Les Demoiselles de la Marne

Art Historical Context

**Les Demoiselles de la Mar** (1921) is a captivating drypoint print by French artist André Dunoyer de Segac, capturing the resilient spirit of post-World War I France. Created just three years after the Armistice, the work evokes the Marne River region—site of pivotal 1914 and 1918 battles—through its title, "The Girls of the Marne."onzac, a Realist painter and printmaker linked to the École de Paris, favored direct, observational depictions of everyday life, steering clear of avant-garde abstraction in favor of robust, earthy scenes that celebrated ordinary people amid national recovery. The drypoint medium shines here: Segonzac scratched lines directly into a copper plate, raising a soft burr that yields the technique's signature velvety texture and rich tonal depth. This intimate process allowed for spontaneous, expressive marks, ideal for portraying fluid figures and riverbank settings. As a print from the Frank Crowninshield Collection at the National Gallery of Art, it exemplifies early 20th-century French printmaking's technical innovation and emotional directness. Housed in the museum's CG-W department, this piece invites visitors to reflect on interwar France's quiet heroism, blending Segonzac's keen eye for human grace with the era's subtle optimism. A gem for print enthusiasts! (198 words)

About the Artist

André Dunoyer de Segonzac

André Dunoyer de Segonzac (1884–1974) was a leading French painter, draughtsman, engraver, and illustrator, born on 6 July in Boussy-Saint-Antoine near Paris, where he spent much of his childhood alongside time in the city. Defying his parents' initial hopes for a military career at Saint-Cyr, he pursued art, enrolling in 1900 at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris as a general student. He studied u...