Lot 85: POSTER: CLEMENTINE-HELENE DUFAU (1869-1937).

CLEMENTINE-HELENE DUFAU (1869-1937) [L'ENFANT A TRAVERS LES AGES.] 1901.
54 3/4x39 1/2 inches, 139x100 cm. Charles Vernau, Paris.
Condition B+: staining along bottom margin and lower left corner; creases in margins and image; restored pin holes in corners.
Dufau, a painter with Basque origins, was one of the few women artists who designed posters during the Belle Epoque. She participated in the "Art at School" movement. Four of her works, which were acclaimed by the authorities for their high moral standards, were published. Perhaps the combination of children and school prepared her for the commission she received to design this poster a year later. The image she created for the exhibition, l'Enfant a Travers les Ages (Children through the ages), at the Petit Palais in Paris, is done in a soft-toned, loving style using flat colors very much in the style of Vuillard. This is the version before text. DFP II, 315 (var).