Search Results: Titles starting with L from Ursus Books

1756. LE BLON, Jacques-Christophe and Antoine GAUTIER DE MONTDORGE. L'Art d'Imprimer les Tableaux. Traité d'après les Ecrits, les Opérations & les Instructions verbales, de J.C. Le Blon. xi, vi, [2], [xiii]-xxv, [26]-180, [4] pp., illustrated with 1 hand coloured sepia mezzotint and two black and white folding plates. 8vo, 195 x 125 mm., bound in contemporary mottled calf. Paris: Chéz P.G. Le Mercier, Jean-Luc Nyon, Michel Lambert, 1756. Le Blon was the inventor of the three colour method of printing in mezzotint and this little book is considered a key work in the history of colour printing. Le Blon's colour theory formed the foundation for modern colour printing. The bilingual text of Coloritto is in French and English; followed by the French essay of explanation and justification. Includes the renowned folding plate of an artist's palette in sepia mezzotint hand coloured to show the range and relationship of different 'tinctures.'… Read More

1845. PELLE, Clement and Thomas ALLOM. L'Empire Chinois, illustre d'apres des Dessins pris sur les Lieux. 4 Volumes. [4], 68, 26; 76; 74; 73, [3] pp., illustrated with 4 engraved added title-pages and 124 full page steel engraved plates. 4to, 275 x 214 mm., bound in publisher's elaborately decorated red cloth. Paris: Fisher, 1845. First edition in French, profusely illustrated with superb steel engravings after designs by Thomas Allom (1802-1872) executed by a number of master-engravers. The work also contains copies of Chinese drawings from Staunton's collection, executed by Captain Stoddard and others (reproduced in Alexander's The Costume of China, 1805). The study centers mainly on the south-east of China (Canton, Macao, Nanjing, Shanghai) although there are excellent images of Peking and Yehol. Of the greatest rarity in the splendid publisher's bindings and virtually free from the foxing that mars almost all copies.

1934. L'HUMANITE. L'Humanite 20 Ans. Illustrated throughout with photomontages. Folio, bound in original staple-bound wrappers, preserved in a new red cloth box. Paris: Organe Central Du Parti Communiste, August 1934. A fine copy of this fragile issue of the celebrated Communist paper L'Humanite published to celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the outbreak of the First World War. The entire issue has a very imaginative layout, and makes extensive use of photomontage.

1920. DERAIN, André and Georges GABORY. La Cassette De Plomb. 30 pp. With two etchings by Derain. 4to., original wrappers in a cloth folding case. Paris: (Éditions de la Galerie Simon), Imprimerie Francois Bernouard, 1920. A typical example of the elegant books published by Kahweiler. This one was originally published by Bernouard and then taken over by Kahnweiler after he started the Galerie Simon with his label affixed to the front cover. Both typographically and aesthetically an important document of modern book illustration. One of 125 copies signed by Derain. Skira 87.

1943. LE CORBUSIER. La Charte d'Athenes, avec un Discours liminaire de Jean Giraudoux. 212 pp. 8vo, 145 x 135 mm., bound in publisher's illustrated wrappers in a new cloth folding box. Paris: Plon, 1943. First edition of the Athens Charter inscribed by Le Corbusier to the legendary publisher, Christian Zervos. The Athens Charter is Le Corbusier's landmark vision for the modern city, which he formulated at several of the International Congresses for Modern Architecture, but most notably at the Fourth, which was held in Athens in 1933. Spine with some wear, light foxing on cover, still a fine copy of this fragile publication.

1950. MATHIEU, Georges. La Complainte Sauvage: Poème d'Emmanuel Looten, orné de signes de Georges Mathieu. [52] pp., with 3 original lithographs (2 are fold-out lithographs), with one leaf "Degegement" laid-in. Tall thin folio, 270 x 95 mm., in a new cloth folding box. Paris: Michel Tapié, 1950. An extremely unusual and striking illustrated book by Georges Mathieu, a French abstract painter, art theorist, who is considered one of the fathers of European lyrical abstraction, a trend of informalism. One of twenty hors commerce copies of a total edition of fifty copies, printed on Arches.

