Floréal, from Mélodies de Désiré Dihau

Floréal, from Mélodies de Désiré Dihau is a significant print created by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec French, 1864-1901, in 1895. This piece is part of a larger, intimate series, Mélodies de Désiré Dihau, which illustrated songs composed by the artist's friend, Désiré Dihau. Lautrec executed this work as a lithograph on tan wove paper, enhancing the composition with added printed text that underscores the integration of image and lyrical content. This combination highlights the technical brilliance of 19th-century French printmaking, which allowed for the mass distribution of artistic sheet music and illustrated poetry.

By 1895, Lautrec was widely recognized as a master of the graphic arts, deeply involved in the dynamic bohemian culture of fin-de-siècle France. Unlike his famous, large-scale posters, this smaller format print was intended for a more intimate audience, often circulated within artistic portfolios. This era saw a major shift, elevating the classification of artistic prints from mere commercial reproduction to a highly esteemed art form. Lautrec’s distinctive style, characterized by sharp contours and an evocative, economic use of line, efficiently captures the ephemeral spirit of the Parisian Belle Époque and its preoccupation with popular music and illustration.

As a high-quality lithograph print, Floréal exemplifies the artist’s profound contribution to modern graphic design and illustration. The use of tan wove paper provides a warm, historical foundation for the composition, grounding the series in the aesthetic traditions of the period. This important piece is classified as a print within the Art Institute of Chicago's renowned collection, where it serves as an essential public domain reference for the sophisticated print culture of turn-of-the-century France.