Whitney Darrow, Jr.: Class Visit to The Luncheon on the Grass

Edouard Manet's masterpiece Le Déjeuner sur l'herbe, or The Luncheon on the Grass, features prominently in a 1957 cartoon by Whitney Darrow, Jr., published in The New Yorker. Darrow's drawing is not about the painting, exactly, although he renders it quite beautifully; rather, it's about us and our discomfort with challenging subject matter. Darrow's splendid original came up for sale this month in Costa Mesa with a reasonable $1,200 to $1,500 estimate. Inexplicably, it took three separate weekend auctions for the cartoon to meet its reserve of, presumably, $800.

"Well, it was sort of like a cook-out."
Whitney Darrow, Jr.
Original art
The New Yorker, May 4, 1957, page 31.
Darrow, Whitney, Jr. "Stop, Miss!" New York: Random House, 1957.
The New Yorker Album of Art & Artists. Greenwich: New York Graphic Society Ltd., 1970.
The New Yorker Album of Drawings 1925-1975. New York: Viking Press, 1975.

"Well, it was sort of like a cook-out."
Whitney Darrow, Jr.
Original art
The New Yorker, May 4, 1957, page 31.
Darrow, Whitney, Jr. "Stop, Miss!" New York: Random House, 1957.
The New Yorker Album of Art & Artists. Greenwich: New York Graphic Society Ltd., 1970.
The New Yorker Album of Drawings 1925-1975. New York: Viking Press, 1975.

Detail

The signature of Whitney Darrow, Jr.

Caption

Verso

Whitney Darrow, Jr.
Michael's Gallery auction of June 17, 2023

https://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/154439738_whitney-darrow-jr-well-it-was-sort-of-like-a-cook-out-signed-original-ink-wash

Whitney Darrow, Jr.
Michael's Gallery item description

On June 4, the bidding for lot 648 reached $650. The piece was bought in. 

On June 11, bidding again reached $650 but again the reserve was not met.

Finally, on June 17, the drawing sold for $800, plus $120 for the buyer's premium.

"Well, it was sort of like a cook-out."
Whitney Darrow, Jr.
Original art
The New Yorker, May 4, 1957, page 31.
Darrow, Whitney, Jr. "Stop, Miss!" New York: Random House, 1957.
The New Yorker Album of Art & Artists. Greenwich: New York Graphic Society Ltd., 1970.
The New Yorker Album of Drawings 1925-1975. New York: Viking Press, 1975.

"Well, it was sort of like a cook-out."
Whitney Darrow, Jr.
The New Yorker, May 4, 1957, page 31.

A cartoon by Whitney Darrow, Jr.

https://archives.newyorker.com/newyorker/1957-05-04/flipbook/030/

Darrow, Whitney, Jr. "Stop, Miss!" New York: Random House, 1957
Back cover dust jacket

https://www.ebay.com/itm/134175180532

The New Yorker Album of Art & Artists. Greenwich: New York Graphic Society Ltd., 1970.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/265212122238

The New Yorker Album of Drawings 1925-1975. New York: Viking Press, 1975.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/372793381003

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Le_D%C3%A9jeuner_sur_l%27herbe

Note:  Take this as a friendly reminder that Attempted Bloggery's proprietor is always eager to post original art by Whitney Darrow, Jr. Or by Edouard Manet, for that matter, if that's what you've got on your walls. 

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Picasso's Les Dejéuners

On May 3, this crayon drawing by Pablo Picasso was sold at Sotheby's for over $100,000. 
Picasso had taken inspiration from Edouard Manet's famous painting Le déjeuner sur l'herbe 
in Paris to create a series of works with the same title. A book about the series was published 
in 1962 and Picasso made this drawing in a copy of the book and inscribed it to Domingo Martinez.

Picasso freely based his compositions on Manet's masterpiece. Manet in turn had adapted the 
central triad of figures from an engraving by Marcantonio Raimondi.

http://www.sothebys.com/en/catalogues/ecatalogue.html/2011/impressionist-modern-art-day-sale-n08851#/r=/en/ecat.fhtml.N08851.html+r.m=/en/ecat.lot.N08851.html/127/

[End of Sotheby's auction listing]

Picasso had been fascinated with Manet's composition for some years:

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), Etude d'après "Le déjeuner sur l'herbe" de Manet : buste des 4 personnages, 26-29 June 1954. Mine de plomb. H. 27 ; L. 21 cm. Paris, Musée Picasso 

© Succession Picasso 2008 - Photo RMN / Béatrice Hatala

http://www.alaintruong.com/archives/2008/10/10/10897266.html

A bookseller's composite photo of the dust cover, spine, and two facing color plates from Picasso's Les Dejéuners, with text by Douglas Cooper, Editions Cercle d'Art, Paris.

http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=3130082237&searchurl=kn%3Dpicasso%26sortby%3D1%26tn%3Dles%2Bdejeuners

Front cover board to Picasso's Les Dejéuners

http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=3130082237&searchurl=kn%3Dpicasso%26sortby%3D1%26tn%3Dles%2Bdejeuners

Back cover board to Picasso's Les Dejéuners with a color plate inset
http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=3130082237&searchurl=kn%3Dpicasso%26sortby%3D1%26tn%3Dles%2Bdejeuners

Title page to Picasso's Les Dejéuners with inset color plate

http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=3130082237&searchurl=kn%3Dpicasso%26sortby%3D1%26tn%3Dles%2Bdejeuners

Two pairs of facing color plates to Picasso's Les Dejéuners
http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=3130082237&searchurl=kn%3Dpicasso%26sortby%3D1%26tn%3Dles%2Bdejeuners

A variant of the dustwrapper image

http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=1393314496&searchurl=kn%3Dpicasso%26sortby%3D1%26tn%3Dles%2Bdejeuners

http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=974066635&searchurl=kn%3Dpicasso%26sortby%3D1%26tn%3Dles%2Bdejeuners

http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=974066635&searchurl=kn%3Dpicasso%26sortby%3D1%26tn%3Dles%2Bdejeuners

Signed lithograph appearing in 150 copies of the deluxe edition of the book

http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=1163088650&searchurl=kn%3Dpicasso%26sortby%3D1%26tn%3Dles%2Bdejeuners

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), Le déjeuner sur l'herbe d'après Manet, 1960.

http://www.all-art.org/art_20th_century/picasso14a.html

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), Le déjeuner sur l'herbe d'après Manet, 27 February 1960.

Oil on canvas, London, Nahmad Gallery 

© Succession Picasso, 2008

http://www.alaintruong.com/archives/2008/10/10/10897266.html

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), Le déjeuner sur l'herbe d'après Manet, 3 March-20 August 1960, 

Oil on canvas. H. 130 ; L. 195 cm. Paris, Musée Picasso 

http://www.all-art.org/art_20th_century/picasso14a.html

http://www.alaintruong.com/archives/2008/10/10/10897266.html

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), Le déjeuner sur l'herbe d'après Manet, 1960.

http://www.all-art.org/art_20th_century/picasso14a.html

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), Le déjeuner sur l'herbe d'après Manet, 1961

http://www.all-art.org/art_20th_century/picasso14a.html

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), Le déjeuner sur l'herbe d'après Manet, 1961

http://www.all-art.org/art_20th_century/picasso14a.html

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), Le déjeuner sur l'herbe d'après Manet, 13 July 1961.

Oil on canvas. H. 60 ; L. 73 cm. Paris, Musée Picasso 

© Succession Picasso 2008 - Photo RMN / Jean-Gilles Berizzi

http://www.alaintruong.com/archives/2008/10/10/10897266.html

The fifth composition of July 26, 1961:

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), Les déjeuners, July 26, 1961, V

Image added July 2, 2012

http://www.sothebys.com/en/catalogues/ecatalogue.html/2012/impressionist-modern-art-evening-sale-l12006#/r=/en/ecat.fhtml.L12006.html+r.m=/en/ecat.lot.L12006.html/1/

