Marcel Vertès. Manuscript handwritten by André Salmon.
n.p., n.y. [Paris]: Salmon, Andre.
Marcel Vertès. 1st Edition. André Salmon (1881–1969), French poet, art critic, and writer, was a prominent defender of Cubism alongside Apollinaire and Maurice Raynal, and a recognized member of the avant-garde. In 1904, he lived at the Bateau-Lavoir in Montmartre with Picasso, Max Jacob, and Apollinaire. In 1964, he was awarded the Grand Prix for poetry by the French Academy.
Autograph manuscript signed in green fountain pen on pad paper stock, 4to, with several corrections. The text is entirely in French and is an eloquent homage to the Hungarian-born painter, printmaker, and illustrator Marcel Vertès (1895–1961). Salmon writes in part:
"N’est-ce pas Pierre MacOrlan qui découvrit Vertès? Acte de foi ou placement de père de famille? Altruisme ou traite des noirs? Ferveur de l’esprit? Simplicité du cœur? Que sais-je! Comme disait l’autre, le grand autre. Mais si Vertès ne se peut abandonner, non sans fièvre, qu’à l’exceptionnel du plus aigu modernisme, ce sera donc que, venu de loin, excepté de la petite peur des façons de la vieille pour être entré en bolide dans le présent, l’étranger sensible se voit attribuer la mission de renouer les fils de tradition."
Partial English Translation: "Was it not Pierre MacOrlan who discovered Vertès? An act of faith or a fatherly investment? Altruism or exploitation? Fervor of the spirit? Simplicity of the heart? Who can say! As the great other once said. Yet if Vertès can only give himself, with intensity, to the finest edge of modernism, it is because, having come from afar—and despite any lingering fear of old-fashioned ways—this sensitive outsider is entrusted with the task of reconnecting the threads of tradition."
A striking tribute to Vertès, highlighting his early life in Budapest, his arrival in Paris during World War I, and his rapid rise in the Latin Quarter art scene.
Vertès achieved international acclaim for his depictions of Parisian life, women, circus, and cabaret scenes. He also won two Academy Awards in 1952 for Moulin Rouge (Best Costume Design and Best Art Direction) and created celebrated commercial illustrations, including for Schiaparelli perfumes.
A rare and historically significant manuscript offering firsthand insight into one of 20th-century Paris’s most vibrant artistic figures.
Item #34423 Price: US$1,800.00