Millicent Krouse

Millicent Krouse

(1933-  )

American watercolor painter and printmaker. 

Twice this week I stumbled upon prints by this contemporary printmaker in Ebay. Since the most interesting one (I love the long vase) is only sold in the lower United States these offers of very nice and aesthetic and affordable 1950-60 prints may be an opportunity for a reader of this Blog.

Millicent Krouse was aworded a scholarship in Pensylvania Academy of Fine Arts and I combed the Internet for more examples of her work. 

She was a student of artist and art teacher Morris Atkinson Blackburn (1902-1979) who I also looked up and was very pleased to have met him because of the interesting abstract prints and great use of colors. 

Works by Blackburn can be found also in Ebay. This picture probably found here: http://www.dolanmaxwell.com/artists/blackburn/ were more works can be found. 

All pictures borrowed from the internet for friendly, educational and non-commercial use only.  

Pieter Willem Bijvoet

Pieter Willem Bijvoet

(1903-1941)

obscured and forgotten Dutch graphic artist.  

To be honest: until last week my computer archive contained just one picture of a woodblock print found in the www. by this artist but otherwise I had never heard of him. Until in a local auction this woodblock print of a pair of budgies (Budgerigar, Melopsittacus Undulatus) showed up recently and made me to  investigate the artist. 

Pieter Willem Bijvoet studied in the Royal Academy in Amsterdam but other then some genealogical data and some lithographic drawings and the three woodcut prints shown here, he's left hardly any footsteps in printmakers  history. He was born in Overveen (near Haarlem) and died in Amsterdam.

My first association with his budgie print design was this famous woodcut print (above) from Vienna by Karl Schmidt Rotluff (1884-1976). Because the colors are block printed too, and not colored by hand, it's a charming print although not an Hélène Isenbart (very obscured German printmaker),

an Otto Lange (Germ. 1879-1944) or let alone a Kay Nixon (Br. 1895-1988) Europeans artists who also were inspired by a budgie couple.

Bijvoet's print of the smallest of Herons (Bittern, Ixobrychus Minutes) instead of the easy and more popular choice of a Silver Heron by most of his colleagues and contemporaries is remarkable. Like the choice of ordinary Tradescantia in the Gingerjar instead of far more popular and usual Nasturtiums. The fact he died young and probably had a not very prolific but delicate output of works will have contributed to his being forgotten and hardly known in our times.

   

I'm convinced  there must be more examples of his work and all additions send by readers will be very welcomed.

All pictures are mouse clickable to embiggen.

All pictures borrowed freely from the Internet for educational and non-commercial use only. 

Wonderful girls

Wonderful girls.   

I ended up last posting with two glorious girls in bright sunlight and being in a state of "in between two postings" here are two more beauties to share and enjoy. With some mysterious but fabulous backlighting.

Next: Pieter Willem Bijvoet (1903-1941), obscured and forgotten Dutch painter and print maker. 

Milking the days

Henri Gabriël Ibels

(1867-1936)

French painter, illustrator, 
poster and printmaker.

(left: portrait by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec)

was one of the first French artists to embrace and integrate the Japanese art and style of printmaking with his friend Count Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (1864-1901). In the last decade of the 19th century. Ibels attended the Académie Julian in Paris meeting Pierre Bonnard en Eduard Vuillard and founding the group called les Nabis (the profets). Googling these artists and "Nabis" will definitely enlighten your day. Much has been published and written.

I stumbled over Ibels' lithographic drawing of a kissing peasant couple some  time ago and was immediately taken in by its great charm. And by it's warmth, simplicity, originality and its roots deep into Flemish history and tradition. All the way back to the 16th century Flemish Brueghel family (Pieter de Younger and his father Pieter the Elder)  

Looking at Ibels' designs the simple outlines of his figures making him a very recognizable artist. Hanging out in the many theaters, circus and bars of Paris with his close friend drawing many of the same scenes Toulouse Lautrec gained his to this day worldwide success and fame with. The inspiration for the kissing peasant couple probably came from this theatrical Pierrot scene Ibels used as an exclusive book illustration in 1895.

