La Chaîne Simpson
1896 · Colour lithograph (poster) · Bibliothèque nationale de France, Paris
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About this work
- Artist
- Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (1864–1901)
- Year
- 1896
- Medium
- Colour lithograph (poster)
- Original size
- 87 × 124 cm
- Collection
- Bibliothèque nationale de France, Paris (department of Prints and Photography)
- Movement
- Post-Impressionism
A racing cyclist in blue leans over his machine, paced by a tandem, while the track curves away under a crowd and the English promoter Louis Bouglé, known as Spoke, stands in the foreground with the cycling pioneer Tristan Bernard. Toulouse-Lautrec designed the poster in 1896 for the Simpson lever chain, after a trip to London with Bouglé to see the chain raced; a first design was rejected because the chain was drawn wrongly. His enthusiasm for the velodromes of the 1890s shows in the lean of the rider and the speed of the yellow track. Printed by Chaix, Paris. The impression reproduced is in the Bibliothèque nationale de France.
This exhibition-poster edition shows the whole work beneath original typography set in-house. The original is in the public domain.
Where it works
A horizontal race scene in blue and yellow, for a garage, home gym, hallway or bike-lover's study at 16×24 or 24×36 in thin black, no mat. It suits a white or grey wall and pairs with Cycle Michael.
Style, size & framing detail
- Style
- Exhibition poster of a Post-Impressionism painting
- Era
- 19th century (1896)
- Orientation
- Portrait
- Palette
- cream & beige
- Mood
- decorative, sophisticated
- Rooms
- hallway or entryway, study or library, home gym, living room, dining room
- Good gift for
- housewarming, art lovers
Size. We'd hang this one at 16×24. Prints at 12×18, 16×24, 24×36 in — 12×18 for a shelf, desk or a gallery-wall grid; 16×24 above a desk, console or in a hallway; 24×36 as the statement piece above a sofa or bed.
Framing. Exhibition posters sit best in a slim black frame with no mat — the typeset margin is the mat.
Pairing. Pairs as a set of three with other famous painting prints (10% off three or more).
Details & materials
Shipping & returns
Is this the whole painting, or a crop?
Is La Chaîne Simpson in the public domain?
What is it printed on?
When was La Chaîne Simpson painted, and in what medium?
What size works above a sofa or bed?
About this design
The Madten promise
A fine-art print
The same artwork as a clean fine-art print — the image shown large with a minimal caption.
