Paul Delvaux, Construction d'un Temple en Ruine, Plate No.3, Etching, 1973

Construction d’un temple – Plate n. 3 is a b/w original etching realized in 1973 (as reported on plate on the lower right margin) by Paul Delvaux. from the collection “ Construction d’un temple en ruine à la déesse Vanadé ”, this wonderful original print came into being from the collaboration of four years between the French author and a member of the Nouveau-Roman , Alain Robbe-Grillet (1922-2008), and the Belgian artist Paul Delvaux (1897-1994). At first, Robbe-Grillet wrote a text, to which Delvaux then replied with a wonderful engraving; Robbe-Grillet then responded with a second text. This is how the building blocks of this beautiful book came together: it was constructed like a temple. The book was printed in an edition of 187 copies, of which only 40 contain the illustrations by Paul Delvaux . Our copy is unnumbered and printed on “Arches” ivory colored paper with the Bateau Lavoir watermark (on the lower right corner), and “Richard Bas ” watermark (on the lower left margin). This beautiful artwork, representing an enigmatic composition with seven women realized like ancient Greek marble statues in different poses, seems hard to understand. In excellent conditions, and with swift outlines: as good as new. Le Bateau Lavoir Published in 1975 by the Parisian " Le Bateau Lavoir ", the commission of this edition was made by Mira Jacob , a private collector of Symbolist and Surrealist paintings. She was the one who encoraged Paul Delvaux during their first meeting in 1965 to start making lithographs. For this book, the Belgian artist produced a large number of engravings, some of which are dry-points. Paul Delvaux (1897-1994) Renowned for his images of female nudes rendered as cold marble statues in a dream-like world, Delvaux’s work is sometimes referred to as a theatre of courtesans. In our case, the female figures are depicted in the foreground. Oblong Shape: This edition from Fequet and Baudrier is unique because of its oblong shape. The text was hand-set by François Da Ros, who produced many editions for Fequet and Baudrier between 1964 and 1978. Da Ros was later named the master-typographer. The engravings were printed on Piero Crommelynck ’s engraving press, who was one of Picasso’s favorite engravers. Bibliography : Bénézit 4-424. References: Z. Barthelman , Paul Delvaux: Odysse van een droom. Sint-Idesbald, Paul Delvaux Stichting, 2007; Collection Mira Jacob Galerie le Bateau-Lavoir. Paris, Sotheby’s, 2004; Virginie Devillers , Paul Delvaux: Le théatre des figures . Bruxelles, Editions de l’Université de Bruxelles, 1992; Hommage à Piero Crommelynck , in: Nouvelles de l’estampe , 178 (2001), p. 72-77; Christian Milat, Robbe-Grillet: Romancier alchimiste . Ottawa, David, 2001; Marcel Paquet, Paul Delvaux et l’essence de la peinture. Paris, Edition de la Différence, 1982.