Léonard Foujita - Original Drawing 1926 - Roaring Twenties

Léonard FOUJITA (1886 - 1966), French painter of Japanese origin
Ryo Yanagi, (1926)
Ink and ink wash drawing, signed lower right on vellum paper.Dimensions: 29 x 21.8 cm (visible).It is most likely the Japanese art critic Ryo Yanagi who made several trips to Paris, and who on each of them did not fail to greet his friend Foujita in his studio. This drawing from 1926 should be contextualized in the famous Roaring Twenties, a time when the capital shone in the world of art. Foujita was the only Japanese to have taken the risk of settling in Paris, in the Montparnasse district, blending into the local artistic circles, a friend of Salmon, Picasso and Modigliani. Many Japanese frequented the district at that time, the journey took about 45 days from Japan. But unlike Foujita, they stayed among themselves, and in fact, Rue Daguerre had been nicknamed the Japanese Street. Many of them then returned to Japan once they had gained recognition from the Parisian salons, ensuring a successful artistic career in Japan. This emotional drawing is very rich. Indeed, Foujita took the time to sketch his friend, Ryo Yanagi, by caricaturing him, which is unusual for the Japanese artist who would never have allowed himself such freedom for an official commission. Certificate of inclusion in the supplement to the catalogue raisonné currently being prepared by Madame Sylvie Buisson.