La Parisienne (2)
1902
Medium
softground etching and aquatint in black on wove paper
Dimensions
plate: 47.7 x 37.2 cm (18 3/4 x 14 5/8 in.) sheet: 58.7 x 43.5 cm (23 1/8 x 17 1/8 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Eugene L. and Marie-Louise Garbáty Fund
Accession Number
1999.93.1
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of Belle Époque Paris with *La Parisienne (2)* a captivating 1902 print by French artist Jacques Villon (1875–1963). Created early in Villon's career—before his explorations in Cubism—this softground etching and aquatint depicts a Parisian woman, embodying the city's fashionable allure at the turn of the century. Villon, known for his masterful printmaking, captures the essence of urban modernity through elegant lines and subtle tones. The technique shines here: softground etching allows for textured, drawing-like effects by pressing paper into a softened etching g...
About the Artist
Jacques Villon
Jacques Villon, born Gaston Émile Duchamp on July 31, 1875, in Damville, Normandy, hailed from a family brimming with artistic talent. As the eldest of six children, he grew up alongside his brothers Raymond Duchamp-Villon, a pioneering sculptor, and Marcel Duchamp, the renowned Dadaist, as well as his sister Suzanne Duchamp, also a painter. Their maternal grandfather, Émile Frédéric Nicolle, a pr...