14 - Djo Bourgeois (1898–1937) – *L'inhumaine*, directed by Marcel Lherbier. 1924. Printed by La Cinématographie Française. 157.5 x 117.5 cm. Original poster, lithographic print, mounted on canvas. Condition A-, slight original creases, three small restored tears in the folds, four small restored tears at the edge of the right margin.

Djo Bourgeois (1898–1937) – *L'inhumaine*, directed by Marcel Lherbier. 1924. Printed by La Cinématographie Française. 157.5 x 117.5 cm. Original poster, lithographic print, mounted on canvas. Condition A-, slight original creases, three small restored tears in the folds, four small restored tears at the edge of the right margin. While this poster has been considered a masterpiece of Art Deco since its creation, it is also one of the rarest in the world. To our knowledge, there are only four known copies, to which this previously unknown example is now added. A landmark in two respects, the film was a turning point in the history of cinema, and the poster a turning point in advertising art and movie posters in particular. It was therefore fitting to offer it for sale just as Art Deco has celebrated its 100th anniversary. Everything about this visual is an invention. The typography is inspired by Fernand Léger’s work on a poster project. The Cubist style evokes the drawings of Sonia and Robert Delaunay. The subject matter, which depicts a key scene from the plot—a departure from the anecdotal elements typically shown in posters up to that point. And then, of course, the allusion to actual shots from the film featuring sets by Robert Mallet-Stevens and Fernand Léger. A film that caused a scandal upon its release because it was so modern—and thus divisive. In reality, it laid the foundations for modern cinema. A famous anecdote illustrates the intellectual exploration sought by the director, who had the premiere screened at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, where he had previously organized a fake party with all of Paris in attendance—filmed without their knowledge using hidden cameras— and intended to serve as an ambiguous scene in the film when the main character, Claire Lescot, comes on stage to sing. In addition to those associated with the film, the party was attended by Picasso, Man Ray, Hemingway, Cocteau, James Joyce, Ezra Pound, Lise Deharme, and Erik Satie.... Many prominent figures in the Surrealist circle were surprised to see themselves on screen on opening night, unwittingly incorporated into the work through a mise en abyme. To understand the film’s significance, one must consider who was involved: Actors: Georgette Leblanc, Jacques Catelain, Philippe Hériat, Kiki de Montparnasse, René Clair Set Design: Robert Mallet-Stevens, Fernand Léger, Alberto Cavalcanti, Claude Autant-Lara Props: Pierre Chareau, Michel Dufet, Raymond Templier, René Lalique, Jean Puiforcat, Jean Luce, Joseph Csaky, Jean Lurçat. Costumes: Paul Poiret. Music: Darius Milhaud Screenplay: Leblanc and Pierre Mac Orlan This extravaganza of stars and famous artists was by no means a coincidence, but rather a marketing campaign by L’Herbier, who wanted to turn it into a showcase for the modern arts of his time, bringing together cinema, architecture, painting, furniture, fashion, jewelry, music and dance, and technology—a veritable manifesto of the French avant-garde and Art Deco—just before the 1925 International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts. It was also intended for the film to be screened in the United States. Provenance: Vacation home in the Dordogne belonging to a Parisian poster artist.