André Lhote (1885-1962) - Gouache

André Lhote - Original gouache stencil print 1929

Edition of 1,500

Printed by Daniel Jacomet

Excellent condition

Sheet 21 x 27 cm

Stencil 13 x 20.5 cm

In 1929, the stencil is an extremely meticulous craft technique, mainly used for fashion and luxury Art Deco publishing.

The work rests on the manual coloring of a sheet on which the outlines had been pre-printed. Artisans cut with scalpels sheets of brass, zinc, or cellulose acetate — one plate for each shade, sometimes requiring up to 80 stencils for a single image. Using round brushes, sponges, or cotton, colorists then apply gouache.

This method offers a unique render: blocks of pure color, a matte texture with perceptible relief, and gradients impossible to reproduce with mechanical printing. Long and costly, the technique gradually faded at the beginning of the 1930s as industrial printing processes developed.