Butterfly or Moth Pochoir

This rare and remarkable, colorful pochoir lithograph is from Emile Alain Seguy’s Papillons. The folio plates were published in Paris in 1925.

The plates are beautifully composed and feature bold colors. The artist, Seguy, himself describes them as “un monde somptueux de formes et de couleurs” or a world of sumptuous forms and colors. He wanted to record exotic specimens with a highly aesthetic appeal to inspire designers. His style was greatly influenced by the Art Nouveau and Art Deco movements.

Seguy illustrated specimens from museums and private collections but presented them at 10 to 15 times magnification. In this way, he made stunning folio plates that revealed accurate intricacies of the speciments in a wonderful artistic and colorful display.