1919. LEGÉR, Fernand. La Fin du Monde filmée par l'Ange N.-D. By Blaise Cendrars. [30 ff.], including 22 pochoirs and 6 line block reproductions. Folio, 315 x 250 mm., original illustrated wrappers, in a new cloth folding box. Paris: Editions de la Sirene, 1919. A very good copy of one of the outstanding illustrated books of this century. A dazzling symphony of shapes and colors, boldly placed on the page in the manner of Russian books of the same period. While 1200 copies were printed, very few copies have survived in acceptable condition. Pencil mark on cover, some wear to spine and corners. A Century of Artists Books 120. Cubist Prints/Cubist Books 64. Johnson, Artists' Books in the Modern Era 1870-2000, No26.

1906. WELLS, H.G. La Guerre des Mondes. Translated from the English by Henry D. Davray. 235, [10] pp., illustrated with 32 full-page plates by Henri Alvin-Correa included in the pagination and numerous large headpieces, tailpieces, initials, and vignettes illustrating the text; title-page printed in red and gold. 4to, 330 x 260 mm., bound in the original binding of publisher's wrappers over boards with calf spine, in a new cloth folding box. Brussels: L. Vandamme, 1906. A sheer delight of science fiction. This imaginative illustrated work by Henri Alvin Correa (1876-1910), a little-known but extremely gifted Brazilian artist who trained with Detaille and Jean Brunet, still remains a captivating illustrated book over 100 years after it was published. The turn-of-the-century illustrations of the invading Martians, their human captives, and destroyed cities provide a perfect complement to Wells' apocalyptic text. That this work has remained almost completely unknown can only be… Read More

1591. () ANGELI, Bonaventura. La Historia della Citta di Parma, et la Descrittione del fiume Parma...divisa in otto libri. [16], 783 (i.e., 795), [1]; [160] pp., illustrated with large woodcut historiated initials at the beginning of each chapter, ornamental head- and tailpieces, plus the printer's woodcut device on title-page and colophon (f. Ddd4v). 4to, 203 x 147 mm., bound by Le Gascon in contemporary French blonde calf, double-ruled in gilt, framing a central armorial device with the monogram of Antoine de Sève at corners of inner panel on each board and in spine compartments (interlacing A.D.S.E.V.; Olivier 683, fer 2 and 3); spine with raised bands and title gilt in second compartment of six, the remaining five with same monogram; endpapers and fly-leaves ruled in red, contemporary document in secretary hand used as binder's waste visible (illegible) beneath endpapers; edges speckled red. In Parma: Appresso Erasmo Viotto, 1591. A history of the city and river of Parma,… Read More

1861. DORÉ, Gustave. La Ménagerie Parisienne. Comprised of a printed title and 24 lithographic plates. 4to, 243 x 325 mm., disbound, in a new cloth folding box. Paris: Journal Pour Rire, 1854. First edition of this very early work by Doré. Created as a social satire of French culture, La Ménagerie Parisienne was intended by Doré to be witty more than critical. He attributed an animal name to select Parisians, attitudes and fashion in clothing corresponding to the characteristics of the animal. For example: Lions portrays a group of preening, bearded men haughtily studying female pedestrians as they promenade past; Lionnes gives us a portrait of indifferent women of high class speeding in a carriage through a Parisian street; Rats d'opéra reveal three men in a box at the Paris opera house leering at the stage populated with a phalanx of comely ballerinas; and Coq is a sheer delight, displaying a male dancer on tip-toe, nose high in the air,… Read More

