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Page:Picture Posters.djvu/133

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ANQUETIN.
113

of them is worthy of the closest attention. The design for Marguerite Dufay is a piece of triumphant vulgarity. The subject is a very simple one; it is merely a woman of almost impossible fatness who performs at various Parisian music-halls on the trombone. Having stated this, one has, however, given no idea of the extraordinary qualities of this bill. It is safe to say that, once seen, it will never be forgotten; it should have made the fortune of the performer whom it advertises. The mirth of the thing is victorious and infectious; one seems almost to hear the coarse laugh; the ample body in the green dress seems to move as one stares at it. In line, in movement, this poster is, from a certain point of view, a veritable masterpiece. An advertisement which is, it seems to me, altogether more worthy of Anquetin's great talent is one designed for "Le Rire," a recently issued journal. It is an extremely fine lithograph in a single printing, and, as at present it can be procured for a few shillings, it should be in the possession, not only of those who care for posters as such, but also of all who are amateurs of the beautiful art of lithography. In the foreground is the figure of a huge man in mediaeval costume, which, while touched with the grotesque, is splendidly flamboyant. At his side he carries a large portfolio, adorned with a grinning mask, while his hands, which are admirably drawn, point

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