Artist: Steinlen Swiss (1859-1923)
Title: Au Moulin de la Galette
Plate: LR S1
from "Le Rire"
Original page from the satirical weekly magazine, Printed in Paris 01/11/1896 no.62.
Presented in 16 x 20 in. acid free, archival museum mat, with framing labels. Ready to frame. Shipped boxed flat via Fedex.
Certificate of Authenticity.
Sheet Size: 9 in x 12 in 23 cm x 30.5 cm
Price: $350.00
"The Moulin de la Galette had originally served as a windmill along with several others. Around 1830 the millers had transformed it into a dance hall. As they continued to bake excellent little cakes known as galettes, a name was found for the new hall. Here there was no spectacle. It was an unpretentious meeting place for those of unsophisticated tastes, where the atmosphere closely resembled that of a happy village square. This was a simple dance hall, attended by, for the most part lower-middle-class workers, artisans, clerks, dressmakers, and young girls chaperoned by their mothers. It had as well 'mecs' (pimps) who might be seated at nearby tables with prostitutes masquerading as 'daronnes' (respectable local woman), there was nothing to distinguish them from the other clients at the Moulin de la Galette" (Dortu p.77, 82)
In this wonderful scene of the working class at play that Steinlen brings to life, an odd looking little man asks a seated red haired beauty, "Would you care to dance with me miss?" To which she replies, "No, thank you sir." To this he proudly proclaims, "You are making a big mistake miss." Her girlfriend looks over laughing, as the dance flows around them. The brilliant use of line and colour are distinctively Steinlen.