Aristide Bruant from Le Café Concert

Aristide Bruant from Le Café Concert is a seminal work created by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec in 1893. This piece is a lithograph, forming one of twenty-three prints within a significant portfolio associated with the Le Café Concert series. Known for capturing the vibrant and often gritty life of Parisian nightlife, Toulouse-Lautrec utilized the relatively new medium of color lithography to distribute his artistic vision widely. The execution of these prints highlights his transition toward the graphic arts, cementing his status as a pioneer in modern poster design during the French fin-de-siècle.

The subject of the print is the famed singer, poet, and cabaret artist Aristide Bruant, recognizable by his distinctive silhouette: the black hat, voluminous red scarf, and velvet coat. Bruant was an iconic, often rebellious, figure in the Montmartre district, known for his satirical songs and forceful stage presence in the café-concert venues that defined the period. Toulouse-Lautrec, a keen observer of this vibrant cultural milieu, captures Bruant’s persona through simplified form and energetic line work, characteristic of the artist's highly recognizable graphic style of the 1890s. Lautrec was less concerned with naturalistic detail than with conveying the psychological energy and immediate visual impact necessary for effective advertising and illustrative prints.

Although functioning as a singular artwork, the classification of this piece as an Illustrated Book emphasizes its original context as a printed series intended for dissemination and commercial consumption. This work, dating precisely to 1893, offers invaluable insight into the intersection of fine art and the burgeoning mass media at the turn of the century. The piece is part of the extensive collection of modern prints and illustrated works held by the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), ensuring its continued study and accessibility as a touchstone of French artistic modernism.