Honni Soit Qui Mal Y Pense: I See You!!! (#5)

Cat. No. 745, unique variant 6

Honni Soit Qui Mal Y Pense: I See You!!! (#5)

State/Variant:
Only state, unique variant
Date:
2009

Themes
Body Parts, Figures
Techniques
Etching
Support:
Paper (2 attached sheets)
Dimensions:
plate: 55 1/2 × 21 5/8" (141 × 55 cm); sheet (overall): 60 × 59 1/2" (152.4 × 151.1 cm)
Signature:
panel (b): "LB" lower right comp., pencil.
Publisher
Osiris
Printer
Wingate Studio
Edition:
Unique
Edition Information:
This is one of 6 unique variants made from the same plate used in the edition "I See You!!" All include extensive hand additions and sometimes only a partial printing of the plate.

See Evolving Composition Diagram:
"I See You!!! (#1)"
"I See You Through Me!!! (#2)"
"I See You Through Me!!! (#2) (verso)"
"I See You!!! (#3)"
"I See You!!! (#4)"
"Honni Soit Qui Mal Y Pense: I See You!!! (#5)"
Untitled, no. 2 of 6, from the series, "I Give Everything Away"

There is one additional known variant impression outside the edition, also seen in the Evolving Composition Diagram. It is in MoMA's Collection (Accession Number: 264.2011).
Impression:
Not numbered
Background:
Benjamin Shiff, the director of the Osiris imprint, collaborated with Bourgeois in a highly experimental phase of printmaking that occupied the last years of her life, from 2005 to 2010. He first established a working relationship with the artist in the 1990s, but the late period is particularly noteworthy for the innovative and complex large-scale projects that evolved at that time. Shiff made use of professional workshops for printing, but he oversaw the creation of the printing plates as Bourgeois worked on them in her home studio. He also provided assistance as she added extensive hand additions and texts, and as she combined individual compositions into multi-panel works and illustrated books.
Curatorial Remarks:
The verso inscriptions, color of hand additions, plate dimensions, and type of paper could not be fully documented because this impression is not in MoMA's Collection and could not be examined in person. The plate dimensions are from the impression in MoMA’s Collection. The sheet dimensions were provided by the Louise Bourgeois Studio.
Descriptive Title:
English translation: "Shame on Him Who Thinks Ill of It"
Description:
Soft ground etching, with watercolor, gouache, and pencil additions
Inscription:
Verso: "portrait d'une / femme en rouge"
© The Easton Foundation/VAGA at ARS, NY

I See You!!

2007-2010

States
I See You!!!
I See You!!!
Unique variants
I See You!!! (#1)
I See You Through Me!!! (#2)
I See You Through Me!!! (#2) (verso detail)
I See You!!! (#3)
I See You!!! (#4)
Honni Soit Qui Mal Y Pense: I See You!!! (#5)
Untitled, no. 2 of 6, from the series, I Give Everything Away

Series

2010

I Give Everything Away

Related Works in the Catalogue

Nothing Escapes Me
Insomnia, frontispiece, from the illustrated book, Louise Bourgeois: The Insomnia Drawings
Vase of Tears, plate 2 of 9, from the portfolio, Quarantania
Eyes
Louise, plate 23 of 24, from the series, Self Portrait
Spiraling Eyes

Related Works in Other Mediums

Nature Study (Velvet Eyes)
He Murders My Eyes
The Five Senses: Seeing
Untitled