DUDOUYT, CharlesEight original drawings for „Poil de carotte“ by Jules Renard.

8 (from 11) original charcoal drawings on Japanese paper mounted on blue cardboard. Size ranges from c. 25 x 21,5 cm to c. 40 x 24 cm. The drawings are titled according to the scene in the play that they represent. Three of the cardboards with marginal tears (in one case the tear affects the drawing as well), the cardboard shows signs of wear.

„Poil de carrote“ (1894) by Jules Renard is a famous French children’s book that tells the story of a redheaded boy’s childhood, focusing on his less than ideal relationship with his parents and his relationship with nature and the world around him. The book is still quite popular among readers, both in France and worldwide, it being translated into numerous languages around the world. Renard’s children’s book and its translations are still being published in present times.

The present drawings were made for the 1911 edition of the book’s adaptation for theatre, which was published by Editions Fayard in Paris. The work included 4 theatre plays by Jules Renard. These are 8 out of 11 of the original sketches for „Poil de carotte“, made by Charles Dudouyt (1885-1946).

Charles Dudouyt was a French artist active in the first half of the 20th century who is well known for his furniture designs. He was trained at the Germain Pilon art school, in Paris. At the beginning of his artistic career – when these drawings were made – he mainly focused on drawings, the turn to furniture design came later on, after WW1. He was keen on book illustrations at that time and has had a few fruitful collaborations with the Parisian publishing house Édition Calmann-Levy. This collaboration lead to the work which brought Dudouyt international fame and reputation, namely the illustrations for the French edition of H. G. Wells’s „The War of the Worlds“.

Dudouyt was very particular about his drawing technique – the drawings are made using charcoal and white gouache on Japanese paper and mounted on blue cardboard. The drawings are mainly in black and white, with a few rare touches of white and red to underline certain elements of the image.

As he was best known for his furniture designs, drawings by Charles Dudouyt are very rare on the market. This lot is a rare collection of beautifully illustrated scenes of a widely read French children’s book.

EUR 1550, –