      In this journal cover the dramatic silence and compassion is tangible,  soldiers lead by an officer passing by on their way to certain death. "l'Escarmouche" or a small group of soldiers was send to the front to test enemy vigilance, common practice and tactics euphemistically called "a skirmish". Few ever returned. 

Some examples of Ibels' many brilliant designs and compositions but unlike Toulouse-Lautrec he never achieved the glorious status of his friend. 
      

 Left Ibels, right Toulouse-Lautrec

Very Flemish writer Felix Timmermans (1886-1947) wrote the very Flemish novel about Pallieter (publ. 1916), the life long role model of my late father in law. The immortal simpleton who falls in love with the daughter of his housekeeper, marries her and is rewarded triplet girls (the author fathered three girls). It is a glorious  account of one year in the Flemish countryside, enjoying, embracing, dancing and soaking up all simple and free earthly pleasures, the seasons, the warmth and the cold, the clouds and the landscape, the birds, sounds, smells, tastes ......... Reading this wonderful classic novel, will change you for ever, I promise. It's a tribute, a celebration and a hymn to nature and our short stay on planet Earth.

Timmermans created the word for it only known in Flemish and to those who've read the book: Dagmelker. Pallieter, the day milker. Enjoying the simple pleasures from every day life, the way you extract milk from a cow. It takes some time, some effort and willpower and some skill but being aware they are there ready to enjoy for we who knows how to milk the day is the message. Pallieter was cast in bronze in 1986 by Jan Alphons Keustermans (1940-) and he stands in Lierse, Timmerman's and Pallieters' hometown. 

And from the back of my mind these sculptures by Israeli artist Rony Ben-Nachum surfaced. I wonder if he knew the posters of Ibels or maybe read Timmermans' novel. 

       

I have no idea about the lifes of Pallieter and the love of his life Marieken or the triplets after that year in the country but Im confident they all lived happy and simple lives. I can't help thinking I've even seen a picture of Marieken later in life. Living in dairy country I enjoy collecting vintage images (photographs, paintings) of hand milking girls and farmers.

Marieken ?

Walter Helfenbein: Birds from Dresden Zoo

Walter Helfenbein

(1893-1984)

German graphic artist, 
 woodblock printmaker, lithographer, ex-libris maker and etcher. 

Helfenbein started his career as a self taught artist but later was a student at the Kunstgewerbeschule (Arts and Crafts School) in Dresden.

In the past year or so several bird prints printed "a la manière de" Martin Erich Philipp (1887-1978) surfaced and have been auctioned and sold in German Ebay. There's no doubt he was more then just inspired by but learned the art (craft) from MEPH. When I saw the first one I even was under the impression Philipp may have created prints under a pseudonym. 

Maybe Walter was a close friend or they've met in the Arts and Craft School or possibly even at Dresden Zoo's Aviary where Helfenbein choose probably the same (group of) birds, in several of his prints like the above "Kardinäle" and "Webervögel" (Cardinals and Weaverbirds) but on the other hand Helfenbein was even more attracted to the more spectacular and extremely feathered species in Dresden Zoo Aviary. 

Besides their love for birds both men shared their skills as animal sketchers, and both were drawn towards drawing, etching the female nude in all glory as they were drawn towards printing erotic, you may say slightly pornographic scenes. In the end Helfenbein was best remembered for the numerous ex-libris he created. I will show examples of Helfenbein's other graphic work in a following posting.  

A species of Fork Tailed Hummingbird (Kolibri)

A species of Paradise Bird (Paradiesvogel)

"Prachtdrossel" (Pitta or Passerine bird) 

"Weidehopf" (Hoopu)

Comparing these birdprints I believe MEPH was the more artistic and original printmaker but technically their skills matched. Even Philipps wife Else Staps (I have no biographical data) joined the men in the Aviary and created several bird prints in her husbands specific style. I must remember to look up the species she choose one day. Although the birds look exotic the flowering trees seem to be "ordinary" Forsytia and a blossoming apple-tree (?) 

Else Staps also choose "common" birds from her garden, like her husband did, and printed this lovely titmouse with rose-hips in winter from 5 or 6 blocks. 

All pictures borrowed freely from the www for educational and non commercial use only.