Soûlarde, plate six from Yvette Guilbert

Soûlarde, plate six from Yvette Guilbert is a significant print created by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (French, 1864-1901) in 1898. Classified as a lithograph, the image utilizes crayon directly applied to the stone, resulting in a distinct, textured line characteristic of the artist’s graphic style. The work was printed in an evocative olive-green ink on cream wove paper, which is hinged at the top corners to a separate gray-brown wove backing paper, indicating the careful presentation afforded to the original portfolio edition. Though the artist was French, this particular edition was printed by the Westminster Press and published by Ernest Brown & Phillips, underscoring the international appeal of Toulouse-Lautrec’s work.

This piece belongs to a series dedicated to the celebrated French cabaret performer, Yvette Guilbert. Unlike many of his more theatrical compositions of Guilbert, Soûlarde (often translated as "The Drunkard") captures a more somber, perhaps marginal, figure related to the Parisian demimonde. Toulouse-Lautrec was renowned for his ability to distill the psychological essence of his subjects through swift, economical lines. The muted palette reinforces the unglamorous reality of certain aspects of the fin de siècle entertainment scene in France.

The creation and widespread distribution of graphic prints allowed Toulouse-Lautrec to document contemporary culture with urgency, establishing him as one of the preeminent chroniclers of late 19th-century Parisian life. His innovative use of lithography elevated the status of the poster and the illustrated portfolio to high art. This striking print, which showcases the enduring power of Toulouse-Lautrec's draughtsmanship, is housed in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago.