Paul Sérusier (1864-1927) The Candy Merchant. 1895. Lithograph. 132 x 220. Hermann 49, printed in two tones (black and ochre). Fine proof on buff glazed vellum, from the large-margin edition for the Revue blanche. Minor edge damage (very crumbly paper). Stamp R. T. "Throughout the years 1889-1895, Paul Sérusier was interested in the activities of Breton peasants. This print was preceded by a study in Indian ink wash (sold at Drouot on June 20, 1984, cat. no. 335), which shows the extent to which Sérusier worked from a first draft, without retouching. Only the woman on the left in the background and the candy merchant's bottle on the left have been enlarged, and a few additional lines drawn to connect the second and last planes. The merchant with the umbrella has the same hieratic attitude as La Marchande de chiffons, presented at the fifth Le Barc de Boutteville exhibition in December 1893 [...]. The truncated layout is reminiscent of the Hiroshige constructions he admired at Durand-Ruel's 1893 exhibition organized by Samuel Bing, for whom he executed eleven stained-glass cartoons in March. The print was published as an hors-texte in No. 31 of the Revue Blanche in May 1894, then in the Album de la Revue Blanche." (M. Grivel, ed., Gauguin et l'École de Pont-Aven, exhibition catalog, Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, 1989, p. 64).