Henri-Gabriel Ibels (1867-1936) - Color lithograph 'l'Escarmouche' - France - 1893

Henri-Gabriel Ibels (1867-1936) - Color lithograph 'l'Escarmouche' - France - 1893

Rare color lithograph by the French graphic artist and painter Henri-Gabriel Ibels on Imperial Japanese made paper, with stamp 'Maîtres de l'affiche'. Published in 'Journal illustré hebdomadaire'. Signed in the plate.

Henri-Gabriel Ibels (Paris, November 30, 1867 – Paris, 1936) was a French painter and graphic artist. He belonged to the Les Nabis group that operated at the forefront of the art world in Paris at the end of the 19th century. Bels studied at the Académie Julian in Paris, at the same time as Pierre Bonnard and Edouard Vuillard. With them he founded Les Nabis in 1888. He was an active participant in the Nabis' first projects, aimed at bringing together types of art, such as designing printed matter, setting up theater sets and making puppet shows. Ibels dropped out due to the tendency of some of the members towards the more esoteric, symbolistic.

The first exhibition of Ibels's work came at the Salon des Indépendants in 1891, and he also exhibited in the joint projects of the Nabis at the gallery of Louis Le Barc de Boutteville. Together with Édouard Vuillard and Maurice Denis, he quickly attracted attention.
Ibels' work was grand and graphically expressive. This was partly due to the roots of his work in graphic design. There are not only refined paintings by him, but also lithographs, posters for the cabarets of that time and black-and-white illustrations in books. Ibels designed the program sheets for the Théâtre Libre and for the Théâtre de l'Art/Théâtre d'Art. Ibels also published a magazine, Le Sifflet. In 1893 Ibels had a one-man show at La Plume.

The everyday things in the vibrant life of Paris were the source of inspiration for Ibels, which is where his subjects came from, such as the café and the circus. In terms of form, Ibels' work is somewhat further away from the core of the Nabis, and somewhat closer to the work of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and Théophile-Alexandre Steinlen. Ibels' use of color clearly betrays the influences of the Nabis, but the simplicity of the shapes he uses and the limitation in his lines come more from Japanese printing, as with Félix Vallotton. Ibels collaborates with Toulouse-Lautrec on a number of projects.

Beautifully framed, this l'Escarmouche is an asset to any collection!

Dimensions: 260 x 200mm (420 x 360mm)
Weight: 1.2kg

The photos are an integral part of the description. More photos can be obtained on request.
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