The Lovers’ Chronicle 24 November – interludes – art by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec

24 November 2023 By Rhett 0 In Random

Dear Zazie,

Here is today’s Lovers’ Chronicle from Mac Tag to his muse. Rhett

The Lovers’ Chronicle

Dear Muse,

of comparison by which i and my doin’s are seen

luminously as a part of this with you, content through

your gentle manifestations, and clingin’ to appreciation

which you have brought nearer with your finely touched

full nature, owin’ to this feelin’ of how much i miss you

who that cares

much to know

how the mystery behaves

under the variance of time,

dwell, at least briefly, smile

at the thought of walkin’ forth,

wide-eyed and helpless-lookin’

one mornin’ hand-in-hand

hearts beatin’ to an idea

until reality turns us back

thanks Sheli…

she (there were myriad shes)
would enter and immediately
begin removin’ layers
and then they/she,
(were they all the same)
would slip effortlessly into
preconceived perceptions

i would breathe deep
of the familiarity
and roll toward them
and embrace all of it
i knew what to do

we traveled to places
visited many times
all too well,
the map was known
and foreseeable
as the tides

we knew what to do
we always knew

yes, there were some
bright shiny moments,
but they were predictable
interludes
nothin’ new
the to-do-lists were checked

the inevitable pattern
included this…
lookin’ for a back door
then slippin’ out

till the next one

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec


	Today is the birthday Henri Marie Raymond de Toulouse-Lautrec-Monfa (Albi, Tarn 24 November 1864 – 9 September 1901 Saint-André-du-Bois) also known as Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec; painter, printmaker, draughtsman and illustrator whose immersion in the colourful and theatrical life of Paris in the late 19th century allowed him to produce a collection of enticing, elegant and provocative images of the modern, sometimes decadent, life of those times. In my opinion, Toulouse-Lautrec is among the best-known painters of the Post-Impressionist period.

The cocktail Earthquake (Tremblement de Terre) is attributed to Toulouse-Lautrec: a potent mixture containing half absinthe and half cognac in a wine goblet. To ensure he was never without alcohol, Toulouse-Lautrec hollowed out his cane (which he needed to walk due to his underdeveloped legs) and filled it with liquor.

In addition to his growing alcoholism, Toulouse-Lautrec also frequented prostitutes. Toulouse-Lautrec was fascinated by their lifestyle and the lifestyle of the “urban underclass” and incorporated those characters into his paintings.

On 9 September 1901, at the age of 36, he died from complications due to alcoholism and syphilis at his mother’s estate, Château Malromé in Saint-André-du-Bois. He is buried in Cimetière de Verdelais, Gironde, a few kilometres from the estate. Toulouse-Lautrec’s last words reportedly were “Le vieux con!” (“the old fool”), his goodbye to his father, though another version has been suggested, in which he used the word “hallali”, a term used by huntsmen at the moment the hounds kill their prey: “Je savais, papa, que vous ne manqueriez pas l’hallali” (“I knew, papa, that you wouldn’t miss the death.”).

After Toulouse-Lautrec’s death, his mother, the Comtesse Adèle de Toulouse-Lautrec, and his art dealer, Maurice Joyant, continued promoting his artwork. His mother contributed funds for a museum to be created in Albi, his birthplace, to show his works. The Musée Toulouse-Lautrec owns the largest collection of works by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec.

Gallery

La Tête rouge avec une Blouse blanche

The Marble Polisher, 1882-87, Princeton University Art Museum, probably painted while a student of Fernand Cormon, demonstrating his classical training.