Paris: Chez L'Auteur, An VIII (1800). First edition. A student of Joseph Vernet, influenced by Claude Lorrain and Nicolas Poussin, Valenciennes was the most prominent French historical landscape painter of his day as well as being an original and influential theorist on the art of landscape painting. "In the late 18th century, Pierre-Henri de Valenciennes changed the tide for landscape painting in France. Like Poussin, he saw landscape painting as worthy of the status of history painting and worked to convince the Academy and his contemporaries. In 1800 he published a groundbreaking book on landscape painting, Elémens de perspective practique. The book emphasized the aesthetic ideal of the 'historic landscape,' which must be based on the study of real nature. The success of the book pushed the Academy to create a prize for 'historic landscape' in 1817. The next generation of French landscape painters would benefit greatly from Valenciennes' efforts." ["Brief History of the Landscape Genre," www.getty.edu]. Of particular importance in his treatise is its final chapter, devoted entirely to garden design. Valenciennes considered the landscape painter to be uniquely qualified for the design of gardens, and provides precepts to follow in creating them. His insistence on Nature as the primary model for landscape painting is echoed in his views on landscape gardening. The alignment or trimming of trees is completely rejected. The importance of respecting the requirements and opportunities of the individual site is continually stressed. Italian gardens are singled out for their picturesque qualities (Valenciennes spent much time there) and English gardens are also considered, though not without some criticism. Even such French picturesque gardens as the Petit Trianon, Bagatelle and the Désert de Retz are faulted, but with the allowance that with complete neglect and the passage of time they might arrive at a suitable imitation of Nature. Ermenonville, however, is regularly singled out for praise and seems to stand as the perfect example of the type of garden Valenciennes attempted to promote. 4to (25.7 x 20 cm); (ii) + xxxii + 644 + xii pp. + 36 folding engraved plates.

. The first state, before the number (of two). Vesme no. 841. Chone/Grivel. STEPHANO DELLA BELLA 1610-1664, no. 42-4. A richly evocative etching of Pan and Fame's grotto in the Renaissance Italian villa garden at Pratolino. The impression is a double view, presenting opposite ends of the grotto side by side. On opposite sides of the statue representing the river Mugrone are seen Pan playing his flute and Fame sounding her trumpet, both of them animated as hydraulic automatons. This is one of six views by Della Bella which depict this stunning Medici garden, created by the Florentine architect Buontalenti. "In terms of hydraulic wonders, the fountains and grottoes of Pratolino are surely the apogee... Buontalenti emerges as the foremost inventor of grottoes in Italy." (Miller HEAVENLY CAVES, pp. 47, 49) Impression measuring 25 x 37 cm; signed SD Bella between the two views

Rheims Imprimerie De Regnier. n.d. (ca. 1836). Full jury report for the first public art and industry exposition to be organised by the French Department of La Marne, one of the earliest such expositions to be limited to a specific department. The catalogue is marked as second edition. Rare. OCLC locates copies in two French libraries only. Bound in are two additional unrelated works: one by Ld. Charpentier entitled DES MOTIFS D'AMÉLIORER ET DE GÉNÉRALISER L'ÉDUCATION DES JEUNES FILLES. Mémoire qui a obtenu, en 1838, le Prix proposé par la société pour l'Instruction élémentaire. Paris: L. Hachette, 1838; a second one, without author, entitled CONFÉRENCES DES INSTITUTEURS DE L'ARRONDISSEMENT DE RHEIMS. 12mo (18 x 12 cm); 116 pp. ; 120 pp. + 2 folding charts; 16 pp.

Amsterdam: Pierre Mortier 1695. Thomassin was sent by Colbert to study in Rome for four years before returning to France in 1680 and becoming court engraver to Louis XIV. Among his first projects after his return was to draw and publish illustrations of all the sculpture, ancient and modern, used to decorate the palace and gardens at Versailles. The first edition of this work appeared in Paris in 1694. It was quickly reissued, in the edition offered here, by Pierre Mortier in Amsterdam. This Dutch edition includes the same text and plates, but adds a folding engraved plan of the gardens of Versailles and a translation of the text into Latin, Italian and Dutch. The plates depict not only the statuary, but also the fountains, hermae and vases distributed throughout the gardens. A rare second Paris edition with 26 additional plates was published in the same year as the first, but that edition also appeared without the garden plan. Ganay 37; Berlin Cat 4212. Small 4to (19.1 x 13.8 cm); 59 + (1) + (1) + (1) pp. + engraved title, 228 engraved plates, and a folding plan (49.5 x 32.5 cm).

