Omslag voor muziekblad met lied La Valse des Lapins met konijnen in landschap 1895 - 1949

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec created this cover for the sheet music of ‘La Valse des Lapins’ using lithography, a printmaking technique. In lithography, the artist draws on a flat stone or metal plate with a greasy crayon, and then treats the surface so that ink only sticks to the drawn areas. Toulouse-Lautrec was fascinated by popular entertainment and commercial art, and here he elevates what was normally considered a lower form of printmaking. The result is a beautiful composition of rabbits in a landscape, rendered with incredible economy of line. You can see how he used the greasy crayon to create different textures, from the soft fur of the rabbits to the rough bark of the trees. Lithography allowed for the relatively inexpensive production of multiple copies, making art accessible to a wider audience. By embracing this commercial medium, Toulouse-Lautrec blurred the lines between fine art and popular culture, engaging with social issues of labor, politics, and consumption.