Accession Number
1983/1.140

Title
Ninth Bucolic, Moeris and Lycidas wait for Virgil

Artist(s)
Jacques Villon

Artist Nationality
French (culture or style)

Object Creation Date
1953

Medium & Support
lithograph on paper

Dimensions
22 in x 15 in (55.8 cm x 38.1 cm);15 in x 22 in (38.1 cm x 55.88 cm)

Credit Line
Gift of Dr. & Mrs. J. Robert Willson

Subject matter
Though Villon had been a prolific printmaker for much of his career, this work comes slightly later and represents his first attempt at book illustration. This print is from his illustrations of Virgil's Eclogues, which Paul Valéry translated and put together with Villon in lavish binding.  In this scene, the bucoliques or herdsmen Moeris and Lycidas stand with two of their cattle and wait for Virgil. Villon's rendition of the scene emphasizes color over detail.  This leaves the scene slightly abstracted, and the geometric quality of the figures and landscape here remind the viewer of Villon's ties to the cubist style.

Physical Description
This horizontally formatted, primarily blue lithograph includes two figures dressed in yellow robes with pinkish skin, just to the left of center. The rest of the scene is a landscape with mountain ranges in the background. In front of the two figures are two abstracted animals in yellow. 

Primary Object Classification
Print

Collection Area
Modern and Contemporary

Rights
If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit http://umma.umich.edu/request-image for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.

Keywords
Figures
books
grass
herdsmen
modern and contemporary art
mountains
pastoral
sheep
walking