252 - [PHOTOGRAPHY]. ARLAUD, Georges-Louis. Twenty Outdoor Nude Studies.

[PHOTOGRAPHY]. ARLAUD, Georges-Louis. Twenty Outdoor Nude Studies. A rare first edition of this excellent album of 21 heliogravure plates of female nudes based on photographs by Georges-Louis Arlaud. A beautiful copy of the deluxe edition printed on Arches vellum, signed by the artist. Paris, Éditions Horos, n.d. [circa 1920/1921]. Folio, loose-leaf, in the publisher’s cardboard slipcase, printed and illustrated in black and ochre. 4 unnumbered folios (half-title, title page, and preface), 21 heliogravure plates inserted as inserts based on photographs by G. L. Arlaud, preserved in serpentine paper, numbered and signed by the artist, and 1 title page. The portfolio is slightly browned at the edges, with small tears in the binding; foxing in the margins of some plates; and a few creases in the cardboard sleeves. First edition of this album of 21 heliogravure plates based on photographs by Georges-Louis Arlaud (1869–1944), a leading figure in pictorialist nude photography and Art Deco in France. His prints are characterized by a subtle treatment of natural light and the plasticity of the body in nature. It opens with a preface by the Symbolist poet Saint-Pol-Roux (1861–1940), in the form of a poem titled “Hosanna.” Limited edition of 100 deluxe copies on custom-cut Arches pure vellum; this is copy no. 58, signed and numbered by the artist, with each plate also signed by him. A complete copy of the 21st plate reserved for the deluxe edition, titled “L’Alpe.” The plates are crisp and well-preserved.