An album of 31 finely finished pencil sketches based upon J J Grandville’s Metamorphoses Du Jour.

DESCRIPTION: The album is titled 'An Album of Narrative Drawings’ with ‘Grandville’ on the spine.

Quarto Size Album of 31 leaves + several blanks at the end bound in fine modern full vellum.

Drawings captioned in neat ink faded to brown in French. Paper dated to mid 19th cent or earlier with very occasional fox marks.

Comment:
The origin of this beautifully bound collection is unknown however it comprises finely finished pencil renditions of illustrations that derive from Metamorphoses du Jour however with Grandville's characteristic animal heads replaced with conventional human ones.
The artist of these drawings whoever he was, has taken considerably pains to detail faces and expressions as well as figure, postures and details leaving background imagery somewhat sketchy. The purpose is obscure but knowing that Grandville himself was interested in Transformation of Human Physiognomy into animal Physiognomy it might be surmised that these drawings could pre-date the animal heads of the Metamorphoses and be by Grandville himself or a commercial designer working for his publisher.
The style of drawing however is rather more German than French though it has a certain freedom which suggests great quality and skill. They do not suggest direct copies from the published lithographs with human heads super imposed.
We are unable to ascertain if these are preliminary sketches or not but they are certainly of the period and differ in detail if not composition from the published versions and are deserving of much further research.
Jean Ignace Jacque Grandville 1803 – 1847 Born in France. moved to Paris at the age of 21 where his career properly begun as an Artist / Caricaturist.

In the 1830's Grandville rose to fame with the publication ‘Les Metamorphoses du Jour’ 1829’ 71 published illustrations printed in Paris and later reprinted.

SIZE: Overall size: 205 mm x 270 mm

The pages varying very slightly in size as presumably bound up from loose leaves.

CONDITION: Fine state throughout

£2500.00

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