1814. JOURDAIN, Amable Louis Marie Michel Brèchillet. La Perse ou tableau de l'histoire, du government, de la religion, de la literature, etc., de cet empire; des moeurs et coustumes de ses habitans. 5 volumes. [4], xxi, 218; [4], 268; [4], 226; [4] 288; [4] 327, pp. Illustrated with 5 hand-colured engraved frontispieces, 7 hand-coloured engraved fold-out plates, 25 hand-coloured full-page plates and 2 black-and-white engraved full-page plates. 12mo., 130 x 80 mm, bound in contemporary full speckled tan calf, spine and boards gilt, green morocco spine label, rebacked with original spine laid down, a.e.g., some quires unopened and original silk bookmarks. Paris: Ferra et Imbert, 1814. First edition. An illustrated portrait of Persia; its cultural, political, and religious history by the Orientalist Amable Louis Marie Michel Brèchillet Jourdain (1788-1818). "Jourdain was born at Paris in 1788, became a distinguished Orientalist, and studied under Silvestre de… Read More

1944. MASSON, André. La Pieuvre avec huit dessins à la plume d'André Masson pour illustrer Victor Hugo. Folio, bound in publisher's illustrated wrappers. Buenos Aires: Édition des Lettres Françaises, 1944. An extract from "Les Traivalleurs de la Mer" illustrated with reproductions of 8 surrealist drawings by Masson. Slight damage to the head of spine, otherwise a fine clean copy.One of 300 copies on papier Polar.

1569. BARBARO, Daniel. La Pratica della Perspettiva di Monsignor Daniel Barbaro Eletto Patriarca D'Aquileia, Opera molto utile a Pittori, a Scultori, & ad Architetti. [2], 196, [12] pp., illustrated with over 200 woodcut diagrams and illustrations of which over 20 are full-page and one double-page. Folio, 300 x 204 mm., bound in contemporary Italian limp vellum, in a new red quarter morocco box. Venice: Camillo and Rutilio Borgominieri, 1569. First edition, second issue with both the title-page and colophon dated 1569. An unsophisticated copy of Daniel Barbaro's treatise on the rules of perspective specifically designed for Italian artists and architects, as previous quality treaties on the subject were in German, French and Latin. Barbaro (1514-1570) borrowed heavily from Serlio and from an unpublished treatise by Piero della Francesca for this work. However, the work stands on its own as an important advance in the understanding and practical use of perspective and brought these… Read More

1941. FASCISM. La Pubblicità d'Italia. Nos. 43-46. 467 pp., profusely illustrated. Folio, 318 x 230 mm., bound in publisher's illustrated wrappers in a new cloth folding box. Milan: Sindicato Nazionale Fascista, 1941. A massive survey of Italian advertising at the begining of the war, published with text in Italian and German as a special supplement to the periodical La Pubblicità d'Italia. A tour de force of book design and an encyclopedia of fascist aesthetic. Rare with most copies seemingly destroyed in the War.

1903. [GEFFROY, Gustave]. La Vie Artistique. Préface d'Edmond de Goncourt. Eight volumes (all published). xvi, 375; 396; xx, 395; xviii, 334; 408; 462; 368; 483 pp. With an original etched frontispiece to each volume (by Carrière, Rodin, Renoir, Raffaelli, Fantin-Latour, Pissarro, Vierge, and Willette). 12mo, 167 x 110 mm., bound contemporary silk over boards, original wrappers preserved. Paris: Dentu [and Floury], 1892-1903. Only edition, a beautiful unique and complete set of La Vie Artistique which was one of the most influential of the late nineteenth-century art periodicals. Volumes 1, 5, 6, 7 and 8 are inscribed from Geffroy to the noted poet, art critic and journalist Leon Roger Miles. Geffroy (1855-1926) was one of the earliest supporters of the Impressionists. A founding member of the Academie Goncourt, he was, in the words of Edmond de Goncourt, "dispensateur d'une culture nouvelle." All of his writings about Impressionism are significant and remain… Read More

1934. FASCISM. La lotta contro tubercolosi in Italia. 114 pp., illustrated throughout with photographs and diagrams. Small folio, 282 x 211 mm., bound in publisher's illustrated wrappers. Rome: Federazione italiana nazionale fascista per la lotta contro la tuberculosi, 1934. A fine copy of a book where the imaginative design is in dramatic contrast to the dreary contents. A rare book, with OCLC listing only one copy in the U.S. at the International Labor Office in Washington D.C.

