In 1896, Toulouse-Lautrec created a suite of ten lithographs called ‘Elles’, devoted to the daily lives of prostitutes and kept women. Inspired in part by Japanese woodblock print albums such as Kitagawa Utamaro’s ‘The Twelve Hours in the Yoshiwara’ (c. 1795) and in part by his intermittent residence in the brothels of Montmartre in the mid 1890s, the series is now considered one of his greatest achievements as a lithographer. Although published by Gustave Pellet, who specialised in erotica, ‘Elles’ was remarkable for the stress it laid on the mundane details of its subjects’ existence as well as for the sense of sympathy, even complicity, between artist and subjects. That ‘Elles’ proved to be a commercial failure for Pellet may reflect its thwarting of expectations of the titillating, voyeuristic approach commonly associated with such scenes. In Bed can be dated to the same period as ‘Elles’ in terms of its draughtsmanship and subject matter. However, it is not preparatory for any of the prints, and no printed version of the work exists. The fact that it was executed on a large sheet of high-quality paper and signed suggests that, in spite of the looseness of its execution, Toulouse-Lautrec considered it an independent work. The model lies in bed, with only her head and crossed, stockinged feet emerging from the rumpled bedclothes. The confident economy and rapidity of the lines – most apparent in the rendering of the legs and feet, whose forms the artist seems to seek as he works – makes it likely that the artist worked directly from the model; this likelihood is reinforced by the unusually low viewpoint, probably a result of Toulouse-Lautrec’s small stature. Despite the speed with which he worked, the care Toulouse-Lautrec took with the drawing is evident in the use of two subtly different media – soft black chalk for the majority of the composition, combined with a hard graphite pencil for the more detailed treatment of the model’s face and hair. Although the lower part of her face is obscured by her bunched clothing, her features display a vivid individuality. It has been suggested that the model was a woman he knew well and who is thought to appear in several of the ‘Elles’ prints, a prostitute named Pauline Baron, known as Mademoiselle Popo, and the angle of her gaze, under sagging eyelids, and the faint smile playing over her tired face suggest a calm and relaxed familiarity between artist and model. [Entry from The Courtauld Collection: a Vision for Impressionism, exh. cat., Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris, 2019]

Gustave Pellet, Paris (1859-1919); Claude Sayle (?); Leicester Galleries (London); purchased there by Samuel Courtauld, London (1876-1947), February 1922; Samuel Courtauld Bequest 1948

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, USA, 1992 (dates unknown)

The Courtauld Collection. A Vision for Impressionism, Louis Vuitton Foundation, Paris, 20/02/2019-17/06/2019

Mantegna to Matisse - Master Drawings from The Courtauld Gallery, The Frick Collection, New York, 02/10/2012-27/01/2013 ...More

Serres, Karen (ed.), The Courtauld Collection: A Vision for Impressionism, Paul Holberton Publishing 2019
no. 77, pp. 304-307
illus. p. 305

Mantegna to Matisse - Master Drawings from The Courtauld Gallery, Frick Collection, New York and Courtauld Gallery, London London 2012-2013
pp. 248-51

Impressionism on Paper - Drawings from Manet to Van Gogh, Albertina, Vienna, 2012
cat. no. 181 ...More

Watermark: Verso, upper right: “PL BAS”.

Inscription: Recto: lower left corner, graphite, signed by the artist, first three letters monogram: “HTLautrec”. Verso: lower right edge, graphite: “Mr. Claude Sayle 55 x 58 ca[...]”.

Collector's mark: none.