Henri Cartier-Bresson — Vowels, 1996 — Portfolio of 3 Signed Color Woodcuts — No. 28/60

Henri Cartier-Bresson — Vowels, 1996

Portfolio of Three Signed Color Woodcuts — No. 28 of 60

Henri Cartier-Bresson (1908–2004)
Vowels
New York: The Limited Editions Club, 1996

A rare separate portfolio containing three original multicolor woodcuts by Henri Cartier-Bresson, each individually signed in pencil by the artist and numbered 28/60.

Issued by the Limited Editions Club in connection with its celebrated edition of Arthur Rimbaud’s Vowels, this portfolio represents the substantially rarer issue of Cartier-Bresson’s imagery. Unlike the 300-copy book edition, in which the artist signed the limitation page, this separate portfolio was produced in only 60 sets, with each of the three prints individually signed and numbered by Cartier-Bresson.

The images originated as watercolors by Cartier-Bresson and were translated into exceptionally complex multicolor woodcuts by master printer Keiji Shinohara. As many as twenty-three to thirty separately carved blocks were required to reproduce the color variations of each composition.

Printed on handmade Japanese paper, the resulting works reveal a less familiar aspect of Cartier-Bresson’s artistic practice. Although internationally celebrated as one of the defining photographers of the twentieth century, Cartier-Bresson drew and painted throughout his life and considered drawing fundamental to his way of seeing.

The three abstract compositions were created in response to Arthur Rimbaud’s celebrated 1871 poem Voyelles (Vowels), in which the poet famously associates individual vowels with colors. Cartier-Bresson’s fluid forms and layered colors provide a visual counterpart to Rimbaud’s experiments with color, language, and sensory association.

The prints are loose as issued, accompanied by the original printed title page and limitation leaf, and housed in the publisher’s red cloth portfolio stamped in black. The original mailing portfolio is also retained.

Edition: No. 28 of 60
Prints: Three original multicolor woodcuts
Signed: Each print individually signed in pencil by Henri Cartier-Bresson
Printer: Keiji Shinohara
Publisher: The Limited Editions Club, New York
Date: 1996
Print size: Approximately 18 × 18 in. each
Presentation: Original red cloth portfolio and original mailing portfolio

Condition

Fine. The three woodcuts are clean and well preserved, with strong color, and remain loose as issued. Original title and limitation leaves, publisher’s portfolio, and mailing portfolio are present.

A scarce complete set of Cartier-Bresson’s Vowels woodcuts, distinguished from the more common book edition by its edition of only 60 and the individual pencil signature on each of the three prints.