1925. BRETON, Andre and Robert DESNOS. La peinture Surréaliste: exposition du samedi 14 au mercredi 25 Novembre 1925, Galerie Pierre, 13 Rue Bonaparte: Oeuvres de Arp, Giorgio de Chirico, Max Ernst, Paul Klee, André Masson, Joan Miró, Picasso, Man Ray, Pierre Roy. [3] pp. text, with 8 black & white plates. 8vo, 190 x 145 mm., publisher's wrappers in a new cloth folding box. Paris: Galerie Pierre, 1925. L'exposition Surréaliste in 1925 was the first exhibition of Surrealist painting and included some of the most influential artists of that time, one year after publication of the Manifeste du surréalisme by André Breton. A fine copy of this landmark publication. OCLC lists only Northwestern and Menil in the U.S.

1884. LIEBERT, A. La Photographie en Amérique: traité complet de Photographie pratique, contenant les Découvertes les plus récentes. Quatrième édition, augmentée d'un Appendice sur le Gélatino-Bromure. x, [2], 656, vi, 24, [657]-679, [1], pp. Illustrated with a photogravure portrait of the author as frontispiece, 8 full page illustrations including four full page card inserts, each containing three mounted carbon photographs illustrating various lighting options demonstrated on the verso with illustrations, full page card insert containing two mounted woodburytypes illustrating before and after retouching, two full page cards containing carbon photographs, and finally a mounted lithograph, plus numerious in-text diagrams and illustrations. 8vo., bound in publisher's polychrome red cloth with an illustration of the sun and a camera. Paris: B. Tignol, 1884. Fourth Edition of this popular French guide to the latest photographic… Read More

1677. GARDENS DESIGNED BY LE NOTRE; FOUNTAINS BY LE BRUN AFTER AESOP; ENGRAVINGS BY SEBASTIEN LE CLERC PERRAULT, Charles. Labyrinte de Versailles. 34, [1], 79, [4] pp., with an engraved title-vignette (arms of France) and 41 full-page engravings by Sébastien Le Clerc. 8vo, 203 x 130 mm., bound in contemporary calf. Paris: Imprimerie Royale, 1677. First Edition. "Only a few copies are known of the 1677 first edition; and even the 1679 second edition is an extremely rare book" (Harvard, Philip Hofer Bequest, no. 38). The suite provides a contemporary pictorial record of the fountains in the famed Aesop labyrinth garden at Versailles, which was designed and planted by Le Nôtre between 1668 and 1674. Referred to as the most delightful garden created for Louis XIV, the complex maze of hedges sequestered wondrous fountains with coloured bronze fountains designed by Charles Le Brun as inspired by Aesop's fables. Unfortunately, during the reign of Louis XVI the Labyrinthe… Read More

1860. FREIH. VON BABO, A. et al. Landwirtschaftliche Tafeln. I. Obst-bau.; V. Dünger-lehre.; WITH: Otto Schmidt. VI. Wiesenbewässerung.; WITH: L.J. Melicher. VII. Die Bienenzucht.; WITH: Rudolf Abel. IIX. Gemüsebau.; WITH: Franz Willhem Hofmann. IX. Hopfenbau., X. Seidenraupenzucht.; WITH: J. Pitasch. XII Forstwirtschaft (Holzzucht).; WITH: J. Zenker. XIII. Forstwirtschaft (Forstbenützung). Each contains a large oblong folded, chromolithographed sheet (587 x 713 mm. each) in uniform printed pockets (205 x 120 mm. each), publisher's wrappers, in a new cloth folding box. Vienna: Anton Hartinger & Sohn, 1860's. Nine large decorative plates, accompanied by descriptive texts on forest maintenance, bee keeping, vegetable growing, fertilizer, meadow irrigation, and growing fruit, silk and hops. The illustrations were by the Austrian romantic painter Anton Hartinger who was also the publisher. In 1859 he had founded a lithography printing shop, which published… Read More