209 290
VLADIMIR ZUPANSKY (1869-1928)
316
SOUBORNA VYSTAVA DEL SOCHARE RODINA. 1902.
62
1
/
2
x33 inches, 158
3
/
4
x83
3
/
4
cm. Unie, Prague.
Condition B+: minor tears and discoloration at edges; tape on verso along repaired tear in image; wrinkles
and creases in margins and image. Paper.
Advertising a retrospective of Rodin’s work in Prague in 1902, sponsored by the Manes Artists Union.
The choice of this statue of Balzac was a confrontational decision for this poster, as it had been at the
center of major controversy. The design had been turned down by the Societé des Gens de Lettres, who
had commissioned the statue from Rodin in the first place. The powerful statue of the famous writer
does not show him in a traditional pose with a quill in his hand, but rather, depicts him in his bathrobe
(which he customarily wore when writing), with his head thrown back and his hair tousled. Constantin
Brancusi declared that “Balzac . . . remains the incontestable point of departure for modern sculpture.”
Since 1939, the statue has stood at the corner of Boulevard Raspail and Montparnasse. Printed in
German, French and Czech, this is the Czech version. Mascha 153 (var), Ulice p. 34, Cesky Plakat 143,
The Poster 59 (var), Life with Posters p. 108.
[1,500/2,000]