Marie-Bonaventure Lebert for Hartmann et Fils
Further images
Roller-printed cotton "Les Quatres Éléments" designed by Marie-Bonaventure Lebert (1759–1836) and printed in black on yellow cotton by Hartmann et Fils in Munster. Wide vertical bands with alternating vignettes; on the left, Amphitrite (water) and Bacchus (earth); on the right, Vulcan (fire) and Juno (air); the background with overlapping scales; the inner band with elaborate trophies; the outer border with zodiacal signs.
Panels of this cotton are in the collections of the Allentown Art Museum (1979.3.1); Art Institute of Chicago (1993.329); Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum (1978-140-5); Musée de l’Impression sur Étoffes (858.127.1); Musée des Arts Décoratifs de l'Océan Indien (sold by Cora Ginsburg LLC); and Philadelphia Museum of Art (1929-164-258). A number of surviving pen-and-ink-and-wash drawings in the collection of Cooper Hewitt (1898-21-10a-c, 1898-21-11, 1898-21-12a, 1898-21-12b, 1898-21-13) illustrate the progression of Lebert’s conception.