"ERTÉ" par Charles SPENCER. Editions Studio Vista, Londres. 1971. Imprimé en Angleterre & aux Pays-Bas. Petit in-4, couverture toilée rouge sous jaquette illustrée en couleurs (état d'usage). Pages de garde illustrées. 198 pages. Texte en anglais, illustré de 183 reproductions photographiques noir & blanc et couleurs, pleine page pour la plupart, de travaux d'Erté.

 

"… Who is Erté? Which person - or persons - hides behind this strangely anonymous name? Why, until then, had it not been possible to see, let alone buy, any of those exquisite, delicate fantasies, executed with such skill and artistry? This book attempts to answer these questions; it suggests that one of the most likely reasons for his obscurity is that Erté's vast output consists of working drawings, all executed for a specific purpose, whether as designs for haute couture dresses, for Harper's Bazaar, or for his opera, ballet and theatre costumes and stage designs. Erté's fascinating, successful - and largely unsung - theatrical career began in Paris in 1913 when he designed a costume for an unknown showgirl, later to become notorious as Mata Hari; it continues into 1970 with the electrifying costumes he recently completed for Zizi Jeanmaire in Roland Petit's show at the Casino de Paris. In the years between he made unique contributions to the French Music Hall, to Broadway, and to Hollywood. A vast range of exquisite objets that range from perfume bottles to playing cards are also part of his output, yet whatever the task it has always been undertaken with the same painstaking and meticulous care. Charles Spencer, editor of Art and Artists, was responsible for organising the first retrospective Erté exhibition in 1967…"

 

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