Paris: Librarie Hachette, 1964. One of 150 copies on Velin de Rives, "Imprimé spécialement pour/ MONSIEUR ANDRE MALRAUX/Ministere D'État / Chargé Des Affaires Culturelles" signed and inscribed by the author, "Hommage de l'auteur". Menars, located on the Loire, began in the 17th century as a classical French garden and chateau. For a brief period (1760-1764), it served as the residence residence of Madame de Pompadour, who added her personal touch to the chateau with the help of architect, Jacques-Ange Gabriel. Following her death, her brother, the marquis de Marigny, engaged Jacques-Gabriel Soufflot to further develop the site. The exuberant drawings of Anne Français fill this colorful book with impressions of visits to Menars in winter and in spring. While leading the reader through the interior and exterior spaces, she often succeeds in demonstrating their interrelationship. Accompanying text offers an overview of the history of Menars. A very charming book, printed by Mourlot and entirely designed by Français, known venting the concept of "ionnisme" in painting. 8vo (25.5 x 18 cm); (ii) + (xiv) + 17-66 + (10) pp. with text illustrations on every page printed in color and black and white; author's signed presentation on the limitation page.

(Paris: chez Bance l'Ainé) n.d. ca. 1807. A rare suite of eight aquatint views of the gardens of the Tuileries at the beginning of the nineteenth century. They are as follows: Vue du Grand Bassin prise derrière la Statue de L'Automne; Bosquet des Lutteurs ; Méléagre, Allée des Orangers; Bosquet du Centaure Chiron; Palais des Tuileries a l'Entrée de l'Allée des Orangers; Apollon et Daphné; Vue prise près du grand Bassin; Escalier du Milieu de la Terrasse du cote de la Rivière. In addition to structures, large trees, edifices and ornaments, including sculpture, there are people, including children, in contemporary dress and, occasionally, animals, enlivening each scene. Two copies in CCFR are described as "8 estampes aquatint" and the BNF notes that the publication date is arrived at from the dates when the illustrated statues were known to have been present in the gardens. Rare as a complete set; OCLC records only one copy in the US (Dumbarton Oaks). Eight aquatint engravings, numbers engraved, excepting numbers 2 and 5, impressions measure 24 cm by 19 cm; bound together on stubs

N.P. The School Prints, Ltd. 1945. First Series, No. 4, of the very special post WWII print production enterprise, The School Prints, Ltd., that sought to bring original art work in the form of mostly auto-lithographic posters or prints featuring the work of contemporary artists into the classrooms of young students in Great Britain. The artist here, John Nash, perhaps better known for his work in wood-engraving, was " a countryman and passionate gardener...keenly observant of nature, particularly plants." (Selborne, Joanna. BRITISH WOOD-ENGRAVED BOOK ILLUSTRATION 1904 -1940. p.303) . He turned to lithography late in his career just in time to take part in the first series of this education- through- art project undertaken by Brenda Rawnsley and her advisers, including art education promoter Herbert Read ( see ARTMONSKY, Ruth. THE SCHOOL PRINTS A Romantic Project). The series was printed at the Baynard Press. In addition to his fine talent for botanical illustration, Nash possessed a great sense of humor about people. In this print, so appropriate for children, Nash portrays a comical but sweet lady dozing peacefully with her cat and her caged canary by her window sill full of potted geraniums Christmas cacti, amarylis, etc. In her own private garden, in fact. Red is the dominant color and all the other colors ( only 6 were permitted) are rich. The School Prints usually had decorative borders making it easier for schools to avoid the cost of framing. Here the artist's border is full with red and blue flowers, beautifully complementing the whole design. Single folio sheet (50 x 76 cm.); printed in color lithograph with decorative borders.