The fashionable French lady, in the retirement of her boudoir, is caressing a tropical bird of beautiful plumage which shares her society, the measure of her pleasure in her face equaled only by the length of her braided tresses and the Japanese aspect of the pattern of her gown.  The bird shows his sense, by not seeming to be frightened; in fact, he enjoys the treatment almost as much as she does, and would not get away if he could.  The original of this work is by Mr. Bourlard, a native of Paris and a pupil of Leon Cogniet, and bears the date of 1876.  The aim has not been serious at all, and he has succeeded in carrying it out.  The work is a study of costume, rather than of incident.  The painter went to Belgium in the 1880’s, and, it would have been extremely difficult to find an example of his brush in the United States or in England, during that time, unless, in a gallery of a principal dealer.  Belgic art, however, like Belgium itself, is practically under the influence and inspiration of France.  Few of the old Flemish traditions are preserved in the studios of Brussels.  One goes, to Parisian studios, where the young Belgians congregate, if he is desirous of ascertaining the present impulse of Belgic art, and in those places the French master holds unbounded sway.  Nowhere is the visitor more deeply impressed with this fact than in the well-known gallery of modern paintings in the suburbs of Brussels, and nothing was more natural for Mr. Bourlard, when choosing a place of residence, than to go to Belgium with his pretty pictures of French boudoirs and Parisian women.

STEEL ENGRAVING – “THE PRISONER” from the painting by A. Bourlard, engraved by A Danse, published in 1878.  This engraving is in very good condition.  The actual engraving measures 9 7/8” x 6 1/2”, and is matted to 12” x 16” for easy framing.

IMPORTANT TO NOTE

Antique prints, engravings, and lithographs are printing processes, which use steel, copper, stone or wood blocks or plates to produce a picture on paper.

Most antique prints and engravings, which are seen on the internet today, are bookplates.  Because they are pages from a book, there are multiple copies in existence.  This does not, however, mean that they are "reproductions" that have been printed recently.  Because they were, at some point, part of books, some have been preserved in excellent condition, while others show signs of age, as yellow spots or darkness on the edge of the page from being handled.

Engravings, and lithographs are high quality pieces of art, as it took a highly trained artist many hours of work to produce one.  Although there may be multiple copies still in existence, the date of the item should be stated, thus giving the buyer an idea of its age.

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