At the New Circus, Papa Chrysanthemum

Toulouse-Lautrec was among several Nabi artists commissioned to make about ten designs for stained glass to be produced in New York by Tiffany; stained glass played an important role at that time in the revival of interior decoration. In the L'Art Nouveau gallery in Paris, Lautrec's stained glass was displayed above the entrance leading into the area of the shop that sold Japanese objects. This was not surprising as Papa Chrysanthemum reveals a Japanese influence in its composition and curving lines, emphasized by the use of cloisonnism. The subject itself was taken from a Japanese-inspired ballet performed at the Nouveau Cirque in the rue Saint-Honoré in 1892. The stained glass received high praise from Jacques-Emile Blanche in the La Revue blanche: "The most astonishing of these pieces is probably that by M. de Lautrec who has managed to make the most beautiful and most modern decorative motif from a circus scene and a courtesan's hat ". But despite this praise from the critics, other opinions on the stained glass designs were less effusive. This work of bold composition and complex techniques make it a perfect example of the ambitions of the fledgling Art Nouveau movement. Amazing isn't it?