Exposition universelle, 1900 : the chefs-d'œuvre
A large-format 1900 art exhibition catalogue published in Philadelphia by G. Barrie & Son, reproducing paintings and prints from the Paris Exposition Universelle as photogravure plates for art collectors and students. The pictures are tonal reproductions of masterworks: a dense crowd of figures in a street scene, a shadowy figure beside a rock wall, and a sepia-toned mass of fighting or surging men, with some plates printed sideways. A designer might take the dramatic chiaroscuro, crowded group compositions, and warm brown monochrome tones as references for moody, high-contrast layouts.
