Raphaël Drouart, The Fates, 1920s, Etching

Details

Description

Raphaël Drouart (1884 1972)

Les Parques
(The Fates)

Original Etching on Paper
1920s

Size (overall): 300 x 200 mm
Size … Read more Raphaël Drouart (1884 1972)

Les Parques
(The Fates)

Original Etching on Paper
1920s

Size (overall): 300 x 200 mm
Size (image): 200 x 130 mm
Hand Signed, lower right
Numbered 15/25, lower left

Edition of 25

On the bottom, hand titled: "The Fates"

Provenance
Collection Jacques Rodrigues-Henriquès

Literature
Published in:
Thierry Lefrançois, "Raphaël Drouart : 1884-1972 : catalogue complet de son oeuvre gravé", La Rochelle, Musée des Beaux-Arts, 1990

Condition:
Excellent (the central etched plate mark is crisp, and the ink impression of the figure and background is dark, rich, and clear with no smudging or fading)
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The Artist

Maurice Raphaël Drouart (1884-1972), was a versatile French painter, printmaker, and illustrator whose career bridged classical artistic training and the modernist movements of the early twentieth century. He initially studied painting under Fernand Cormon and engaged closely with the Nabis, notably working as an assistant to Maurice Denis on the ceiling of the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées.

Drouart’s artistic trajectory was interrupted by the First World War, during which he spent over three years as a prisoner of war in Germany. Following his return, he mastered various printmaking techniques, eventually exhibiting his woodcuts, etchings, and lithographs widely. Throughout the 1920s, he gained renown as a book and art illustrator, collaborating with publishers like Arthur Goldscheider and participating in the landmark 1925 International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts. Appointed a knight of the Legion of Honour in 1938, Drouart passed away in 1972.
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The Collector

Jacques Rodrigues-Henriquès (1886–1968) was a prominent French art dealer and expert who operated a gallery on Rue Bonaparte and managed the artistic legacy of his stepfather, Félix Vallotton. Positioned within the powerful Bernheim-Jeune family and collaborating with critic Félix Fénéon, he shaped the European market for early 20th-century modern art by exhibiting works from major figures like Pierre Bonnard, Paul Signac, Georges Seurat, and Maximilien Luce.
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Raphaël Drouart’s 1925 black smoke etching "The Fates" offers a hauntingly beautiful, Symbolist interpretation of the three Greek mythological deities who spin and cut the thread of human destiny.
The composition is divided into a stark contrast between light and shadow. Standing in the upper realm are the two younger Fates, Clotho and Lachesis, draped in luminous, classically styled white tunics. They are focused on weaving and stretching out the fragile thread of life between their fingers. Looming ominously in the lower foreground is Atropos—the "unturnable" Fate—shrouded in heavy, dark robes. Striking a somber note of mortality, she holds a pair of iron shears, poised to snap the thread at any given moment.
Through his trademark deep, velvety cross-hatching, Drouart builds an eerie, web-like texture in the background canopy that mirrors the threads themselves. The emotional gravity and dense chiaroscuro shadow work heavily echo the tragic, dramatic illustration style of Gustave Doré, imbuing the ancient myth with a profound sense of psychological inevitability. This piece has an attribution mark,
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