Variations: Quatre-vingt-six motifs decoratifs en vingt planches par Benedictus

Paris: Editions Albert Levy, 1924. Folio. 48 by 37 cm. 20 plates of very bright pochoir of bold, visually exciting floral patterned decoration, the designs of which straddle what we regard as Art Nouveau and Art Deco. The Art Deco element enters into the geometric patterns, which are overall a recessive piece of the designs overall. Benedictus (1878-1930) was a polymath; he was also a composer and a chemist who invented bullet-proof glass. Saude, who was responsible for the pochoir, was the acknowledged master of the form, and the source of a good number of the most exquisite pochoir masterpieces. Very Good. Portfolio rebacked with black cloth, wear to the boards of, with some discoloration and staining to its paper pastedown, and lifting of the spine. Fraying of spine cloth. Card stock used for title and plates somewhat brittle, with some edge chipping, and/or closed tears, most pronounced on title page. A few trivial dogeared corners. Plate 12 with a crease midway down the center of the horizontal, and there is a closed tear at the end of this. Some marginal soiling, including a few light dampstains, to the plate leaves, almost entirely contained within the margins and the blank versos. Some of the plates have tiny tack holes where the plates must have been once hung on a bulletin board. Name of former owner, Eunice Roeszler, stamped in tiny letters on most, not all, of the plates rather discreetly -- one can easily miss it. Most importantly, though, the pochoir decoration remains vivid and bright throughout. (Inventory #: 140947306)