The book art of Lucien Pissarro

"Lucien Pissarro, first son of the Impressionist artist Camille Pissarro, was a gentle man, shy and very quiet. Despite these qualities, and the clamorous orbit of artists around his father, Lucien grew to find his own voice." So begins the introduction to this stunning collection of wood engravings which Lucien created to illustrate the books his private press published. Lucien arrived in London just as the Arts and Crafts movement was gaining momentum. William Morris had just established his Kelmscott Press. Lucien saw the opportunity to combine his love of book making and illustration and founded the Eragny Press (named after Lucien's family home in Eragny sur Epte). The press ran for twenty years from 1894 to 1914 and published thirty-two titles (including works of Gustave Flaubert, Francis Bacon, Christina Rossetti, and John Keats) with more than 300 wood-engraved illustrations, borders, and fancy capitals. The press closed when World War I broke out but its legacy is a beautiful combination of the French impressionistic interest in color and light and the English aesthetic of Arts and Crafts design.