Footit and Chocolate (Footit et Chocolat)

"Footit and Chocolate (Footit et Chocolat)" by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec is a masterful lithograph created in 1894, capturing two of the most popular entertainers of the Parisian fin de siècle. The French artist, renowned for his documentation of Montmartre's nightlife, focuses here on the famous duo: the English clown George Foottit and his partner, Rafael Padilla, known as Chocolat. The dynamic composition emphasizes the relationship between the two figures, often portraying Foottit as the aggressive straight man and Chocolat as the submissive victim, a classic comic pairing integral to the era’s circus acts.

As a printmaker, Toulouse-Lautrec excelled in the medium of the lithograph, valuing its immediacy and ability to translate drawing directly onto the stone. The artist utilized bold, economic lines and concentrated areas of tone to define the figures, giving the scene an energetic spontaneity typical of his Post-Impressionist style. This approach, which often blurred the lines between high art and commercial poster design, established Toulouse-Lautrec as a pioneer of modern graphic arts. While the image was conceived and drawn in 1894, this specific impression was printed posthumously in 1947, ensuring the continued dissemination of the artist’s seminal work.

The portrayal of Footit and Chocolate is critical not only to the history of performance art but also to the cultural history of the 1890s in France. Chocolat, as one of the first successful Black performers in modern European history, represented a complex social narrative that Toulouse-Lautrec observed keenly. The artist captured the personalities and movements of the performers with unflinching honesty, cementing their images for posterity. This essential work, documenting the ephemeral nature of public performance through the lasting medium of prints, resides in the prestigious collection of the Museum of Modern Art.