Paul SIGNAC Signed Autograph Letter

  
Paul SIGNAC (1863 - 1935), French painter. Autographed letter signed to the writer and art critic Armand Dayot. Antibes, Pointe Bacon, December 14, 1916; 3 folio pages on letterhead from the Société des Artistes Indépendants, with its envelope. A beautiful letter from Signac reflecting on the best possible collaboration between the painter and the upholsterer for the creation of a work in homage to Marseille: "Above all, do not think that I have forgotten the work you kindly asked me for, or that it is through negligence or carelessness that I have not yet presented anything to you. It would have been failing in the friendship I have for you, and you know me well enough not to accuse me of such a fault.

I have not ceased to think about this work - I have gathered all my documents to execute this panel 'Marseille'. I have drawn fish, shells, fruits, and flowers from Provence to frame the central motif, for which I have long sought the composition. What has stopped me is the realization.

As I believe I have told you, it seems illogical to submit to you a panel that your artists would merely copy; and we will achieve a much better result if they could interpret it with the wonderful resources - far superior to mine - of colors that they possess. For example: I want a beautiful orange.

I paint this fruit, on my board, with thirty touches of yellow, lemon, and yellow - to obtain as much color as possible (the superiority of division over flat hue). But each of these touches of pasty material is itself flat. Whereas in each of these touches, your artists could introduce a wealth of variety of elements through their dots, which would enhance each of these touches, resulting in a magnificence that could not be achieved by the exact copying of our color touches.

And how beautiful and just this collaboration between the painter and the upholsterer would be. These are the scruples that trouble and stop me, my dear friend: the desire for the best, which you do not blame, right? Please give me some advice, and I will do exactly what you indicate. And believe me, I sincerely want to respond to your generous and bold gesture by creating a work worthy of both of us - and of our dear country.

It is the best way I have to prove my love for it, and to you, my gratitude and my friendship.