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Maître Jean Emmanuel PRUNIER

72 - [POLAND] [AQUARELLES] Important watercolour album of "school…
See original version (French)

Estimate €150 - €300
Sale commission
Description
[POLAND] [AQUARELLES] Important watercolour album of "school souvenirs", dated from 1861 to 1870, probably made anonymously by a pupil of the Polish school of Batignolles in Paris. This album, illustrated with 64 original watercolours (including 2 on the cover), deals with various subjects relating to school life. One watercolour depicts the Szkoła Narodowa Polska, a Polish school founded in the Batignolles district of Paris to take in Polish children following the defeat of the insurgents in 1831, while a second shows Monsignor Stanislas Malinowski, headmaster of the same school, followed by a number of personalities from the school and the Polish community in Paris, such as Ignacy Kozikowski, the doormen, various teachers with their respective portraits, and so on. Most of the watercolours are captioned, and are often caricatures. A teacher is described as follows: "He has sinned a lot... he will be forgiven a lot..." or parents of pupils in the visiting room are described as "thrifty": "Yes, my dear, the pockets are going to be removed, it will be a great saving...". At a time when Poland was under Russian domination (the Kingdom of Congress), the 1860s were of particular interest because Poland was experiencing a political ferment with numerous patriotic demonstrations until the uprising of 1863, which led to heavy repression by the Tsar's army. It can be assumed that the Polish diaspora kept abreast of the situation and continued to support its homeland. It is against this very turbulent backdrop of the Russification of Poland that this notebook takes on a real documentary and historical interest, with the budding young artist making numerous references to the subject. One drawing shows history teacher M. Blot (1870) saying, "You're young! You are enthusiastic about the tyrant who buried nearly 2 million people under his column... What else did he do for your unfortunate country?" opposite a depiction of an Assumption Day parade captioned "Long live Poland!" or a depiction of Catherine II referring to the partition of Poland, Berezowski's attempt on the life of Tsar Alexander II in 1867 captioned "Sire! If it's against you, it's a Pole; if it's against me, it's an Italian...". As you read through this notebook, you can feel the evolution of its author, with the texts gradually shifting more and more from Polish to French, and becoming more and more politicised as they go along. In-8 oblong, 27x21cm, in fairly good condition, defects to the corners of the cover, minor traces of wetness in places, not serious.
See original version (French)
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About the sale Saturday 20 June 2026 - Drawing Books
Auction location
Auction time 06/20/2026 at 2:00 PM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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