François Clément SOMMIER (aka Henri SOMM)
(1844 Rouen - 1907 Paris)
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Femme a l’éventail – c.1880
Drypoint on chine. Framed.
Size of sheet: 24 x 17 cm. Size of plate: 6.5 x 6.5 cm.
Very fine impression with wide margins. Drypoint etchings typically exist in small print runs. We could not locate any other impression of our print, so most likely if not unique, then only a few proofs exist. Very rare.
-Sold.
Henri Somm: Femme a l’éventail
Like other artists in Paris at the time, Somm was greatly influenced by the discovery of Japanese culture and especially Japanese woodblock prints in Europe. His works reflect a borrowing of Japanese elements, such as innovative use of perspective and composition. Our print shows a lady in profile, holding a fan decorated with Japanese style motifs. Its small format gives it a jewel-like feeling and a quick sketch of a young woman, probably sitting by a theatre balcony, an attempt to grasp a fleeting moment of here and now.