Jean-Paul Riopelle - original vintage lithograph - c1982

This is an absolutely stunning original (not an offset print) vintage lithograph by Jean-Paul Riopelle. The lithograph is produced on high quality paper and was published in 1982 by Derrière le Miroir, in their volume No. 250 entitled 'Hommage a Marguerite et Aime Maeght'. Our photo is good but does not come close to capturing the full beauty of the colours - lithography at its best (please scroll down for an explanation of the lithographic process and for a biography of the artist).

The lithograph has never been framed. It has been stored in appropriate conditions as part of a serious private collection. It was acquired when published and has not changed hands since.

This lithograph would sell for around £650, and often more, in London galleries, which makes our price incredibly good value, especially since it is an opportunity to aquire the lithograph from one original owner. Please see our other items for more vintage lithographs.

This beautiful lithograph comes from the private collection of Stephen Baring. The collection comprises two inherited collections plus twenty five years of personal collecting.

BIOGRAPHY
Jean-Paul Riopelle (1923 - 2002) was a painter and sculptor from Quebec, Canada. He became the first Canadian painter (since James Wilson Morrice) to attain widespread international recognition. He studied under Paul-Émile Borduas in the 1940s and was a member of Les Automatistes movement. Breaking with traditional conventions in 1945 after reading Breton's Le Surréalisme et la Peinture, he began experimenting with non-objective (or non-representational) painting. In 1947 Riopelle moved to Paris. His first solo exhibition took place in 1949 at the Surrealist meeting place, Galerie La Dragonne in Paris. Riopelle's style in the 1940s changed quickly from Surrealism to Lyrical Abstraction (related to abstract expressionism). Riopelle received an Honourable Mention at the Guggenheim Museum's Guggenheim International Award exhibition in 1958 and a major retrospective of his work was held at the Kölnischer Kunstverein, Cologne. Subsequent retrospectives of Riopelle's work were held at the National Gallery of Canada in 1963, a smaller exhibition at the Musée du Québec in 1967, at the Fondation Maeght (Saint Paul-de-Vence, France) in 1971, and at the Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris in 1972. After diversifying his means of expression during the 1960s (turning to ink on paper, watercolours, lithography, collage and oils), he experimented with sculptural installations, including a fountain in Montreal's Olympic Stadium, called La joute. A large retrospective of Riopelle's work was held in 1981 at the Musée National d'Art Moderne, Centre Georges Pompidou, in Paris, then traveled to the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec and Musée d'art contemporain de Montréal, 1981-1982. Riopelle was arguably one of the most important Canadian artists of the 20th century, establishing his reputation in the burgeoning postwar art scene of Paris, where his entourage included André Breton, Sam Francis and Samuel Beckett. Riopelle produced over six thousand works (of which more than two thousand paintings) during the course of his lifetime.

LITHOGRAPHY
A lithograph is not just a cheap mass produced print. The process dates from 1796 and is far more complicated and therefore valuable. Lithography is a method for printing using a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a completely smooth surface. Invented in 1796 by German author and actor Alois Senefelder as a method of publishing theatrical works, lithography can be used to print text or artwork onto paper or other suitable material.

Lithography originally used an image drawn (etched) into a coating of wax or an oily substance applied to a plate of lithographic stone as the medium to transfer ink to a blank paper sheet, and so produce a printed page. In modern lithography, the image is made of a polymer coating applied to a flexible aluminium plate. To print an image lithographically, the flat surface of the stone plate is roughened slightly etched and divided into hydrophilic regions that accept a film of water, and thereby repel the greasy ink; and hydrophobic regions that repel water and accept ink because the surface tension is greater on the greasy image area, which remains dry. The image can be printed directly from the plate (the orientation of the image is reversed), or it can be offset, by transferring the image onto a flexible sheet (rubber) for printing and publication.

A beautiful and valuable lithograph that will be much admired framed in your home or office. Will provide an excellent financial investment as well as a possession to enjoy. You are welcome to return for a full refund if you are not entirely happy. Also, please feel free to view at our central London showroom.