Biographies

Jean-Louis Forain (1852 – 1931) He was a painter, etcher, and lithographer, best known for his political cartoons and social satires, particularly of the worlds of theater and courtroom. His work enlivened a large number of publications, including , , , , and the . In 1898 he founded with Caran d’Ache the short-lived . His work hovers somewhere between and –not bad company. As the critic Huysmans wrote on the occasion of the exhibition of the ‘Independants’ in 1880: “Mon. Forain studied with Manet and Degas but that is not to say that he takes ideas from them or copies them, for he has a very personal temperament, a very special vision.” Forain was essentially a part of the Impressionist circle but his concentration was on the character of his subjects rather than on the subjective impression of the moment. He worked on prints throughout his life. His earliest etchings date from around 1879 and his first lithographs from 1892. As with many of the impressionists and modernists, his work was handled by the dealer Vollard, whom he sketched. Vie moderne Cravache Parisien Figaro New York Herald Psst Daumier Degas