LOUISE BOURGEOIS: COMPLETE BOOKS & PRINTS

Alternate Title:

Mountain Ponds 1993; Convulsions

Descriptive Title:

English translation: “Mountain Lakes”

Themes:

Architecture, Nature

Techniques:

Engraving

Description:

Engraving, with blue and red ink, and charcoal additions

Support:

Paper

Dimensions:

plate: 18 1/16 × 23 7/8" (45.9 × 60.6 cm); sheet: 22 1/4 × 27 7/8" (56.5 × 70.8 cm)

Signature:

"Louise Bourgeois" lower right margin, pencil.

Publisher:

unpublished

Printer:

Harlan & Weaver, New York

Edition:

1 known impression of state VI

Impression:

Not numbered

Edition Information:

Proof before the editioning of states XII and XIII. This composition was also issued as a published edition at state II.

State Changes and Additions:

Matrices:
The progression of this composition, as seen in the Evolving Composition Diagram below, involved 3 plates.

Plate 1: overall linear composition; printed in black.
Plate 2: fill in lakes, and later, larger cloud form; usually printed in blue, sometimes in red, pink, and gray.
Plate 3: fill in mountains and smaller cloud form; printed in blue and/or red.

Print State Changes:
Plate 1 printed in black.
Changes from state V, by grinding and burnishing: sun and large cloud removed entirely.

Background:

State XIII was published as a benefit for Chalcographie of the Musée du Louvre, Paris.

Curatorial Remarks:

The type of paper could not be documented because this impression is not in MoMA's Collection and could not be examined in person. The plate dimensions are from an impression in MoMA's Collection. The sheet dimensions were provided by the Louise Bourgeois Studio.

Other Remarks:

According to Bourgeois's assistant, Jerry Gorovoy, this composition depicts mountains in Switzerland and likely references the artist's memories of visits there in her youth, especially for skiing.

Public Collection:

Musée du Louvre, Paris

© The Easton Foundation/VAGA at ARS, NY