René-Jacques - La Seine À Paris - 1944

THE SEINE IN PARIS — 1944

RENÉ-JACQUES — T’SERSTEVENs

The Seine in Paris. Forty-seven photographs by René-Jacques. Foreword by t’Serstevens.

Paris, Calmann-Lévy, Éditions Balzac, 1944.

Original edition, One of 50 numbered copies on Arches velin, before 100 copies on Lana velin and 840 copies on heliothe paper. The colophon specifies printing by Desfossés-Néogravure.

A beautiful album devoted to the Seine in Paris, bringing together 47 black-and-white photographs by René-Jacques, produced by heliogravure, showing bridges, quays, banks, boats and different aspects of the river, in a Paris that is at once monumental and everyday. The photographs are accompanied by captions printed in blue.

Format: quarto (24 × 31 cm), 68 pages, loose-leaf, with a padded cover, in a chemise and a cardboard-backed case.

Condition: interior in very good condition, paper clean and well preserved. The cover slightly soiled at the back. The chemise and case show wear, stains and signs of use, with a few small defects at the edges and on the cardboard, visible in the photographs. The copy remains overall well preserved.

René-Jacques (René Giton, 1908-2003), a major photographer of Paris, is distinguished by a rigorous photography style attentive to forms, landscapes and urban life. His views of the Seine are among his most remarkable Parisian works.

The photographs are an integral part of the description.

The BnF catalog confirms the 47 photographs, the 68 pages, the 1944 Paris edition and the authors. ([BnF Catalogue][1]) The colophon visible on the photographs mainly serves to specify here no. 19/50 on Arches velin, as well as the total edition of 990 copies. Librarians’ catalogs also confirm the original edition and the 47 heliogravure photographs.