Galerie théâtrale
Paris, Gauguain & Ardit, [1830].
1 vol. (270 x 360 mm) of [24] + [2] f. In sheets under illustrated cover, printed in black on brown paper, blind spine.
Complete set of 24 lithographs, all colored and enhanced by hand, each numbered.
We apologize for the imperfect translation generated by Deepl for the purposes of the show.
Henry Monnier is the creator of the character of Monsieur Prudhomme, an emblematic, pot-bellied bourgeois as conformist as he is stupid. A character of whom Balzac said that he stood out as “the illustrious type of the Parisian bourgeoisie” and from whom Paul Verlaine drew inspiration for a poem of the same name in the Poèmes saturniens.
Author, actor and director, Monnier was also a skilled illustrator who sketched the colorful customs of Parisian life, which he mocked in his plays. In his Galerie théâtrale, devoted to the actors’ scenes, rehearsals and life behind the scenes at the theater, he captures the physiognomy of the celebrities of his time, often actors and actresses, and entertainers he meets on stage or in cafés after the performance.
Rare suite, entirely enhanced.
It was printed by Armand Gaugain, one of the great lithographers of the late 1820s. “He was the printer of Delacroix’s superb The Royal Tiger (1829). His work is emblematic of Romanticism. At the Exhibition of the Products of French Industry in 1827, Gaugain, Lambert et compagnie obtained an Honorable Mention (…) (in Dictionnaire des imprimeurs-lithographes du XIXe siècle, Ecole des Chartes, Elec, 2024). As for Jean Ardit, he was first Gaugain’s assistant, before following up, from 1829, the commercialization of his collection of prints. “Henry Monnier gave him his series sold by delivery: Les Grisettes, la Galerie dramatique which caricatured the small world of the theaters, the artists of the Théâtre des variétés, les Pasquinades… In 1830, in addition to Monnier’s caricatures, Ardit also put on sale prints ridiculing Charles X or recalling painful episodes of the revolution.”
Detailed list of plates:
1 – “Sauteurs” (Jumpers), 2 – “Phénoménes” (Phenomena), 3 – “Une débutante” (A debutante), 4 – “Une queue” (A queue), 5 – “Un Foyer” (A home), 6 – “Le derrière de la toile” (Behind the scenes), 7 – “Une loge” (A dressing room), 8 – “Un comité de lecture” (A reading committee), 9 – “Un Paradis” (A paradise), 10 – “An indisposition”, 11 – “A performance”, 12 – “Comedy moms’, 13 – “Head of employment”, 14 – “Cabalists”, 15 – “A rehearsal’, 16 – “The Corps de ballets”, 17 – “Traveling troupe’, 18 – “Tragédiens”, 19 – “Un ancien camarade”, 20 – “Un Parterre”, 21 -“Comédie Bourgeoise” (Le Mariage de Figaro), 22 – “Le Bienfaiteur”, 23 – “Une grande Coquette”, 24 – “Leçon de déclamation”.
Beraldi, X, 397-421; Vanheule, Henri Monnier, dessins et lithographies, 93; Ray, The Art of the French Illustrated Book, 135: “In this engaging album Monnier offers an informal view of the theatrical life of his time, ranging from strolling acrobats and sideshows to the ballet and classical tragedy.” “ ; Bobins III, 974; Marie 275-295.
