67 - Stanley William Hayter (British, 1901–1988)

Stanley William Hayter (British, 1901–1988) Plate V for *The Apocalypse*. 1931. Drypoint. 160 x 240 [395 x 440 mm]. Black and Moorhead 53. A very fine proof on vellum, annotated “Essai,” signed and dated in pencil, then inscribed in the upper left corner of the sheet: “For Jacques Villon / with best wishes / Bill Hayter.” Slight foxing along the edges. A short, restored tear along the left edge. Full margins. Final edition of 60 prints. The recipient, Jacques Villon, born Gaston Émile Duchamp (1875–1963), was a major French painter and printmaker, a member of a famous family of artists that included his younger brother Marcel Duchamp. A pioneer and theorist of scientific Cubism, he co-founded the Section d’Or group in 1912 to apply mathematics and geometry to the decomposition of light and forms. His career, marked by a constant exploration of the relationship between abstraction and figuration, was crowned by belated international recognition, notably with the Grand Prize at the Venice Biennale in 1956.