MAN RAY (1890-1976)
MAN RAY (1890-1976)
MAN RAY (1890-1976)
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MAN RAY (1890-1976)
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On occasion, Christie's has a direct financial int… Read more
MAN RAY (1890-1976)

Électricité

Details
MAN RAY (1890-1976)
Électricité
the complete artist's book comprising of ten photogravures after Rayographs, on wove paper mounted to Rives BFK paper (as issued), 1931, each signed in the negative, stamp-numbered 104 from the edition of 500, published by La Compagnie Parisienne de Distribution d'Électricité, Paris, each the full sheet, loose and mounted to Rives BFK paper (as issued), together with text by Pierre Bost, the original glassine wrappers and paper portfolio case, in good condition
Overall: 15 x 11 1/4 x 1/2 in. (381 x 285 x 12 mm.)
Literature
Scheer 258-259
Special notice
On occasion, Christie's has a direct financial interest in the outcome of the sale of certain lots consigned for sale. This will usually be where it has guaranteed to the Seller that whatever the outcome of the auction, the Seller will receive a minimum sale price for the work. This is known as a minimum price guarantee. This is such a lot.

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Lindsay Griffith Head of Department

Lot Essay

Including: Électricité; Le Monde; La Ville; La Maison; Salle de Bain; Lingerie; Salle a Manger; Cuisine; Le Souffle; Électricité

Électricité is Man Ray's highly renowned portfolio of ten exquisite photogravures of the artist's 'rayograph' images, printed in 1931 as a commission for the French power company, La Compagnie Parisienne de Distribution d'Electricité. The private company commissioned this work in an edition of 500 to be distributed to their executives and top customers as part of an effort to promote the use of electricity in French households. Ever on the forefront of innovation, the project provided Man Ray with the opportunity to beautifully incorporate several modes of modernity: Technologically, he used various avant-garde photographic methods such as cameraless images, which he called 'rayographs', as well as solarization and collage. Graphically, he sought to represent interactions between invisible electric currents and everyday domestic objects and scenes -- a notably modern concept in a culture that was still reliant primarily on gas, wood and coal for daily household energy.

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