"Femmes Damnees." An original chromolithograph print of two nude women, apparently in lesbian embrace, from a water-colour washed sketch which the Rodin presented to Aleister Crowley. As published in Crowley's "Rodin in Rime."
Paris (?): Privately Printed, ca. 1907. First Edition. Artwork. Approx. 13 x 9.5 inches, a colour print chromolithograph printed by Auguste Clot from a sketch with water-colour wash by Auguste Rodin. The artwork is from the book known as "Rodin in Rime" (formal title: "Seven Lithographs by Clot from the Water-Colours of Auguste Rodin, with a Chaplet of Verse by Aleister Crowley"). In 1898 the artist Auguste Rodin unveiled a statue of the great novelist Honoré de Balzac which sparked immediate outcry, and was rejected by the body that had commisioned it (the Société des Gens des Lettres) on the grounds that it was not life-like enough. A controversy raged for a number of years, with one of those who spoke out in favour of the work being a young English poet, Aleister Crowley. By Crowley's account Rodin read his poem on the subject and was so impressed with it that he invited Crowley to stay with him at his home in Meudon, and to prepare a poetic interpretation of his works. This Crowley did, writing a series of poems in their honour. Rodin presented Crowley with ten sketches of female nudes, with water colour flourishes, with which to illustrate the work. A few years later Crowley had the renowned French printer and chromolithographer Auguste Clot (1858 - 1936) of Paris prepare 500 prints of each of seven of the designs for him, which he had shipped to England. In 1907 he had his favourite British printer, the Chiswick Press, print the series of poems along with some new prefaratory matter, and bind in the lithographs which he then had bound and published as "Rodin in Rime". This is one of the prints from that work. It shows two nude women, apparently in lesbian embrace. It appears in the book opposite the poem "Femmes Damnees" ("Damned Women"). The print has been secured in a modern, white, archival-quality mount with backing card (external measurements 16 inches x 12.5 inches) ready for framing. It shows a little light foxing, as common, but is overall in VG condition save for a little darkening along the very bottom edge. Rare and most unusual, not only were there only 500 copies of the print made to begin with, but it seems that much of the stock was stored in a warehouse that flooded, and thus many copies were destroyed or damaged. Crowley salvaged what he could, but most surviving copies show some damp discoloration to the plates. This print is largely unaffected. An attractive rarity, illustrative of a short collaboration between two fascinating individuals. Item #61312
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