A Striker

Un Gréviste (original French title) Etching, roulette and drypoint printed in brown-black ink thick wove paper, before 1888. Reference: Bertin 45. Fourth state of seven, before the background gets darkened thoroughly. Based on our experience there must exist today 20 to 30 impressions of this print. There is no stated edition. Many impressions are found in museum collections (9 of which are owned by the Bibliothèque Nationale de France!! See HERE). Signed in the plate. A median fold, which was flattened, and his now hardly noticeable. NOTE: This is a self-portrait. Bertin mentions that the envelope that contained the plate was annotated "Le Nihiliste". Guérard liked whimsy and dark subjects. It is not surprising that he would depict himself as a striker or a nihilist. Based on the artist’s features, we assume this self-portrait was drawn around 1875 to 1880.