Erté (Romaine de Tirtoff) (Russian-French, 1892-1990), Design for Fantasia

Gouache on paper, signed at lower right, numbered and stamped to verso "Erté / Romain de Tirtoff / Composition Originale," framed under glass.

Sight size 10 x 7 1/4 in.; Frame dimensions 27 1/2 x 24 1/2 in.

Erté, born Romain de Tirtoff in St. Petersburg in 1892, was a Russian-born French artist and designer best known for his defining influence on the Art Deco movement. After moving to Paris in the early twentieth century, he developed a distinctive style characterized by elongated figures, elegant costumes, and refined decorative compositions. Erté worked across multiple disciplines including fashion illustration, costume and set design, sculpture, and graphic arts, and he maintained a long association with Harper’s Bazaar, producing more than two hundred covers between 1915 and 1937. His work shaped the visual language of luxury and modernity in the interwar period, and his imagery remains closely associated with the glamour and sophistication of Art Deco.

This iconic design by Erté was originally used for the July 1920 cover of Harper's Bazaar. Later editions based on Erté’s design, including a 1982 serigraph and 1991 bronze, were issued by Chalk & Vermilion Fine Arts who produced many of Erté’s authorized limited-editions and sculptures during the later years of his career.

Light toning and spotting to the sheet, not examined outside the frame.