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Jean Cocteau
Jean Cocteau, Untitled, from Recipes for a Friend, 1964
1964

Name: Jean Cocteau, Untitled, from Recipes for a Friend, 1964
Brand: Jean Cocteau
Rating: 4.8 (74 reviews)

Price:$675

$796List Price

About the Item

This exquisite lithograph by Jean Cocteau (1889–1963), titled Sans titre (Untitled), originates from the 1964 album Recettes pour un ami, illustrations de Jean Cocteau (Recipes for a Friend, Illustrations by Jean Cocteau), published and printed by Galerie Jean Giraudoux, Paris, 1964. The composition reflects Cocteau's lyrical draftsmanship, classical elegance, and poetic sensitivity, expressed through his fluid, expressive line. Executed as a lithograph on papier de toile enduit paper, this work measures 12 x 9.45 inches (30.48 x 24 cm). Unsigned and unnumbered as issued. Printed and published by Galerie Jean Giraudoux, Paris. Artwork Details: Artist: Jean Cocteau (1889–1963) Title: Sans titre (Untitled), from Recettes pour un ami, illustrations de Jean Cocteau (Recipes for a Friend, Illustrations by Jean Cocteau), 1964 Medium: Lithograph on papier de toile enduit paper Dimensions: 12 x 9.45 inches (30.48 x 24 cm) Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered as issued Date: 1964 Publisher: Galerie Jean Giraudoux, Paris Printer: Galerie Jean Giraudoux, Paris Condition: Well preserved, consistent with age and medium Provenance: From the 1964 album Recettes pour un ami, illustrations de Jean Cocteau (Recipes for a Friend, Illustrations by Jean Cocteau), published and printed by Galerie Jean Giraudoux, Paris Notes: Excerpted from the album (translated from French), Justification of the draw, XXX examples, numbered from I to XXX, containing an original drawing by Jean Cocteau, a suite of the illustrations printed on velin d'Arches, and an autograph recipe by Raymond Oliver. DCCLXX examples, numbered from XXXI to DCCC. In addition, LXXV examples numbered from I to LXXV were printed, reserved for members of the Cercle du livre precieux, plus a few hors-commerce examples intended for the collaborators of the album. About the Publication: Recettes pour un ami, illustrations de Jean Cocteau (Recipes for a Friend, Illustrations by Jean Cocteau), published and printed in 1964 by Galerie Jean Giraudoux in Paris, is among the most imaginative and rare interdisciplinary albums of mid twentieth century Parisian print culture, uniting gastronomy, literature, and fine art into a single luxurious object. Conceived as a collaboration between Jean Cocteau and celebrated chef Raymond Oliver, the album presents recipes not merely as practical instructions but as poetic texts, framed and illuminated by Cocteau's distinctive linear drawings and lithographic vignettes that transform the rituals of cooking and dining into scenes of intimacy, wit, and fantasy. The publication structure reflects the refined standards of the Cercle du livre precieux. The interplay between text, recipe, and image gives the album an intimate, domestic character that contrasts yet harmonizes with Cocteau's more overtly theatrical and mythic projects, and today the volume is prized by collectors of Cocteau, gastronomic literature, and twentieth century livres d'artistes alike for its rarity, conceptual originality, and the charm of its images and prose. As both a visual feast and a celebration of friendship, Recettes pour un ami occupies a singular place in Cocteau's printed oeuvre. About the Artist: Jean Cocteau (1889–1963) was a French artist, poet, playwright, filmmaker, and designer whose boundless imagination and multidisciplinary genius made him one of the most influential cultural figures of the 20th century. Born in Maisons-Laffitte near Paris, Cocteau emerged as a prodigy whose creative energy spanned literature, cinema, theater, music, and the visual arts, reshaping modern creativity through his conviction that beauty, myth, and imagination were universal languages. A central figure of the Parisian avant-garde, he moved among and collaborated with Pablo Picasso, Alexander Calder, Alberto Giacometti, Salvador Dali, Joan Miro, Wassily Kandinsky, Marcel Duchamp, and Man Ray—artists who, like Cocteau, were revolutionizing modern thought through bold experimentation. His early collaboration with Picasso and Erik Satie on Parade (1917) for Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes signaled a new era of interdisciplinary art, merging music, design, and theater into a total work of imagination. Cocteau's visual art—characterized by fluid line drawings, mythological motifs, and lyrical simplicity—revealed a mastery of composition that blended classical elegance with modern abstraction. His murals for the Chapelle Saint-Pierre in Villefranche-sur-Mer and the Chapelle Saint-Blaise-des-Simples in Milly-la-Foret stand among the great achievements of sacred modern art, balancing spirituality and modernist form with serene clarity. Equally revolutionary were his contributions to literature and film: his novels (Les Enfants Terribles), plays (La Machine Infernale, Les Parents Terribles), and films (La Belle et la Bete, Orphee, Le Testament d’Orphee) established him as one of the founding visionaries of poetic cinema, influencing filmmakers such as Federico Fellini, Jean-Luc Godard, David Lynch, and Guillermo del Toro. In fashion and theater, his collaborations with Coco Chanel, Christian Dior, and Elsa Schiaparelli merged art and couture, expanding his influence beyond the visual and literary arts. His friendship with Jean Marais inspired some of his most intimate works, while his portraits and ceramics revealed a wit and grace that elevated simplicity to transcendence. Cocteau's aesthetic bridged classical myth and modern psychology, dream and reality, light and line—an approach that inspired later artists from Andy Warhol, David Bowie, and Jean-Michel Basquiat to Alexander McQueen and John Galliano. His works are held in major museums including the Centre Pompidou, the Musee Jean Cocteau in Menton, the Tate, and the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and his enduring appeal lies in his ability to unite art forms through poetry, elegance, and imagination. Standing alongside Pablo Picasso, Alexander Calder, Alberto Giacometti, Salvador Dali, Joan Miro, Wassily Kandinsky, Marcel Duchamp, and Man Ray, Cocteau remains a beacon of creative synthesis whose influence continues to shape modern art, film, and design. His highest auction record was achieved by Jean Marais dans "La Belle et la Bete" (1946), which sold for 611,622 USD at Sotheby’s, Paris, on October 18, 2023, reaffirming his enduring legacy as one of the most visionary, poetic, and collectible artists of the modern era. Jean Cocteau lithograph, Cocteau Recettes pour un ami, Cocteau Galerie Jean Giraudoux, Cocteau 1964 edition, Cocteau papier de toile enduit, Cocteau collectible lithograph.

Creator:
Jean Cocteau (French)
Creation Year:
1964
Dimensions:
Height: 12 in (30.48 cm)Width: 9.45 in (24.01 cm)
Medium:
Lithograph
Movement & Style:
Modern
Period:
1960-1969
Condition:
Gallery Location:
Southampton, NY
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU1465217337762

Lithograph

Jean CocteauJean Cocteau, Untitled, from Recipes for a Friend, 19641964

About the Item

Jean Cocteau

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Jean Cocteau
Jean Cocteau, Untitled, from Recipes for a Friend, 1964
1964