Catalogue Note for Pablo Picasso, Les déjeuners, July 26, 1961, V

Auction added July 2, 2012

http://www.sothebys.com/en/catalogues/ecatalogue.html/2012/impressionist-modern-art-evening-sale-l12006#/r=/en/ecat.fhtml.L12006.html+r.m=/en/ecat.lot.L12006.html/1/

The sixth composition of the same date:

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), Le déjeuner sur l'herbe d'après Manet, July 26, 1961, VI

http://www.all-art.org/art_20th_century/picasso14a.html

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), Le déjeuner sur l'herbe d'après Manet, 1961

http://www.all-art.org/art_20th_century/picasso14a.html

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), Le déjeuner sur l'herbe d'après Manet, 27 juillet 1961.

Huile sur toile. H. 65 ; L. 81 cm. Paris, Musée Picasso 

© Succession Picasso 2008 - Photo RMN / Jean-Gilles Berizzi

http://www.alaintruong.com/archives/2008/10/10/10897266.html

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), Le déjeuner sur l'herbe : femme assise, 26 August, 1962.

Carton découpé, mine de plomb. H. 31,3 ; L. 25 ; Pr. 21,5 cm. Paris, Musée Picasso 

© Succession Picasso 2008 - Photo RMN / Béatrice Hatala

http://www.alaintruong.com/archives/2008/10/10/10897266.html

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), Le déjeuner sur l'herbe d'après Manet, 17 June 1962. 

Mine de plomb, pastel. H. 42,5 ; L. 52 cm. Paris, Musée Picasso

© Succession Picasso 2008 - Photo RMN / DR

http://www.alaintruong.com/archives/2008/10/10/10897266.html

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), Le déjeuner sur l'herbe d'après Manet, 

13 March 1962, Estampe. H. 52,9 ; L. 64 cm. Paris, Musée Picasso 

© Succession Picasso 2008 - RMN / Martine Beck-Copolla

http://www.alaintruong.com/archives/2008/10/10/10897266.html

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), Le déjeuner sur l'herbe d'après Manet, 1962

http://www.all-art.org/art_20th_century/picasso14a.html

Framed exhibition poster by Picasso

Click here.

Exhibition Poster

Pablo Picasso

Le Déjeuner sur l'Herbe Lithographic Poster, 1962, 

19" x 15.5" Ref. Czwiklitzer # 184 

Edition: 2250 

http://en.amorosart.com/artwork-picasso-dejeuner_sur_l_herbe-15008-en.html

Another related example from Christie's New York:

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) 

Déjeuner sur l'herbe

Image replaced June 15, 2015

signed, dated and dedicated 'Picasso le 3.7.62. Pour Pierre de Champris son ami' (along the upper edge)

colored felt-tip pens on paper 
10 5/8 x 8 1/8 in. (27 x 20.6 cm.) 
Drawn on 3 July 1962 

Price Realized

$37,500
• Sales totals are hammer price plus buyer’s premium and do not reflect costs, financing fees or application of buyer’s or seller’s credits.

Estimate

$25,000 - $35,000

Sale Information

Sale 2438 Lot 192
Impressionist and Modern Works on Paper 
5 May 2011 

New York, Rockefeller Plaza

Provenance

Pierre de Champris, Paris (gift from the artist).
Acquired by the present owner, by 2005. 

http://www.christies.com/lotFinder/lot_details.aspx?intObjectID=5432784

Manet's original:

Edouard Manet, Le Dejéuner sur L'Herbe, 1863

Oil on canvas, 214 x 269 cm (84 1/4 x 106 1/4")

Musee d'Orsay, Paris

http://www.artchive.com/artchive/M/manet/manet_dejeuner.jpg.html

Marcantonio Raimondi, The Judgment of Paris (detail) 

http://yorkshiresoul.blogspot.com/2011/06/le-dejeuner-sur-lherbe.html

Marcantonio Raimondi, The Judgment of Paris (full engraving)

http://yorkshiresoul.blogspot.com/2011/06/le-dejeuner-sur-lherbe.html

Note:  My most recent post on another Picasso presentation drawing in a book is here.

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