1930, on tissue thin oriental laid paper. Signed, titled and numbered 8/50 in pencil lower left, framed. Block 209 x 251mm (8 1/4 x 9 7/8in) Sheet 249 x 310mm (9 3/4 x 12 1/4in) Framed by Bark 14 1/2 x 16 inches BIO Sybil Andrews was a printmaker, painter, graphic artist and educator who was born in Bury St. Edmonds, Suffolk, England. She moved to London (England) in 1922. In 1947, she emigrated to Campbell River (Vancouver Island) British Columbia, Canada, where she worked, taught and lived for the rest of her life. She died at a hospital in Victoria (B.C.) Her mediums were the colour linocut (1) (most famous), etching, posters, pastels, ink, watercolour, monoprint and oil. Her subjects were human activity (at work, sports, travel, etc.), figures, animals, genre, allegory, architecture and landscape. Her style was Art Deco (see AskART styles), Futurism, Cubism and Vorticism (2). Her work is identified by a simple format, clean lines, distortion, vivid colours, drama and rhythm. Quote: "The colour linocut was just the medium for me, being interested in dynamics and ideas and patterns... It is impossible to be fussy with lines, you have to simplify, you are forced to simplify your idea to its fundamentals." Andrews produced 76 linocuts in her life, of which 43 were made from 1929 to 1939, which is considered to be her best period. John Hassall's art correspondence course (1918) was the beginning of her formal art education. She went from there to Heatherley's School of Fine Art (London/1922) where she studied under Henry Massey (see AskART) and met artistic partner Cyril Power (see AskART). At the same time, she studied independently with sculptor Henri Glicenstein (see AskART) who taught her drypoint etching and to draw from life. She also attended the Grosvenor School of Modern Art (1925). Iain McNab (1890-1967) was Principal and Claude Flight (3) (see AskART) an instructor who had a great influence on her choice of linocut as a primary medium. Some of his other students and her associates were Edith Lawrence (1890-1973), Lill Tschudi (1911-2001), Eileen Mayo (see AskART) and William Greengrass...

Bold modern colours synonymous with the modern art movement make up this original Mourlot printed Henri Matisse lithograph, after a gouache on paper cut-out. The cut-out is based on ...

JAN BRUEGHEL, THE ELDER (Flemish, 1568-1625). Poster/Print. Measures 38 x 29 in. Unframed. Copyright 1969 New York Graphic Society. Printed in USA. Fair/Mildly Distressed Condition- ...

The Creole Dancer is a photolithograph realized in 1993 after Henri Matisse. On Milano handmade paper. Very good conditions.

Lithograph on vélin paper. Inscription: unsigned and unnumbered, as issued. Good condition. Notes: From the volume, Le Plafond de l'Opéra de Paris, par Marc Chagall, 1965. Published ...

Fernand Léger Woman powdering herself, 1959 Original lithograph (Atelier Mourlot) Signed with the artist's stamp Limited to 180 copies (Here numbered 160) On Arches vellum 66 x 50....

Canadian Geese in Flight Drypoint printed with plate tone in the sky c. 1940's Signed in pencil lower right Condition: Excellent Image/Plate size: 8 3/8 x 10 1/4 inches Provenanc...

