Pont Transbordeur

Cat. No. 523, variant 1

Pont Transbordeur

State/Variant:
Only state, variant
Date:
1946-1947
Alternate Title:
Structure
Themes
Architecture
Techniques
Engraving
Support:
Smooth, laid paper
Dimensions:
plate: 6 7/8 x 4 7/8" (17.5 x 12.4 cm); sheet: 8 11/16 x 5 7/8" (22 x 15 cm)
Signature:
"Louise Bourgeois" lower left margin, pencil. "1947" lower right margin, pencil.
Publisher
unpublished
Printer
The artist at Atelier 17
Edition:
2 known variant impressions of the only state
Edition Information:
Not issued as a published edition at any state.
Impression:
Not numbered
Curatorial Remarks:
In the second half of the 1940s, Bourgeois spent time at Atelier 17, the print workshop of Stanley William Hayter. The workshop had transferred operations from Paris to New York during the war years. It is not known precisely which prints she made at the workshop since she also worked at home on a small press. The designation of “the artist at Atelier 17” as printer means that the impression was likely made at the workshop. The designation is based on dates, inscriptions, techniques favored at Atelier 17, and/or stylistic similarities to images in the illustrated book “He Disappeared into Complete Silence,” which the artist repeatedly cited as having been made at Atelier 17. It is also possible that Bourgeois worked on certain plates both at home and at the workshop, or pulled impressions at both places.

Given the inscription on the verso of the other impression of this composition, it appears that Bourgeois considered this composition for "He Disappeared Into Complete Silents," but did not finally include it.
Former Cat. No.:
W & S 41
Descriptive Title:
English translation: "Drawbridge"
Description:
Engraving, with pencil additions
Inscription:
Verso: "pont / transbordeur / 5 x 7 / structure / 1946" center sheet, pencil, artist's hand.
Artist’s Remarks:
"'A new sense is introduced... the sense of sound, with sound waves. There are lights and radio waves. You can communicate; you are not alone.' At the bottom it is 'not peaceful, but deserted'; at the top is 'where everything is happening.' The tops of the structures are equipped with 'ways to watch for danger, both day and night.' The storm that comes up 'can be handled.... I can tell that, because of the pleasure of my strokes.'" (Quote cited in Wye, Deborah and Carol Smith. "The Prints of Louise Bourgeois." New York: The Museum of Modern Art, 1994, p. 101.)
Bibliography:
Bernadac, Marie-Laure and Deborah Wye. "Louise Bourgeois: Pensées-Plumes." Paris: Centre Pompidou, 1995, p. 19-27.
MoMA Credit Line:
Gift of the artist
MoMA Accession Number:
134.1990.1
© The Easton Foundation/VAGA at ARS, NY

Pont Transbordeur

1946-1947

Source

1946

Untitled
States
Pont Transbordeur
Pont Transbordeur

Related Works in the Catalogue

Le Phare
Plate 5 of 9, from the illustrated book, He Disappeared into Complete Silence, first edition (Example 1)
He Disappeared into Complete Silence, first edition (Example 1)
Side by Side

Related Works in Other Mediums

I Do, I Undo, I Redo