BEMELMANS, Ludwig (1898-1962). Miss Clavel, Madeline and pupils on the streets of Paris, original gouache, watercolor and ink drawing, signed ("Bemelmans") lower right [late 1950s or early 1960s].

BEMELMANS, Ludwig (1898-1962). Miss Clavel, Madeline and pupils on the streets of Paris, original gouache, watercolor and ink drawing, signed ("Bemelmans") lower right [late 1950s or early 1960s].

Twelve Little Girls in Two Straight Lines: a charming and large scene of Paris in springtime featuring Miss Clavel, Madeline, and her other charges. This drawing, apparently unpublished, is quintessential Bemelmans. It features his most beloved characters in a setting full of Parisian detail, e.g. an iron street lamp, another nun in cornette, and flowering trees. A view of Saint-Germain-des-Prés locates this scene in the 6th arrondissement, a neighborhood renowned for its cafes such as Les Deux Magots of Lost Generation fame.

596 x 435mm (sight size), gouache, watercolor and ink on tan paper. Matted, glazed and framed. Provenance: Hammer Galleries (inkstamp preserved on frame verso).