Marc Chagall - Original Lithograph The Red Rider From the unsigned, unnumbered lithograph printed in the literary review XXe Siecle 1957 See Mourlot 191 Dimensions: 32 x 24 cm Publisher: G. di San Lazzaro. Marc Chagall (born in 1887) Marc Chagall was born in Belarus in 1887 and developed an early interest in art. After studying painting, in 1907 he left Russia for Paris, where he lived in an artist colony on the city’s outskirts. Fusing his own personal, dreamlike imagery with hints of the fauvism and cubism popular in France at the time, Chagall created his most lasting work—including I and the Village (1911)—some of which would be featured in the Salon des Indépendants exhibitions. After returning to Vitebsk for a visit in 1914, the outbreak of WWI trapped Chagall in Russia. He returned to France in 1923 but was forced to flee the country and Nazi persecution during WWII. Finding asylum in the U.S., Chagall became involved in set and costume design before returning to France in 1948. In his later years, he experimented with new art forms and was commissioned to produce numerous large-scale works. Chagall died in St.-Paul-de-Vence in 1985. The Village Marc Chagall was born in a small Hassidic community on the outskirts of Vitebsk, Belarus, on July 7, 1887. His father was a fishmonger, and his mother ran a small sundries shop in the village. As a child, Chagall attended the Jewish elementary school, where he studied Hebrew and the Bible, before later attending the Russian public school. He began to learn the fundamentals of drawing during this time, but perhaps more importantly, he absorbed the world around him, storing away the imagery and themes that would feature largely in most of his later work. At age 19 Chagall enrolled at a private, all-Jewish art school and began his formal education in painting, studying briefly with portrait artist Yehuda Pen. However, he left the school after several months, moving to St. Petersburg in 1907 to study at the Imperial Society for the Protection of Fine Arts. The following year, he enrolled at the Svanseva School, studying with set designer Léon Bakst, whose work had been featured in Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes. This early experience would prove important to Chagall’s later career as well. Despite this formal instruction, and the widespread popularity of realism in Russia at the time, Chagall was already establishing his own personal style, which featured a more dreamlike unreality and the people, places and imagery that were close to his heart. Some examples from this period are his Window Vitebsk (1908) and My Fianceé with Black Gloves (1909), which pictured Bella Rosenfeld, to whom he had recently become engaged. The Beehive Despite his romance with Bella, in 1911 an allowance from Russian parliament member and art patron Maxim Binaver enabled Chagall to move to Paris, France. After settling briefly in the Montparnasse neighborhood, Chagall moved further afield to an artist colony known as La Ruche (“The Beehive”), where he began to work side by side with abstract painters such as Amedeo Modigliani and Fernand Léger as well as the avant-garde poet Guillaume Apollinaire. At their urging, and under the influence of the wildly popular fauvism and cubism, Chagall lightened his palette and pushed his style ever further from reality. I and the Village (1911) and Homage to Apollinaire (1912) are among his early Parisian works, widely considered to be his most successful and representative period. Though his work stood stylistically apart from his cubist contemporaries, from 1912 to 1914 Chagall exhibited several paintings at the annual Salon des Indépendants exhibition, where works by the likes of Juan Gris, Marcel Duchamp and Robert Delaunay were causing a stir in the Paris art world. Chagall’s popularity began to spread beyond La Ruche, and in May 1914 he traveled to Berlin to help organize his first solo exhibition, at Der Sturm Gallery. Chagall remained in the city until the highly acclaimed show opened that June. He then returned to Vitebsk, unaware of the fateful events to come. War, Peace and Revolution In August 1914 the outbreak of World War I precluded Chagall’s plans to return to Paris. The conflict did little to stem the flow of his creative output, however, instead merely giving him direct access to the childhood scenes so essential to his work, as seen in paintings such as Jew in Green (1914) and Over Vitebsk (1914). His paintings from this period also occasionally featured images of the war’s impact on the region, as with Wounded Soldier (1914) and Marching (1915). But despite the hardships of life during wartime, this would also prove to be a joyful period for Chagall. In July 1915 he married Bella, and she gave birth to a daughter, Ida, the following year. Their appearance in works such as Birthday (1915), Bella and Ida by the Window (1917) and several of his “Lovers” paintings give a glimpse of the island of domestic bliss that was Chagall’s amidst the chaos. To avoid military service and stay with his new family, Chagall took a position as a clerk in the Ministry of War Economy in St. Petersburg. While there he began work on his autobiography and also immersed himself in the local art scene, befriending novelist Boris Pasternak, among others. He also exhibited his work in the city and soon gained considerable recognition. That notoriety would prove important in the aftermath of the 1917 Russian Revolution when he was appointed as the Commissar of Fine Arts in Vitebsk. In his new post, Chagall undertook various projects in the region, including the 1919 founding of the Academy of the Arts. Despite these endeavors, differences among his colleagues eventually disillusioned Chagall. In 1920 he relinquished his position and moved his family to Moscow, the post-revolution capital of Russia. In Moscow, Chagall was soon commissioned to create sets and costumes for various productions at the Moscow State Yiddish Theater, where he would paint a series of murals titled Introduction to the Jewish Theater as well. In 1921, Chagall also found work as a teacher at a school for war orphans. By 1922, however, Chagall found that his art had fallen out of favor, and seeking new horizons he left Russia for good. Flight After a brief stay in Berlin, where he unsuccessfully sought to recover the work exhibited at Der Sturm before the war, Chagall moved his family to Paris in September 1923. Shortly after their arrival, he was commissioned by art dealer and publisher Ambroise Vollard to produce a series of etchings for a new edition of Nikolai Gogol's 1842 novel Dead Souls. Two years later Chagall began work on an illustrated edition of Jean de la Fontaine’s Fables, and in 1930 he created etchings for an illustrated edition of the Old Testament, for which he traveled to Palestine to conduct research. Chagall’s work during this period brought him new success as an artist and enabled him to travel throughout Europe in the 1930s. He also published his autobiography, My Life (1931), and in 1933 received a retrospective at the Kunsthalle in Basel, Switzerland. But at the same time that Chagall’s popularity was spreading, so, too, was the threat of Fascism and Nazism. Singled out during the cultural "cleansing" undertaken by the Nazis in Germany, Chagall’s work was ordered removed from museums throughout the country. Several pieces were subsequently burned, and others were featured in a 1937 exhibition of “degenerate art” held in Munich. Chagall’s angst regarding these troubling events and the persecution of Jews in general can be seen in his 1938 painting White Crucifixion. With the eruption of World War II, Chagall and his family moved to the Loire region before moving farther south to Marseilles following the invasion of France. They found a more certain refuge when, in 1941, Chagall’s name was added by the director of the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) in New York City to a list of artists and intellectuals deemed most at risk from the Nazis’ anti-Jewish campaign. Chagall and his family would be among the more than 2,000 who received visas and escaped this way. Haunted Harbors Arriving in New York City in June 1941, Chagall discovered that he was already a well-known artist there and, despite a language barrier, soon became a part of the exiled European artist community. The following year he was commissioned by choreographer Léonide Massine to design sets and costumes for the ballet Aleko, based on Alexander Pushkin’s “The Gypsies” and set to the music of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. But even as he settled into the safety of his temporary home, Chagall’s thoughts were frequently consumed by the fate befalling the Jews of Europe and the destruction of Russia, as paintings such as The Yellow Crucifixion...

