Fine Art Friday

La Rue (The Street)

A few years ago, I went to Toulouse Lautrec and Montmarte, a special art exhibition at the Art Institute of Chicago. My friend Cindy and I spent a good afternoon meandering through the exhibit. I was bedazzled at the beautiful paintings and lithographs by various artists, many, I’d never even knew existed. I turned one corner of the gallery and there, hanging completely solo on a huge wall, was La Rue. The colors are amazing in this piece of art. I was especially taken with the woman on the left in the foreground holding the basket with the green gingham lid. If you click on the picture and enlarge it, notice she is wearing brown polka dot stockings. Fun! You can just sense the hussle bussle on the busy, mid-day streets of Montmarte.

This huge composition was a litho done to advertise a poster company. The class types of people is diverse from working-class women-a nanny, a laundress, maid and delivery girl along with male manual laborers mixed in with bonneted upper class and a business man wearing a top hat. I would say this litho spans 4 ft tall by 6 ft wide. It was truly beautiful. I hope you enjoy it, too.