LOUISE BOURGEOIS: COMPLETE BOOKS & PRINTS

Themes:

Abstraction, Spirals

Techniques:

Lithography, Woodcut

Description:

Lithograph and woodcut, with white and blue gouache, and white oilstick additions

Support:

Wove BFK Rives paper

Dimensions:

composition and sheet: 21 3/4 x 96" (55.3 x 243.8 cm)

Signature:

"Louise Bourgeois" lower right composition, blue oil crayon.

Publisher:

SOLO Impression, New York,
Parasol Press, Ltd., New York

Printer:

SOLO Impression, New York

Edition:

40; plus 17 A.P., 4 P.P., 1 B.A.T.

Impression:

"A.P 1" lower right comp, blue oil crayon, unknown hand.

Edition Information:

There are 5 known variant impressions of state II, outside the edition.

The printer’s documentation sheet lists five trial proofs, as follows:
1. Black Background, white and black shapes
2. Black Background with color notations on shapes
3. Black background with red and blue shapes sewn on
4-5. Blue background with red and blue shapes

Proofs number 1 and 3 possibly correspond with state I and II, variant, respectively, in the Evolving Composition Diagram below. Proofs 2, 4, and 5 were not located and could not be examined.

State Changes and Additions:

Changes from state I, in lithography: additional spiral form delineated in far right composition.

Curatorial Remarks:

This composition was initially printed in black, white, and gray, on white paper. It was then printed two additional times: in white ink on blue paper, and in white ink on red paper. Woodcut was used to add texture to the solid background areas. Wood grain is visible using the zoom feature. Hand additions in various colors were applied to further delineate shadows and highlights.

MoMA Credit Line:

Gift of the artist, SOLO Impression, and Parasol Press

MoMA Accession Number:

530.1996

This Work in Other Collections:

New Museum, New York

© The Easton Foundation/VAGA at ARS, NY