Prints By Delâtre: Mr. Ginguelino And Miss Pignoufe

Two aquatint etchings, each 225 x 152 mm (sheet: 285 x 192 mm).
Ca. 1894

Prints signed in blue pencil and numbered 1/50 and 13/50, respectively; the margin has been trimmed on one of the three sides; on the M. Guinguelino print, a faint trace of a previous pencil annotation remains in the lower border.

As early as 1890, Eugène Delâtre began exploring color etching, starting with the possibilities offered by the registration technique and then experimenting with inking
“à la poupée.” His mastery of color printing processes was such that the artist sometimes managed to create the illusion of watercolor with the same effects of transparency.
Delâtre’s studio served as much as a gathering place, a school, and a laboratory for painter-engravers as it did as the birthplace of his own creations. The multifaceted nature of this space undoubtedly explains the artist’s stylistic variations. While his encounter and collaboration with Steinlen temporarily fueled his penchant for naturalistic themes—the subject matter and treatment of these two cats are reminiscent of the many prints of felines that Steinlen produced—
However, he was by no means a plagiarist; he simply drew upon elements from the works of those he admired to fuel his own creativity.

Reference:
-Impressions à Montmartre, Eugène Delâtre and Alfredo Müller, P.D. Cate, N.H. Zmelty, and H. Koehl, Silvana Editoriale, 2013