Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec "Woman in Bed, Profile" Lithograph

"Femme au lit, profil - Au le petit lever. (Pl. Of the suite Elles)," a lithograph of great intrigue and complexity by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. We now know this dynamic piece to be a dual portrait of two of Lautrec's favorite models, the "clownesse" and noted performer Cha-U-Kao, who performed at the Moulin Rouge and Cirque Nouveau, and the dancer known as Gabrielle, the two of whom happen to have been lovers. Minimally defined, the two female forms appear ethereally in tones of white, engaged in a moving contemplation of one another that leaves the viewer with the sense that they are intruding on a deeply personal and tender moment. The picture plane is divided into three major subsects upon which the two figures are superimposed, demonstrating the influence of Kitagawa Utamaro’s woodblock prints, The twelve hours in the Yoshiwara, in which the Japanese artist depicted the daily existence of prostitutes in Tokyo, and which greatly inspired the French artist.