During the 1930s classical art and literature played an important role in the work of artists and writers throughout Europe, and especially in Paris, the cultural capital of the age. The interest Georges Braque (1882-1963) had in classical culture developed into something of an obsession, and when he was approached by the famous publisher Ambroise Vollard to illustrate a book, Braque chose Hesiod's Theogony. The story, as the title implies, revolves around the creation of the world through endless pairings and battles between the gods, two of which are seen here. The suite of prints is characterised by a linear style inspired by images found on very early Greek and Etruscan terracottas and bronzes.
Physical description
print on paper
Place of Origin
Paris, France (produced)
Date
1932-1939 (printed)
Artist/maker
Braque, Georges, born 1882 - died 1963 (artist)
Galanis, Démétrius (printer)
Materials and Techniques
Etching on paper
Marks and inscriptions
G Braque
45/50
Dimensions
Height: 36.8 cm plate, Width: 29.9 cm plate, Height: 53.3 cm sheet, Width: 37.8 cm sheet
Descriptive line
Georges Braque Hera and Themis :illustration to Hesiod's Theogony. 1932-1939
Bibliographic References (Citation, Note/Abstract, NAL no)
Dora Vallier: Braque:L'Oeuvre gravé. Flammarion, Paris, 1982
Una Johnson: Ambroise Vollard, Éditeur:Prints, Books, Bronzes. Musesum of Modern Art, New York, 1977
Timmers, Margaret (ed), Impressions of the Twentieth Century: Fine Art Prints from the V&A's Collection, London, V&A Publications, 2001
The full text of the entry is as follows:
"Georges Braque (1882-1963)
Hera et Themis, 1932-9
During the 1920s and 1930s classical art and literature played an important role in the work of artist and writers throughout Europe, not least of those in its cultural Mecca, Paris. Braque's own interest in these subjects developed into something of an obsession, and when in 1930 Vollard approached the artist for an illustrated book, Braque immediately proposed the Theogony. Despite the general interest in classical literature, this was not the most likely work to be chosen for such a project. It describes the creation of the world through endlessly repetitive paintings and battles of the gods (the illustration shows the mythological Hera, sister and wife of Zeus, and Themis, Greek goddess of justice and wisdom), and is rather less gripping than other epics such as Homer's Iliad or Odyssey. Yet Braque declared that he had read it with complete admiration, finding it more interesting than Aeschylus or Sophocles. Its theme of order out of chaos was an appropriate metaphor for Braque's post-Cubist 'genesis of linear form', so perfectly expressed in this suite. The remarques (marginal drawings) of the first edition set enhance this sense of search for linear expression.
About the same time Braque was making low plaster reliefs in a drawing style found on very early Greek and Etruscan terracottas and bronzes. In this he may have been influenced by S. W. Hayter, the English artist working in Paris who was also interested in ancient Greek and Sumerian relief techniques and who from 1931 was making prints by pouring plaster onto incised or etched plates.
As with so many of Vollard's commissions Braque's Theogony was subject to various delays and diversions. Braque made numerous drawings as studies for the suite, and by 1932 the plates were ready. Vollard entrusted sixteen of these to Démétrius Galanis, but he was painstakingly slow in his printing. Nevertheless, individual plates were evidently released before Vollard's death, as testified by the exhibition of one at the Museum of Modern Art, New York, in 1936. Hera et Themis was one of the earlier group printed, but its exact date of production seems uncertain. The book itself, with plates trimmed of the remarques, was finally published by Maeght, Paris, in 1955."
Exhibition History
Impressions of the 20th Century (Victoria and Albert Museum 01/01/2001-31/12/2001)
Associated names
Ambroise Vollard
Production Note
The exact date of the printing of Hera and Themis is uncertain, although it is thought to have been among the earlier releases of the group. Plates for the entire suite had been completed by Braque by 1932, but Galanis worked very slowly; although there is evidence that some plates had been produced by 1936, Galanis did not complete the printing of the suite until 1939.
Attribution note: This impression is from the first edition. The suite was published as a book, with the plates trimmed of the remarques, by Editions Maeght in Paris, 1955.
Materials
Paper; Ink
Techniques
Etching
Subjects depicted
Mythology; Creation; Greek Goddesses; Hera; Themis; Graeco- Roman Religous belief
Categories
Prints
Production Type
Limited edition
Collection code
PDP
