Artwork Information

Although exhibiting in four Impressionist exhibitions in Paris, Forain is best known for his witty and often biting etchings. He began printmaking in the mid-1870s. These two prints probably come from his first period, when his favoured subjects were backstage views, café-concerts, and the Folies-Bergère. His perceptive eye traps the vagaries and little follies of the theatre-going public. Toulouse Lautrec once said, ’I don’t belong to any school. I work in my corner. I admire Degas and Forain…’ (Impressions of Time and Place, 2002)