PUVIS DE CHAVANNES, Pierre (1824–1898), Autograph Letter Signed “P. Puvisch”, to Hippolyte Durand-Tahier (1863–1899), Paris, May 1897.

1 page in-12 (130 × 110 mm).

Short, engaging letter in which Puvis de Chavannes asks Durand-Tahier to supply several of his “éphémères”, those small printed or manuscript pieces that were produced and destroyed almost immediately, for the benefit of a third party who had earlier received some “for their blessing” and now requires more.

“My dear friend,
inconsistency of the heart […], it is I this time who draw upon my troops by asking you to send me a dozen of those short ‘éphémères’ that are destroyed as soon as they are produced. I need them for someone employed in the […] to whom I had given some last year for their benediction, and who now feels anew drawn to you.
P. Puvisch.”

A charming note that reveals the artist’s wit and warm familiarity with Durand-Tahier, an intriguing figure who was both a collector and, under the name Paul Froment, a late-starting artist before his premature death at 36.