Magnet Toulouse-Lautrec - May Milton

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (1864 - 1901)
May Milton, 1895 Planographic , brush, crayon, spatter and transfer screen lithograph, printed in five colours on wove paper; 79.5 (h) x 62.0 (w) cm , final state. Signed and dated, lower left, printed from the stone in black ink, 'HTL 95' monogram National Gallery of Australia, Canberra

The singularly untalented young English woman, May Milton, danced briefly on stage in Paris as part of a performing troupe and then in a solo act. Despite her short career in the limelight, she was to become the subject of several of Lautrec's works, notably the painting Au Moulin Rouge 1892-95. Commissioned for her American tour, this remarkable poster of great simplicity and technical virtuosity ensured the performer would have lasting fame. It came to be known in Parisian circles when it was reproduced in Le Rire on 3 August 1895.
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