toxique – FTN-blog

Posted on 28.01.202102.10.2020 by ftnbooks — Leave a comment

Toxique by Bernard Buffet and Sagan (1965)

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In January 2017 i wrote a blog on Bernard Buffet and the different publications i had collected over the years. My personal favorit….TOXIQUE …with a text by Françoise Sagan and published by Souvenir in the english version in 1965. This is such a strong story and impressively illustrated by Buffet. Dramatic drawings for a dramatic subject of morphine addiction. Both versions are scarce. The 1964 french version even more than the 1965 english version, but whenever i find one i can not help buying it. This is a publication worth collecting and should be in the collection of any art book collector. These are scarce but i have found two copies for my inventory in the last 3 years and both are for sale , because i already have one for my personal collection.

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Posted on 21.08.201920.05.2019 by ftnbooks — 1 Comment

Bernard Buffet/ TOXIQUE and GIFT

Just a short blog on the 2 editions i now have in my inventory. There is a time difference of 2 years between them, but both are equally important. The first is the beautiful and impressive Toxique from 1964. A bold and important publication since it is one of the first books that makes in text and art the addiction to palphium /morphine visible. The art is among the best i know and the book reads like a graphic novel. The best is that the german edition from 1966 leaves the pages intact and only includes in the text the translation of the original french text by Sagan. Both can be recommended, but the purist will ofcourse chose the original french edition from 1964.Both editions are available at www.ftn-books.com

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Posted on 03.01.201712.02.2018 by ftnbooks — Leave a comment

Bernard Buffet and TOXIQUE by Sagan

Why Bernard Buffet in this blog. …an hour ago i was reflecting on my early youth and i remembered we had a reproduction of a Clown by Bernard Buffet hanging on the wall.

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In the early sixties, Buffet was one of the most famous young artists who was appreciated by the great public. A recognizable style and what is more important…. No abstraction what so ever. A stylized reproduction of reality in portraits, landscapes and still lives and made available for a large audience through reproductions .

This resulted in an overkill of Buffet’s on the market and meant his work was not in fashion for at least 3o years, but now this is changing. Large retrospectives are being held and one now realizes that his works are part of the evolution in Modern Art. One of his very best 60’s artist publications is TOXIQUE , By Francoise Sagan

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and available at www.ftn-books.com, but looking through the inventory and reading some of his older catalogues you must admire the very personal style of Bernard Buffet and understand why he is now considered as one of the great artists from the 20th century.