23 - BELLMER (Hans) - ÉLUARD (Paul).

BELLMER (Hans) - ÉLUARD (Paul). Les Jeux de la poupée. Paris: Les éditions Premières, 1949. — In-4, 245 x 193: 82 pp., (3 ff., last page blank), illustrated cover. Paperback, covered binding. One of the most famous and sought-after artist’s books. The work emerged from the encounter between a scandalous object and a poet. In 1930s Germany, Hans Bellmer created his articulated dolls—dismantlable female figures staged for photography—the first series of which, captured in ten black-and-white images, appeared under the title *Die Puppe* in the mid-1930s. Having taken refuge in Paris, between 1936 and 1938 he photographed a second doll, more abstract than the first, while Paul Éluard, captivated by these images, began in 1938 to compose, based on a series of photographs he had selected himself, the fourteen prose poems that would accompany the images. The path to publication was fraught with obstacles. The collection was initially slated to appear with Zervos, the publisher of *Cahiers d’art*; the war derailed the project. As early as 1946, Éluard entrusted the work to the young underground publishing house K Éditeur, which published a pre-original edition of the poems, illustrated with two photographs by Bellmer, and even circulated a subscription bulletin, before abandoning the project due to a lack of funding. It was not until 1949 that the book finally saw the light of day, thanks to the art dealer Heinz Berggruen, owner of Éditions Premières, as part of his GBMZ collection—Bellmer’s second masterful work centered on the doll, ten years after *Die Puppe*. The edition was entirely conceived by Bellmer, who created the layout and design. It opens with the author’s notes and reflections, which serve as a preface, and is adorned with two original photographs that have been cut out and mounted—one on the front cover, the other on the title page—as well as fifteen silver-gelatin prints hand-colored by the artist and mounted full-page, to which Éluard’s fourteen poems correspond. Limited edition of 142 copies on Crèvecœur du Marais vellum, signed by Bellmer on the margin; this copy is one of the 120 numbered copies ranging from 17 to 136 (no. 81). This book is featured in *The Photobook* by Parr and Badger. Many copies were dismantled to sell the photographs individually, so complete copies are now among the most sought-after Surrealist books. This copy is not only complete with all the photographs but also includes the teaser and the rare subscription form, both on pink paper. It was given by Bellmer to his friend and patron, the Bordeaux collector Claude RICHARD, with this dedication in pencil on the half-title page: Copy // for // Claude Richard // x // Hans Bellmer Claude Richard belonged to this small circle of friends and patrons, whose financial support literally enabled the artist to survive and continue creating. The spine is detached from the book block but shows no missing material. The stitches are come undone between the first and second quires. Browning caused by the promotional strip and the subscription form on the half-title page and the facing leaf. Included: - 4 silver gelatin prints of articulated dolls, three measuring approximately 90 x 60 mm and one measuring 182 x 132 mm, with no markings on the reverse. Presumably taken by Hans Bellmer; we have not found any reproductions of them. - 4 silver gelatin prints of Bellmer’s works, in various sizes, one of which bears the stamp of the Yves Hervochon studio in Paris on the reverse. - An invitation to an exhibition of paintings, photographs, lithographs, drawings, and portraits by Hans Bellmer at the Paul Morihien bookstore from May 9 to 26, 1952. - The cover of the extremely rare catalog prepared for Bellmer’s first exhibition of paintings and drawings in New York, which was scheduled to take place around 1948 at the Hugo Gallery but never occurred. It features a reproduction of a drawing by the artist dated 1940, known as *La Cathédrale*. - A flyer for the 1948 publication of the books *Ici et ailleurs* and *Hans Bellmer: Twenty-Five Reproductions, 1934–1950* (two copies, one pink and one blue). - An invitation to the Jean Odet exhibition at the Galerie Henriette in Paris from March 6 to 20, 1939, illustrated with a photograph of a drawing by Bellmer; the photograph is torn and has missing sections.