Raoul DUFY Summer Garden : a Bunch of Flowers, 1953 Original Lithograph with stencil watercolor With printed signature in the plate On Arches vellum 28 x 38 cm (c. 11 x 15 inch) Ex...

Medium: lithograph (after the original lithograph poster for a bullfight in Vallauris). During the late 1940's and throughout the 1950's, Picasso created a series of posters at the a...

"Dodge Rebellion Girls" - 1967 Silkscreen on Paper 1967 color silkscreen depicting the Dodge Rebellion Girls by Marc Foster Grant (American, b. 1947). A silhouette of the 'dodge gi...

Artist: Pablo Picasso Title: Oval Head of a Woman with Piercing Eyes (Plate XXI) Portfolio: Carmen Medium: Etching on Montval wove paper Year: 1949 Edition: 289 Frame Size: 21" x 18"...

An enchanting Southern landscape by the mother of the Charleston Renaissance, Elizabeth O'Neill Verner(1883-1979) Etching and drypoint on cream wove paper, 6 15/16 x 5 1/16 inches (175 x 128 mm), full margins. Signed, titled and numbered 72/100 in pencil, lower margin. Uniform age tone, minor surface soiling. A rich and inky impression of a magical southern landscape with figure tilling soil under Spanish moss covered oaks. A native of Charleston, South Carolina...

Edition of 90 specimens in arab numbers and 10 specimens in roman numbers. Edition IV/X. Hand signed by the artist with pencil. Ref. Cat. Raisonné "G. de Chirico: Catalogo dell'Ope...

This exquisite lithograph was created in conjunction with an exhibition at the renowned Galerie Lucie Weill in 1966. The print was masterfully recreated by the esteemed engraver Henr...

JOAN MIRO untitled from Tracé sur l'Eau, 1963 This one signed etching and aquatint in colors Edition 88 of 100 lower left Hand signed lower right Image size 21 x 58 cm Frame size ...

PABLO PICASSO Spanish, 1881 - 1973 La Répétition (B. 756; M. 252) signed in black ink "Picasso" (lower left) numbered in pencil "11/50" (lower right) lithograph on Arches S. 19-2/3 x...

These beautiful and colorful lithographic posters were hand reproduced by the Mourlot Studio's Master Printer Henri Deschamps in 1969. They are not to be mistaken with later cheap di...

Irving Place Burlesque Etching, 1930 Unsigned (as usual for the Whitney edition) Numbered in pencil lower left Blind stamp of the Whitney Museum (WM) lower right From: Reginald Marsh...

Salvador Dalí­ Pegasus from The Mythology suite, 1960-1964 Etching and engraving with color aquatint. Hand Signed lower right Numbered 28/150 Image size: 52 x 61 cm Sheet size: 55...

Etching on Montval wove paper, realized by Marc Chagall in 1931-39 and published by Tériade in 1956. Belongs to the series "The Bible". Edition of 275+30 out of commerce copies. N...

Doug Ohlson Untitled 1960s Op Art Silkscreen, 1968 Color silkscreen on wove paper 22. × 18 1/5 inches x .5 inches Hand signed, dated and numbered 15/50 on the front Frame included: h...

Faces is a linocut realized by Mino Maccari in the 1940s. 50 x 30 cm. Handisigned in the lower right part. Edition of 12 copies. Reference; Cat. Meloni , pag 367, n.1741. Good c...

Medium: original lithograph. This lithograph was printed in 1954 for the "Improvisations" portfolio, published by the Artists Equity Association of New York on the occasion of the 19...