White Night

White Night is a pivotal lithograph created by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (French, 1864-1901) in 1893. Executed on cream wove paper, this work exemplifies the artist’s mastery of the print medium to capture the human condition during the Belle Époque in France. Lautrec, known for his incisive documentation of Paris's nocturnal entertainments, produced this piece during a period where he intensely explored the possibilities of commercial and fine art printmaking.

The lithograph technique, favored by Lautrec for its immediacy and capacity for expressive drawing, provided him with a direct means of communication. The resulting print reflects his sophisticated adaptation of techniques, combining bold, simplified lines-often echoing Japanese woodblock prints-with nuanced texture possible on the wove paper surface.

The title, White Night, suggests an intimate scene observed in the early hours, likely focusing on a specific personality or moment from the dance halls, cabarets, or private spaces of Montmartre. Lautrec often elevated marginalized figures-dancers, performers, and prostitutes-into subjects of genuine psychological depth, offering a candid counterpoint to the sentimentalized art of the era.

This print remains a crucial example of how the medium was revitalized in the late 19th century, democratizing access to high-quality art and spreading the artist's unique visual language across France and beyond. This historically significant work by Lautrec is today held in the permanent collection of the Art Institute of Chicago.