Louise Bourgeois. Rain on the Mountain Lakes (1996)

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Louise Bourgeois. Rain on the Mountain Lakes. 1996

NOT IN MoMA'S COLLECTION

Cat. No. 553/V, variant 2

Rain on the Mountain Lakes

State/Variant:: State V of XIII, variant
Date:: 1996

Alternate Title:: Lacs de Montagne (Mountain Lakes); Mountain Ponds 1993; Convulsions
Themes:: Architecture, Nature
Techniques:: Aquatint, Engraving
Description:: Engraving and aquatint, with blue and red gouache, white correction fluid, blue ink, and charcoal additions
Support:: Paper
Dimensions:: plate: 18 1/16 × 23 7/8" (45.9 × 60.6 cm); sheet: 22 3/4 × 28" (57.8 × 71.1 cm)
Signature:: "Aug 1996 / Louise Bourgeois" lower right margin, pencil.
Inscription:: "trial proof" lower left margin, unknown hand; "Rain on the mountain lakes" lower right margin, pencil, artist's hand. Verso: "pink a la poupee; one is needed; Black & blue (Louis Armstrong; not counter culture" center sheet, artist's hand.
Publisher:: unpublished
Printer:: Harlan & Weaver, New York
Edition:: 7 known variant impressions of state V
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, over plate 2 printed in blue. Plate 2 partially uninked.
Changes from state IV, by grinding and burnishing: sun partially removed.
Background:: State XIII was published as a benefit for Chalcographie of the Musée du Louvre, Paris.
Curatorial Remarks:: For this impression, the larger cloud form was not inked.

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