Edmond Ramus’ etching, “Etude de Nègres”, 1878, after Rubens

Edmond Ramus (aka Edmond Joseph Ramus) (1822–1890)

“Etude de Nègres” (aka “Four Studies of the Head of a Black Man”; “Study of Negroes”; “Bust of an African man, seen from four different directions”), 1878, after the oil sketch by Peter by Paul Rubens (1577–1640) of the same composition (1613–1615) originally from the collection of MB Narischkine (as inscribed on the plate) and now in the Royal Fine Arts Museum of Belgium (Brussels), printed by Alfred Salmon (aka Alfred Fortuné Salmon) (fl.1863–1894), published in 1878 for “L’Art”.

Etching with drypoint on cream laid paper.

Size: (sheet) 26.2 x 30.2 cm; (plate) 19.6 x 24.9 cm; (image borderline) 15 x 19.8 cm.

Lettered on plate below the image borderline: (left) P.P.Rubens, pinx./ L’Art.”; (centre) “ETUDE DE NÈGRES/ (Collection de M.B. Narischkine).”; (right) Edm. Ramus, sc./ Imp. A. Salmon.”

Beraldi 7 (Henri Béraldi [1885–1892], “Les graveurs du 19e siècles: guide de l'amateur d'estampes modernes”, vol. 11, Paris, p. 170, cat. no. 7).

Princeton University Art Collection offers the following insights about this print:

“This lively etching is a faithful copy after an oil sketch originally painted on wood by Rubens between 1613 and 1615, depicting an unknown man of African descent expressing various emotions. Rubens often used such sketches, painted from life, as source material for his finished compositions, and at least two of the heads from this sketch appear in his paintings from the 1610s. The panel was recorded as having been in French private collections in the nineteenth century and was widely admired when it appeared at auction in Paris in 1883, illustrated in the sales catalog with this etching by Ramus.”

(https://artmuseum.princeton.edu/collections/objects/9044)

Condition: richly inked faultless impression with margins in pristine condition (i.e. there are no tears, holes, folds, abrasions, stains, foxing or signs of use).

I am selling this superb etching reproducing in line Rubens’s famous composite oil studies of a head viewed from different directions—note the etchers skill in not only translating Ruben’s freely applied brushstrokes, but also to capture in a visually believable way the subtle tones and sheen on the African chap’s face—for AU$183 in total (currently US$123.37/EUR112.26/GBP100.95 at the time of this listing) including postage and handling to anywhere in the world (but not, of course, any import duties/taxes imposed by some countries).

If you are interested in purchasing this faultless etching in pristine condition after Rubens, please contact me (oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com) and I will send you a PayPal invoice to make the payment easy.

This print has been sold