Marc Chagall — La Poésie, 1976 — Original Color Lithograph — Signed Limited Edition 109/110 — Mourlot 898

Marc Chagall & Georges Pompidou — La Poésie, 1976

Signed Limited Edition — Original Color Lithograph — No. 109 of 110

Marc Chagall (1887–1985), illustrator
Georges Pompidou (1911–1974), author
La Poésie
Association de Bibliophiles Art et Poésie, 1976

A handsome large-format livre d’artiste pairing an original color lithograph by Marc Chagall with a meditation on poetry by Georges Pompidou, former President of France.

Number 109 of only 110 numbered copies on Vélin d’Arches, from a total edition of 150, and signed by Marc Chagall in pencil on the justification page.

The volume is illustrated with an original color lithograph by Chagall, printed by the celebrated Atelier Mourlot in Paris. The lyrical composition serves as the frontispiece to Pompidou’s text, excerpted from his influential Anthologie de la poésie française.

Pompidou wrote the text years before assuming the French presidency, offering an unusual glimpse into the literary and artistic interests of the statesman whose enthusiasm for modern art would later culminate in the creation of Paris’s Centre Pompidou.

Printed in French on fine Vélin d’Arches. The sheets are loose as issued in the original printed white wrappers and housed in the original gilt-stamped chemise and slipcase.

Edition: No. 109 of 110 numbered copies on Vélin d’Arches; total edition of 150
Signed: Signed by Marc Chagall in pencil on the justification
Illustration: One original color lithograph by Marc Chagall
Printer: Atelier Mourlot, Paris
Date: 1976
Dimensions: 18½ × 15 in. (47 × 38.1 cm)
Language: French

Reference: Mourlot 898; Cramer, Marc Chagall: The Illustrated Books, 100.

Condition

Very good overall. Some toning to the front wrapper. Original slipcase with light surface soiling and minor fraying at the corners. Complete with the original wrappers, chemise, slipcase, and Chagall lithograph.

A particularly attractive example of Chagall’s late book work, combining an original Mourlot lithograph, the artist’s signature, a very limited edition, and an important text by one of the central figures of postwar French cultural life.