(Left) Georges Rouault, Cirque de l'étoile filante, Plate XV: Les Ballerines, printed 1938. Color etching and aquatint on paper, 12 3/8 x 8 1/8 in. The Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C. Acquired 1939 (Center) Georges Rouault, Cirque de l'étoile filante, Plate XVI: Auguste, printed 1938. Color etching and aquatint on paper, 12 3/8 x 8 5/8 in. The Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C. Acquired 1939. (Right) Georges Rouault, Cirque de l'étoile filante, Plate XVII: Dors, mon amour, printed 1938. Color etching and aquatint on paper, 12 3/8 x 8 1/2 in. The Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C. Acquired 1939. Photo: Amy Wike
After bidding adieu to Allan deSouza’s The World Series, the empty gallery space has been filled with French fauvist Georges Rouault‘s Cirque de L’Étoile Filante (Circus of the Shooting Star). Just as deSouza’s work elicited an interesting dialogue when viewed next to Lawrence’s series, the neighboring gallery again provides visitors with a thought-provoking comparison. Similar in certain aspects (format, year created, size), the two series differ greatly in content and method.
Several of Rouault’s panels include tutu–clad circus performers, adding a playful foil to Degas’s ballet dancers just a few galleries away.
Jacob Lawrence's The Migration Series and Georges Rouault's Cirque de L'Étoile Filante create an interesting conversation in neighboring galleries. Photo: Amy Wike